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ALBERTO CALLASPO RE-ACQUIRED Angels 2010 Top Ten #9

The Angels traded minor league prospect Alberto Callaspo for pitcher Jason Bulger back in 2006. On July 22 of 2010, they reacquired Callaspo from the Royals for pitcher Sean O'Sullivan and minor league pitching prospect Will Smith.

News broke on Halos Heaven in a fanshot posted by daze: LINK

Callaspo is about the definition of a league average player. He is still young and affordable. He is not a superstar, which is why this move is #9.  But this move told many stories. It was an admission by the front office that Brandon Wood would never be a regular major league starter with the team. It revealed that the front office had a basic grasp on seeing a league average player slotted into any position was an immediate improvement over an underproducing washout. It was an attempt to do something, anything to salvage a season that was slowly sinking away from the team. Callaspo was not a superstar who would carry the team on his back, but he was the guy who would dig the lineup out of one of its many deep holes.

More poetically, Callaspo's first game as an Angel was the final appearance of Joe Saunders on the team.The former Provo Angels teammates were two ships passing in a much bigger ocean in the summer night. The team was six games behind Texas when the trade happened. The season did not get salvaged, but Callaspo did produce at a higher level than the 3B position had produced in the 98 games before his Angels debut.