Tuesday Halolinks: Great Trade! Who'd We Get?

Halos Heaven's first post-Mathis Halolinks:

• I thought the Angels had traded Mathis for Scioscia's replacement. But seriously, I'd like to say to Jeff Mathis, thank you for doing your best during your tenure with the Angels and good luck with your new team.
  
• Here's something from "the guy who replaced Lyle" at mlb.com, Angels wrapup from day one of the Winter Meetings - angels.com. "Asked about paying Wilson something higher than the five-year, $85 million extension Jered Weaver signed in August, Dipoto said that thought would "certainly create some hesitancy."" My question would be, "Why?" Weaver is represented by Scott Boras, who I'm sure let Weaver know what his value would be if he hit free agency. It was Weaver's decision to take less money to stay in Anaheim, so why would he be upset if the Angels were to pay another pitcher more? Of course, it's all an assumption that he'd even get upset, but that's what it seems the hesitancy is stemming from. If Weaver's team-friendly contract is going to hamper the Angels in signing other high-priced free agents, the club may save some cash, but won't seem too team-friendly in the long run.
  
• The big (only) news regarding Angels' baseball: C.J. Wilson's agent plans to meet with Angels again this week - latimes.com. "Garber (Wilson's agent) said upon arriving at the winter meetings Monday that he "absolutely" planned to meet again with the Angels, and there were indications the sides were in serious talks late Monday. " Wouldn't it be funny if the Angels signed Roy Oswalt (also Garber's client) instead of Wilson? All this time, people were speculating that the hub-bub was over C.J., while Oswalt slips in under the radar. Within the same storyline, it's interesting how two people could have completely different stories about the same situation: Angels’ Dipoto looking for starter, not closer - The Orange County Register. "(Heath) Bell told reporters that he had an offer from the Angels but it was for one or two years, not the commitment he got from the Marlins. Dipoto said that claim was not accurate. "We have not made an offer to any ninth-inning guy."" I think I'm more likely to believe DiPoto, only because Bell can't remember if the Angels' offer was for one or two years...kind of an important detail.
  
• If the Halos were in the market for a ninth-inning guy, our friends at Over the Monster have a pretty good rundown of some free agent closers: Solving The Closer Problem - Over the Monster
• Sam Miller with his take on Day 1 of the Winter Meetings: A Winter-Meetings Monday’s worth of Angels rumors - The Orange County Register.
• Listening to smart people is simply...smart. For awhile now, I've thought the Tampa Bay Rays were a smart organization, so when I read they were interested in Josh Willingham (UPDATE: Rays negotiating with free agent Josh Willingham - HardballTalk), it made me wonder why. What's so special about Josh Willingham? And then I read, "He set career highs with 29 homers and 98 RBI in what was likely his lone season with the A’s in 2011, but his .810 OPS was actually his worst mark in his six years as a regular." A quick look at his B-Ref page shows that he's averaged a 121 OPS+ over his 8-year career. And he was paid "just" $6M last season! So, just like Tony Reagins last season while looking for someone to play left field, I completely missed the boat on Willingham.
• Hey, did you know those guys running around on the field not only get all of the hot women, they make a decent amount of money! APNewsBreak: MLB avg salary up 2.7 pct to $3.1M - MLB - Yahoo! Sports. "Among regulars at positions, designated hitters took over as the highest average at $9.3 million, followed by first basemen at $8.9 million." Isn't interesting that the two least demanding position get paid the most? Here's what those salaries look like to guys who make cool graphs:A Graphic Look at MLB Contracts, the 100 Milli Club - Beyond the Box Score
• Learn it, Use it, Live it: Simple WAR Calculator — Wahoo's on First. "How to use the Simple WAR Calculator: 1. Click "Click to Edit" in the top-right corner of the box. 2. Fill in the yellow boxes. 3. That's it!"
• Darren Oliver Headed Back To Rangers - MLB Daily Dish. Next to that guy who sometimes catches, sometimes plays first base, all the time forgets to button his jersey, Darren Oliver is still a favorite "former Angel, now a Ranger".