Day Two Winter Meeting Stuff:
- Looks like Mark Whicker will be shopping for a new wardrobe: MLB bans visible undergarments, muscle shirts, more in dress code for media members - ESPN. "Banned are sheer and see-through clothing, tank tops, one-shouldered or strapless shirts or clothing exposing bare midriffs. Also listed in the guidelines are skirts, dresses or shorts cut more than 3-4 inches above the knee." Okay I know, that was a cheap shot, but what the hell, we're just a blog network who can't get accreditation from the Baseball Writers Association (probably because of wise-cracks like this). Congratulations to FanGraphs: The BBWAA grants FanGraphs accreditation, denies SB Nation - HardballTalk. "The Baseball Writers Association of America just had their annual meeting. At that meeting they consider new applications for membership and reconsider old ones. They just did it with Fangraphs and SB Nation: accreditation granted to the former, denied to the latter." Damn, and here I was looking forward to hanging out with however AngelsWin had sold their credentials to.
- Waiting for the king of the Winter Meetings: Albert Pujols holds baseball hostage while choosing between Miami Marlins, St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Angels - FOX Sports. "And the revelation of the Angels’ interest in Pujols, reported by my colleague Ken Rosenthal, raises the following question: If the Angels like the 31-year-old Pujols, then why not pursue the 27-year-old Fielder, too?" Good question. If the Angels are legitimately interested in Pujols, would they be interested in Fielder if Albert signs elsewhere? Is another Angels-Pujols link for you to ponder: Angels linked to Albert Pujols at Winter Meetings, but club's plans unclear - angels.com. "On several fronts, Pujols is not Los Angeles' prime need. The Angels already have a promising young first baseman in Mark Trumbo and a recovering one in Kendrys Morales, and earlier in the day, manager Mike Scioscia said he'd prefer to add a starting pitcher over a bat. But it also makes sense for one very simple reason -- it's Albert Freaking Pujols." Here's the link the writer is referring to when he mentions Scioscia: Angels Manager Mike Scioscia can't get enough pitching - latimes.com. "We need to get stronger pitching," Scioscia said." The need for more pitching would make this Rosenthal tweet seem pretty lame: Ken_Rosenthal: #Angels already drawing trade interest in E. Santana in anticipation of possible C.J. Wilson signing.
- An okay post trying to find the truth about Pujols' age: Pujols, Age, and the Midwest League - FanGraphs Baseball. "The whispers and innuendo will always be there, but in terms of facts, I just don’t see many to suggest that Pujols is actually older than he claims.
- A look at one of the front-office new guys: Angels executive Scott Servais has an eye for talent - latimes.com. ""You have to get to know your own players better than anyone else's. You can make mistakes when you don't know your players well enough. Sometimes you trade the wrong guys, or maybe you don't give enough guys a chance."" Where was this guy last season?? Oh well, at least he's here now.
- CBSSports has a series show what eachteam would look like if they made no trades or signed any free agents, today is the Angels turn: Homegrown Team: Los Angeles Angels - CBSSports.com. "While this team certainly isn't terrible, I feel like it's worse than 86 wins. Maybe they could approach .500, but there's just not enough here to be a playoff contender in this fictitious exercise." I haven't read much of the other teams' write-ups in this series, but looking at where the Halos would be if they hadn't made any moves leaves me with a touch more respect for the previous regime. A little.
- Here are a couple tid-bits on Kendrys Morales and Mark Trumbo: Morales update sounds familiar - The Orange County Register. ""The doctors really have no way of knowing and we have no way of knowing until you get out there and start to do the things you need to do to play first base at the major-league level and swing the bat and run the bases at the major-league level." And then it's confirmed, Trumbo will be tried at third base: Manager Mike Scioscia: Spring Training true test for Kendrys Morales - angels.com. ""Now, he's become a very proficient first baseman, and hopefully that comfort level -- catching a ground ball and the activities you need to play there -- will translate over to third base, to where he'll maybe be a little bit better than he was when he first tried it seven or eight years ago.""
- And in case the Trumbo to third experiment fails: UPDATE: Phillies out of hunt for Aramis Ramirez - HardballTalk. "Danny Knobler of CBS Sports reports that the Phillies have dropped out of the bidding for Aramis Ramirez, leaving the Brewers and Angels as the top contenders to sign the third baseman." It seems like the Brewers are the real leaders in the Ramirez race, which would allow them to deal Casey McGehee to the Angels!
- Texas keeps taking stuff from California: Greetings from Day 3 of the Winter Meetings - HardballTalk. "In-N-Out in Dallas? Who knew? Baseball writers, that’s who. You could put them on an island in some far flung sea and they’d be able to find an In-N-Out Burger. It’s just what they do."