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Several baseball executives would be "surprised" if the Los Angeles Angels hang on to outfielder Vernon Wells when he returns from the disabled list, and Joel Sherman of the NY Times believes the Pittsburgh Pirates could be a good fit:
Also multiple execs say be surprised if #Angels keep Wells as 5th OF off DL. Problem: Has about $52M left thru '14 and LAA would (con)
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) July 27, 2012
would have to eat almost all. 1 GM mentioned #Pirates as place for RHH OF like Wells. Maybe doing something with Correia and big sum of cash
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) July 27, 2012
It was reported yesterday that the Angels were "spreading the word" that they would rather trade the veteran outfielder than keep him on as a fifth outfielder.
With Mike Trout and Mark Trumbo now firmly entrenched in the Angels' outfield -- and Peter Bourjos as a much younger, cheaper fourth outfielder option -- the 33-year-old Wells has found himself out of a job in spite of his steep paycheck.
The Pirates have been in search of an outfield bat for some time, but have found their solution internally in the young Starling Marte, who made his major league debut yesterday. In addition to the Pirates, the Cleveland Indians and Los Angeles Dodgers could also be players for the aging outfielder.