Out Of Bounds: Calling All Angels

The 110th annual Baseball Winter Meetings wrapped up on Thursday in Dallas, TX, after four consecutive days of both excitement and chaos. This year’s free agency class is arguably the most captivating one in recent memory and some of the deals made so far this offseason have been very intriguing. While some contracts were agreed upon before this event started, such as Jonathan Papelbon singing a four-year, $50 million contract with the Phillies and CC Sabathia agreeing not to opt-out of his contract with the Yankees, the transactions made in Dallas left us all in anticipation for the season to begin.

As one of baseball’s finest shortstops, Jose Reyes decided to ditch the pathetic Mets in favor of the Miami Marlins. Also a reggaeton musician and owner of the record label EL7 Music, Reyes made the first big splash last week when he signed a six-year, $106 million deal. It’s a good move for the squad so long as Reyes doesn’t get hurt nearly as much as he did in New York. He’s missed 191 games the past three years and with a history of medical problems, the deal is risky. But the team is moving into a new stadium this spring and they needed to do all they could to finally put some fans in the stands. The Marlins also landed a solid starter in Mark Buehrle, the innings-eater who will once again be paired manager Ozzie Guillen. The usually frugal Marlins have surprised everyone and decided to go full-throttle this year by giving Buehrle $58 million over the next four years while also bringing in Heath Bell, the ex-Padre who saved 132 games over the last three years. For a team that had a payroll of $57 million last year, it’s expected to climb to more than $100 million this year. Without a doubt, the team is going to be one of the best in the NL this season—it’s just a shame they have to wear those horrific new uniforms.

While the Marlins appeared to be the most dominant team at the beginning of the meetings, the Los Angeles Angels Of Anaheim swooped in and shocked the world when the signed the best available hitter, Albert Pujols, and the best pitcher, C.J. Wilson. Pujols, the greatest slugger over the past decade, traumatized the Cardinals by leaving them in favor of the Angels. It’s incredibly surprising to see him leave St. Louis considering they just won the World Series a few months ago. The three-time MVP was also the most beloved icon that the city has ever had. But all that matters now is that Babe Ruth’s heir apparent will be playing in the AL, and as long as he stays relatively healthy over his 10 year, $254 million contract, he’s going to shatter every power-hitting record in baseball. The number one starting pitcher available, Wilson, was inked for five years and $77 million. The team now has a fantastic rotation and a decent lineup led by Phat Albert. Expect to see the club hovering around 95-100 wins this year.

The Yankees, who of course have unlimited resources, have been relatively quiet so far this offseason. They won 97 games last season, most in the AL, and aren’t losing anybody except for the aging Jorge Posada, so they really don’t have much to complain about. But while the backend of their pitching staff is strong, their rotation could still use some work. Sabathia is always a monster and Ivan Nova stepped up big last year. Freddy Garcia, however, isn’t getting any younger, Phil Hughes is seemingly always injured and A.J. Burnett, well, is A.J. Burnett. The belief is that they still might try and bring in another starter or two before the season begins though. As far as position players go, the young phenom Jesus Montero will play a larger role this year while the team won the right to negotiate a contract with Japanese shortstop Hiroyuki Nakajima.

The Mets, however, are on a downward spiral while still maintaining one of the highest payrolls in the majors. They let Reyes walk away without offering him a contract, but with his recent history, it would’ve been a gamble to give him the money he got from Miami. They dished Angel Pagan off to the Giants and have now brought in outfielder Andres Torres as well as relievers Ramon Ramirez, Jon Rauch and Frank Francisco. Nothing groundbreaking but it’s basically a short-term fix. Don’t worry about a collapse this year, Mets fans, because unless they make some serious changes, they’ll be struggling to find any wins. They’re still hampered with mega contracts from the underachieving Jason Bay and oft-injured ace Johan Santana.

To quickly recap, the Miami Marlins started the week off by flexing their muscles and finally spending some money and they now have a revamped lineup and a brand new stadium. But the Angels ended the week with a bang, and now that they’re led by Pujols, Jered Weaver and Wilson, they appear to be one of the best teams on paper. And now that the meetings are over, it just means that we’re one step closer to the start of baseball season.