Trumbo Swung to Arizona in Three Team Deal

"I'm going that-a-way."

There's been rumors for several days that the Los Angeles Angels were trying to deal first baseman/outfielder Mark Trumbo. Tuesday afternoon one of the rumors came true when Trumbo was sent to the Arizona Diamondbacks as part of a three team deal.  The Angels picked up left-handed pitchers Hector Santiago from the Chicago White Sox and Tyler Skaggs from Arizona. The Diamonbacks also sent outfield prospect Adam Eaton to Chicago.

Home runs (29, 32, 34) and RBI (87, 95, 100) increased each of the three years the 27-year old Trumbo played for the Angels, but so did his lack of contact. Trumbo struck out a career worst 184 times in 2013 and had an on-base percentage of .294. The Diamondbacks will look to Trumbo to add power to a lineup that relied heavily on Paul Goldschmidt last season. (The NL MVP runner-up hit 36 of the teams' 130 home runs.)

Eaton was supposed to make a major impact on the Diamondbacks lineup this past season, but an injured left elbow limited him to 66 games and he managed to produced just a .674 OPS. He'll compete with Avisail Garcia, Alejandro De Aza, and Dayan Viciedo for playing time in the White Sox outfield.

Skaggs was originally selected in the first round (40th overall pick) of the 2009 MLB amateur draft by the Angels. He was dealt to Arizona at the 2010 trade deadline as part of a package for veteran starter Dan Haren. The 6'5" left-hander made 13 Major League starts over the last two seasons with an ERA over 5.00, a WHIP of 1.412, and 7.4 strikeouts/9 IP.

Prior to the 2013 season he was named the 12th best prospect in baseball by Baseball American and MLB.com tapped him as the number 10 prospect. But after having success at the Double-A (13 starts) and Triple-A (9 starts) level in 2012, Bauer struggled in his first full year at the Triple-A level. He allowed more than a hit per inning and gave up 4.5 runs per game. A drop in velocity of Skaggs' fastball was considered to be the main reason for the drop in performance.

Santiago started, closed, and pitched middle relief during his three year stint with the White Sox. This past season he started 23 games and came out of the pen another 11 times. The Newark, New Jersey native can strikeout batters with the best of them (8.3/9 innings in '13), but also struggles with his command (72 walks in 149 IP). It's not yet known how the Angels plan to use him.

Hamilton Official to Halos

Go west not so young man; perhaps that was the calling Josh Hamilton heard when he decided to sign with the Los Angeles Angels. Or more likely it is because the Angels were the only team to offer Hamilton $25MM a year and a five year contract to boot.

It couldn't have hurt either that Hamilton's former Texas Rangers' teammate C.J. Wilson had signed a free agent deal with the Halos last season and probably reached out to him. Despite his production, teams were reluctant to give Hamilton too many years or too many millions to a player that has battled substance abuse, injuries, and prolonged slumps, several times. On the other hand he's still one of the most dangerous bats in baseball.

Hamilton hit 43 HR and drove in 128 runs in 143 games last season. His .930 OPS was second only to his 2009 AL MVP season when he finished with a league best 1.044.

Hamilton gets added to a lineup that already includes Albert Pujols, reigning AL Rookie of the Year Mike Trout, and Mark Trumbo, who averaged 30 HR and 91 RBI the last two seasons. The Angels also have a glut of outfielders even with Torii Hunter gone.

The Angels have said they don't want to deal Trumbo and neither Peter Bourjos nor Vernon Wells have much value right now. DH Kendrys Morales is said to be expendable and, on a frightening note if you are a Yankees fan, Ken Rosenthal wrote earlier today that his sources indicate the Yankees could be a destination for Wells. The two teams supposedly discussed it at the recent winter meetings.

The Yankees want a right-handed bat to platoon/fill in for Brett Gardner, Curtis Granderson, and Ichiro Suzuki. (If he returns as is expected.) Between 2002 and 2006, teams would have killed to get Wells, but not any more. Except for a comeback season in 2010 when he hit 31 home runs and drove in 88, he's done next to nothing and/or been hurt. Wells has had a sub .700 OPS in his two years in LA and is owed $42MM over the next two years. I wouldn't trade a half dozen donuts for him.

2 Bad Pitches Don't Spoil The Whole Game Girl

Russell Martin strokes game winner - courtesy of Buffalo News

If you hadn't known better you would have sworn tonight's game between the LA Angels and Yankees was being played on the left coast.

It was one of those typical games where the Yankees had a lead for most of the game, but then everything went to hell in the last few innings. This time around it was Hiroki Kuroda holding a 2-1 lead on his home mound in the 7th.

Had there been a full moon Friday night, you clearly would have seen a baseball pass by it, much like ET and his bicycle did many moons ago (no pun intended). The ball had launched off the bat of Angels' left fielder Mark Trumbo with two aboard and came back to Earth in the seats behind the Yankees bullpen. The Yankees suddenly were in a 4-2 hole and the once smooth sailing Kuroda had encountered choppy water. (The Trumbo home rnu was bad pitch #2 after hitting Kendrys Morales with a 1-2 pitch.)

It didn't get any better in the 8th when for some reason, Joe Girardi left Kuroda in the game and the Angels tacked on an insurance run on Albert Pujols' bloop double to right. But the Yankees had some magic of their own in the bottom of the 8th inning.

Derek Jeter started things off against lefty Scott Downs by lacing a double up the alley in right-center. Curtis Granderson, hitless against Downs in 12 career at-bats, worked a tough walk to bring Mark Teixeira to the plate as the tying run.

Teixeira had provided the first two Yankees runs with a bullet home run to left off Angels' starter C.J. Wilson in the 3rd inning. While that Teixeira home run got out in a hurry, his home run off Downs to tie the game was a high majestic shot to left field.

Downs finally retired Alex Rodriguez (who heard many boos on the night) and Robbie Cano, before he walked Nick Swisher to end his night on the mound. With right-hander Kevin Jepsen on the hill, pinch-runner Dewayne Wise swiped second base to put the go ahead run in scoring position. Angels' skipper Mike Scioscia decided to intentionally walk pinch-hitter Raul Ibanez to force Russell Martin and his sub-.180 batting everage into a clutch situation.

I'm sure I wasn't the only one wondering why Girardi didn't send Eric Chavez up to pinch-hit, but Girardi stuck with his catcher and his confidence was rewarded when Martin lashed a go ahead single to right. Martin wasn't done coming up big in the game though.

Rafael Soriano came on in the 9th to close things out, but Yankees killer Howie Kendrick reached on a one out single. Soriano retired Erick Aybar on a foul pop, but then uncorked a pitch in the dirt. Though pinch-hitter Maicer Izturis put up the hold sign, Kendrick took off for second base. Martin quickly got to the baseball and fired a strike to an awaiting Derek Jeter to end the ball game. A fired up Martin pumped his fist and celebrated a night in which he threw out three of four would-be base stealers in addition to his game winning hit.


Notes

The comeback would not have been possible had Swisher not robbed Trumbo of another home run in the 8th inning.

The Yankees signed Kosuke Fukudome to a minor league deal. The Japanse born veteran had been recently released by the Chicago White Sox after hitting just .171 in 24 games. The 35-yr old is in his 5th Major League season and has been on the decline since breaking in with the Cubs in 2008.

Austin Romine was expected to compete for a back up catching job on the Yankees at some point this season, but the 23-year old went down with a bad back in Spring Training. Romine returned to action Friday night with the GCL Yankees. He was 0-2 with an RBI and split the team's catching duties with Eduardo de Oleo.

Joba Chamberlain began his road back from a busted ankle and continued his recuperation from Tommy John surgery with a scoreless inning in Tuesday's GCL game. He's expected to pitch again this weekend.

Andy Pettitte will be getting his broken ankle x-rayed to see what progress has been made.

Mike Trout, with his family in Derek Jeter's private box, had another ho-hum night. Two hits, two steals, and a run scored. He's an incredibly dynamic player to watch.

Welcome to the House of Horrors: Part CCL

Step right up, step right up, for the greatest horror show on Earth. Enter at your own risk; for once you are inside the devishly Halo House of Horrors anything can happen, and probably will. There will be collisions, errors, hit batsmen, and maybe some blood. Mwahahahahahahahaha.

No one could blame the Yankees if they never wanted to play in Angels' Stadium ever again. It's actually been that way for a number of years. That spectres that used to haunt the Kingdome in Seattle apparently went south at some point and took up residence in Anaheim. It is a place where only Angels do not fear to tread.

Last night was another example of the weird, unexpected, and sometimes unexplainable happening with the Yaknees in town. It even affected the Angels, a normally sure handed team that committed three errors. Two of those errors had helped the Yankees to a 3-0 lead in the top of the 1st inning. A frame that saw Angels start Jered Weaver wrench his frame on a delivery and was forced to leave the game with a bad back.

But this is the House of Horrors and it was for Yankees starter Phil Hughes, who grew up a spitting distance from the mound he strode last night and whose parents watched in horror as he imploded on said mound. Hughes gave up the lead immediately, leaving one pitch up in the zone for the Angels to hammer. A 3-0 lead was suddenly and swiftly a 4-3 deficit.

Curtis Granderson's solo home run off of Bobby Casseveh tied things right back up in the 2nd, but the horror struck in the 3rd. Mark Trumbo's deep fly to right center was perfect placed between Granderson and right fielder Nick Swisher. Earlier, Granderson caught a similar ball behind Swisher. The second time around wasn't so sweet; as Granderson gloved the ball, Swisher slammed into him and jarred the ball loose. Thankfully that's all that got jarred loose as both players got to their feet.

Trumbo pulled into third with a gift triple and scored the go ahead run on Howie Kendrick's sac fly. An inning later rookie standout Mike Trout hit a big fly for a 6-4 Angels lead.

Red hot Mark Teixeira got one run back with his fourth home run in as many games, but Kendry Morales' 2-run double in the 6th extended the Angels lead to 8-5.

Hughes, who seemed to have turned a corner in his last four starts, lasted just 5.1 innings, allowed seven runs, and a career high 11 hits. He got off the hook tough when Russell Martin's 2-out, 2-run double in the 7th capped a three run inning to tie things up at eight.

But this is the House of Horrors and that means the Angels get the last horrific last. It came in the person of Trumbo, who slugged a walk off solo home run off of Corey Wade to start the last half of the 9th. Another game in Anaheim. Another horror show.