The "Wright" man for the job? (Howard Smith-US PRESSWIRE)

Fortunately, that’s where I excel. My business card includes the phrases “wild and careless” and “pick me for a free lunch.” If anybody knows where a Bennigan’s is still open, my treat.

The Angels have had a weakness at third base since Troy Glaus, and to a lesser extent, Chone Figgins, departed. That’s the perception, at least. Alberto Callaspo‘s 3.6 fWAR (Fangraphs wins above replacement) was tied for fifth best among all qualified third baseman in 2011. But a .234/.279/.281 slash to start 2012 and the Angels decision to give Mark Trumbo time to butcher the hot corner like he starred in Gangs of New York, doesn’t bode well for his future as the Angels third bagger.

Which leads me back to the protagonist of this post, David Wright. Wright struggled with a stress fracture and a power outage in 2011 but has rebounded nicely in 2012. The Mets star is hitting .375/.479/.552 in his first 117 plate appearances this year. Sure, I don’t think the .429 BABIP (batting average of balls in play) is sustainable either but Wright has looked better at the plate. Wright has already posted a 1.7 fWAR in 2012 after a 1.9 fWAR for all of the 2011 season.

The Mets own a $16 million club option on Wright for 2013 but that disappears if they trade him. So a deadline (or earlier) deal would make Wright a free agent at season’s end which would decrease his trade value. Chris Cwik made an argument at Frangraphs that Wright could be in line for a 6-year, $100 million extension. That is a steep price. The Mets might be willing to go that far to keep a face of their franchise around after Jose Reyes relocated to Miami this past offseason.

The Angels might be willing to spend that much, too. Owner Arte Moreno committed over $300 million on one day to sign Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson. Moreno did just sign a new $3 billion TV deal with Fox. So buying Pujols was like you treating yourself to a large Blizzard from the DQ after you win $20 from a scratch off. The Halos, however, still aren’t scoring enough runs to support their vaunted starting pitching staff.

Would the Angels throw another $100 million at Wright? Torii Hunter‘s $18.5 million comes off the books next year along with the $9 million the Angels are paying Bobby Abreu to not play for them. But a lot of other players are getting raises and *shutters* Vernon Wells still gets almost 25 million free dollars. So the Angels might not have the cash to give Wright the extension he’ll be looking for.

Of course, the other problem is the Angels would have to send the Mets a package of prospects/players to acquire Wright. GM Jerry Dipoto might have made this easier after signing 2B Howie Kendrick and SS Erick Aybar to four year extensions. That leaves the Angels top non-pitching prospect, Jean Segura, effectively blocked. Segura can play 2B and SS, positions the Mets aren’t exactly overflowing with possibilities. Landing Wright, though, would probably cost the Angels one of their top pitching prospects, Garrett Richards or John Hellweg come to mind, as well.

Back to the title of this post, it is just some good, old fashioned, wild and careless trade speculation but it does bring up a good “who would hang up first” scenario. Plus, if I start a trade rumor that actually happens, the baseball blogger union gives me a 14 cent per year raise and I’m so close to affording that pack of Skittles I’ve had my eyes on. So here it begins, I’m completely and unfoundedly (might not be a real word) starting the Jean Segura/John Hellweg based package to the Mets for David Wright rumor.

Bobby Abreu will be looking for a role with the Angels in 2012 Photo Credit: Fox Sports

With the addition of Albert Pujols at first base this off-season, the Angels found themselves with a surplus of hitters in certain areas. Pujols immediately displaced the first baseman from last season, second-year slugger Mark Trumbo. Trumbo has been seeing limited work this spring at third base and has been named as a candidate for the DH role early in the season. The first baseman before Trumbo, Kendrys Morales, looks to be coming back this season after missing most of 2010 and all of 2011 with a broken leg, and is being looked to as the main designated hitter for 2012, with possible stints in the field when Pujols needs a day off. That makes last years designated hitter, Bobby Abreu, the odd man out it seems. He doesn’t hit for power like the other DH candidates and is not good enough defensively to crack a deep outfield roster. So what are the Angels going to do with him?

As the designated hitter last season, Abreu was less than stellar. He hit just .253 with an SLG of .365 and OPS of .718. He hit just 8 home runs, failing to hit for double digit homers for the first time in his career since becoming an everyday player in 1998. His biggest asset last season was his ability to take pitches, driving up pitch counts and forcing opposing pitchers to throw strikes to get him out. He also provided the Angels with a left-handed bat, which is something they are still light on.

However, the other options at DH just offer too much more for the lineup for Abreu to fill the position again this season. Trumbo is coming off a rookie season in which he led the team in home runs and RBIs, but saw his OBP drop below .300 and spent the off season recovering from a stress fracture in his foot. At just 26, Trumbo will look to improve on those numbers. Morales was an MVP candidate the last time he finished a season. If the switch hitter can return to that form in 2012, he’ll have a strangle hold on the DH position (though he won’t get nearly the consideration for MVP). Either player offers a more potent option at DH than the 37-year old Abreu.

The Angels seemed to feel the same way about their DH position, and just spent several weeks trying to package Abreu in a deal that would trade him to New York in exchange for A.J. Burnett. That deal fell apart when Burnett used his limited no-trade clause to block any trade to the West coast and the Angels kept the $9 million contract of Abreu heading into Spring Training. It’s difficult to imagine too many other potential trades for the aging slugger, as his diminishing numbers at the plate, advanced age, and high price tag won’t make him an attractive commodity to too many teams.

Working in Abreu’s favor as far as his future with the club may be his left-handed bat. One of the weaknesses of the Angels’ lineup last season was the lack of left-handed hitters outside of Abreu. This season, they are still a predominantly right-handed club, with the exception of switch hitting Kendrys Morales. The Angels are relying heavily on Morales to provide power from the left side of the plate, but may want to keep Abreu’s bat around for situations where his lefty bat would come in handy. This, along with his untradeability make it seem like he’ll be a Halo for at least one more season.

But do the Angels really need three designated hitters on their roster? If Trumbo doesn’t work out at third (which will be a big surprise if he does), then DH and spot starts in the outfield will probably be his role with the team, the same role Abreu will be in. While it would be great to hold onto the big bat of Trumbo and teach him to be more selective at the plate to boost his OBP, his youth, power, and minimal price tag will probably make him a more attractive piece of trade bait. If the third base experiment fails, expect the Angels to start shopping Trumbo (while also continuing to shop Abreu), and I expect the market for a 26-year old first baseman with legitimate power to be more welcoming than the one for a 37-year old former slugger who saw his offensive production fall off a cliff last season. For better or worse, it looks like the Angels are stuck with Abreu for at least one more year.

A’s lefty pitcher Gio Gonzalez might not leave the AL West during Oakland’s current fire sale. I guess it’s a fire sale. I’m not sure what you call it when you trade your young, under-control pitchers but that’s what the A’s are doing. Oakland already moved 23-year-old Trevor Cahill, signed through 2015 with 2016-2017 team options, to Arizona earlier this month for a package headlined by Jarrod Parker. Gonzalez and closer Andrew Bailey appear to be the next players shipped out of Oakland and both are first time arbitration eligible for 2012.

Gonzalez, 26-years-old, won’t be a free agent until 2016 and has a 3.17 ERA in 402.2 innings over the past two seasons. After losing staff ace C.J. Wilson to those pesky Angels, the Rangers are thought to be looking for a starting pitcher. Gonzalez naturally looks like a fit…

The Rangers, however, could be in play, considering they have top prospect Mike Olt and the A’s are looking for a future third baseman, notes FOXSports.com’s Jon Paul Morosi. However, as ESPN.com’s Buster Olney says, 20-year-old Rangers lefty Martin Perez would “almost have to be” included in a deal between the A’s and Rangers.

The Monday night news has the Nationals in heavy pursuit of Gonzalez. The Rangers might get more aggressive on Gonzalez if they lose out on Japanese pitcher Yu Darvish as expected [Ed. Or Not?!?!]. A fluid situation, indeed, as I suspect Billy Beane only watches soccer now and a mid-1990′s bubble Mac is actually running the A’s front office.

I certainly wouldn’t mind if Gonzalez left the AL West. Since 2008, the Angels have hit .214/.260/.332 against Gonzalez. The less I have to see of him pitching against the Angels the better. It doesn’t matter how cool I think the name “Gio” is.