Five Players Who Will Be Keys To LA Angels Success in 2017?

The 2017 season is six weeks away, but Spring Training starts today for the LA Angels as pitchers and catchers are reporting to Tempe today for the first workouts of the Spring.  Who will be the most important players in 2017?

Baseball is a team game that takes a group of players to help a team be successful.  The LA Angels are the same. However all teams have some players who they sink or swim with and the LA Angels are no exception this. There are some players that the Angels will need good years from in order to be a pennant contender.

In this post we will look at some of the players that I feel are just a little more important than others.  To me what makes a player important is what he does for the team on a daily or weekly basis (starting pitchers).  This is both what they do on the field, and what they do off the field in the clubhouse. On the flip side of this is how much it would hurt the team if they are injured and they cannot perform at the level they usually do.

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In 2016 you saw how much the LA Angels were hurt by the lost of its two top starters Garrett Richards and Andrew Heaney.  The loss of Huston Street was also very evident as the bullpen was in disarray for the first half of the season.

Finally the absence of C.J. Cron and Andrelton Simmons for about six weeks a piece hurt the club somewhat as well.  With this said let’s look at the players that are key to the team’s 2017 success.

Garrett Richards –

Garrett Richards is the new ace of the Angels pitching staff and has been when healthy over the past four years.  The words “When Healthy” are key as Richards has miss parts of two seasons, last year and in 2014.

Last year Richards season ended on May 1st, as he came out of his start against the Texas Rangers in what was then described as fatigue.  It was later diagnosed as a UCL tear in his right elbow. Richards decided to undergo stem-cell injections where platelets were injected in hopes of repairing the UCL so that he did not have to undergo Tommy John Surgery.

The procedure worked for Richards as he is on track to be ready for the start of the 2017 season which will be a huge lift for the Angels pitching staff.  Last year the staff was decimated by injuries to both starters and key relievers.  In addition to Richards, starters Andrew Heaney (one start) and Nick Tropeano who missed about half the season with a UCL tear.

Both Tropeano and Heaney opted for Tommy John Surgery which will keep them out a minimum of 18 months which will hopefully have them ready by the beginning of the 2018.  This is why it is even more imperative that Richards returns to help bolster a staff that by the end of last season was down to a mish-mosh of arms.

In the starting five at season’s end the Angels had an untested rookie (Alex Meyer), a journeyman pitcher (Daniel Wright), a pitcher trying to resurrect his career(Ricky Nolasco), a pitcher coming back from Tommy John Surgery (Tyler Skaggs) and a veteran pitcher winding down his Angels career (Jered Weaver).

This year Richards leads the staff with veteran Matt Shoemaker and Tyler Skaggs right behind him, followed by Ricky Nolasco.  The fifth starter spot is still up for grabs with Jesse Chavez who was signed in the off-season as well Meyer, Wright, and possibly non-roster invitee Bud Norris.

However, Richards is the key to the staff being success.  The Angels need him to be durable and get 15-17 wins with an ERA under 3.70 and provide the team with a go to guy and a streak breaker when needed.  The Angels may be somewhat careful with Richards early in the season to make sure he is fully recovered before totally turning him loose without restrictions such as pitch count or an innings limit.

Kole Calhoun –

Last season Kole Calhoun slumped mightily during the middle of the season going 32 games without a home run.  Calhoun righted his ship somewhat down the stretch, but the season as a whole was somewhat disappointing after his 2015 campaign.

In 2015 Calhoun a breakout year smacking a career-high 26 homers and driving in 83 runs which was also a career-best.  Calhoun also won his first Gold Glove for his defense in right field in 2015.  The only negative was a career-low .256 batting average.

With that kind of performance there were high expectations for Calhoun in 2016 and “The Red Baron” started out strong having a solid first three months of the season and he was looking like he could be a fringe contender to make the All-Star squad.

On June 25th Calhoun had 10 home runs and 40 RBI’s with a .292 batting average, but that is when Calhoun went into his longest homerless streak of his career.  From June 26th until August 9th which was a period of 35 games Calhoun went homerless.  His batting average dropped to .266 during that time and he drove in only 12 runs during that span.

In the last two months of the season Calhoun hit eight homers and drove in 25 runs and raised his batting average slightly raising it up to .271.  For the season Calhoun hit 18 homers while driving in 75 runs and hitting .271. He did not win the Gold Glove either, but his defense wasn’t bad.

The Angels need Calhoun to bounce back in 2017 and be more consistent throughout the season and set the table for Mike Trout if Calhoun is again placed in the number two spot in the line-up before Trout.

The type of numbers the Angels will hope for from Calhoun is .280 average with around 25 homers and 90 RBI’s and continued stellar defense in the outfield. Since Calhoun is a left-handed hitter with some power he is even more valuable. Let’s see if Calhoun is up for the challenge.

Tyler Skaggs – LHP

Tyler Skaggs was an up and coming pitcher in 2013 when the Angels traded Mark Trunbo to the DIamondbacks to get him and Hector Santiago.  However after half a season in the Angels rotation Skaggs tore his UCL in his left elbow and had Tommy John Surgery.

It took Skaggs almost two full years to return to the big leagues which he did on July 26th in Kansas City last season. Skaggs pitched amazingly shutting out the Royals for seven innings allowing only three hits and striking out five batters. His next start was almost as good when he shutdown the Boston Red Sox for 5.1 innings allowing only four hits while striking out eight batters.

Unfortunately the last two months of the season Skaggs struggled to find consistency.  He ended his season with a 3-4 record and a 4.17 ERA in 10 starts.  Skaggs also survived a late season scare when felt pain in his left elbow again.  Luckily for Skaggs and the Angels it was just some residual pain and he was able to make one last abbreviated start before the season ended.

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Skaggs is now ready to go and hopes to be able to pitch a full season for the first time in his career.  He is the only lefty in the starting rotation.  With all the injuries to the starters in 2016, the Angels will rely   on Skaggs and Richards as well as Matt Shoemaker will be keys to success of the team this season.

If Skaggs and Richards can both stay healthy all season which will go a long to improve the team from 2016 going into this season.  I’m hoping Skaggs will go 13-7 with a 3,56 ERA.  If Skaggs can return to form it will be a big boost to the staff.

Danny Espinosa – 2B –

The Angels have had somewhat of a liability at second base since they have traded away Howie Kendrick in 2014.  Angels general manager Billy Eppler went out and filled the hole with second baseman Danny Espinosa.  Espinosa is known for having  pretty good power, however a lifetime batting average of .226 is worrisome.

What is also worrisome is Espinosa’s 834 strikeouts in 2,644 at-bats which is a strikeout rate of 1 every 3.17 at-bats. hopefully he will be able to hit for a higher average and continue to hit for power.  In his career Espinosa has hit 92 home runs including 24 last season, while driving in 72 runs.

If Espinosa can put up similar numbers this season say 25 homers and 80 runs batted in and hit around .250 or .260 that would go a long way in bolstering the bottom of the Angels line-up and it will also help that he is a left-handed bat with some power will help the Angels line-up immensely.

Espinosa will surely help the Angels defense up the middle as he is known for having a good glove which is a plus as well.

These are not the only five key players that the Angels need to do well to have a successful season, but I feel they are definitely the most important.

Feel free to comment if you believe someone else should be on this list.