LA Angels Instant Analysis: The New Guys

The LA Angels did not make any splash moves this offseason. They signed a handful of role players, which left a lot of fans hungry for more. In this article, we’ll dive into an instant analysis of the new Halos.

The LA Angels signed Cameron Maybin, Martin Maldonado, Danny Espinosa, and Ben Revere to fill in holes on their offense. They also have new additions on the mound. Jesse Chavez is their sole new starter, but their bullpen has a few new faces. Yusmeiro Petit, Bud Norris, and Blake Parker are all in their first month as Halos. The position players signed by Angels all fit the mold of the new game plan put in place by Billy Eppler and Mike Scioscia. The Angels need players who play great defense and put the ball in play. While now of them have outstanding averages, they all know how to make contact with the ball to advance base runners.

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The Angels also signed Luis Valbuena for some bench depth and spot starts. The former Houston Astros player has yet to play, as he is currently on the disabled list with a strained hamstring. His best season came last year, as he hit .260 with 13 long balls and 40 RBI’s. Valbuena did most of his work pre-All Star game, and finished the season on an awful slump. A career .232 hitter, Valbuena should not be a part of the everyday lineup. However, he should be back sometime in May, and should provide a spark off the bench for the Halos.

Ben Revere has also yet to make a significant impact. He played off the bench most games and has garnered a couple spot starts so far this season. The Angels are going to need solid contributions from their newcomers if they plan on contending this season, and there have been encouraging signs so far this season.

Cameron Maybin

The first player to be evaluated is Cameron Maybin. Perhaps the biggest signing of the offseason for the Angels, Maybin was brought in to play excellent defense in left field and contribute nicely on offense. A former center fielder, Maybin has been playing extremely well on defense. His defense is even more important when the starting rotation is taken into account. His experience as a center fielder is obvious, as he has excellent range and a decent arm to pair with that. Compared to left fielders of recent years for the Angels, Maybin is a great addition.

On offense Maybin leaves a lot to be desired so far in the season. He is hitting .212 over 33 at-bats so far. He has a lone home run to go with two RBI’s and a stolen base. Maybin has a career average of .258 so fans can expect him to end up closer to that number as the season progresses. His average last season was a career-high .315 for the Detroit Tigers. If he can bring his average anywhere near that, his signing will end up being an absolute steal. Halo fans can expect his average to climb up to the .270 range. As long as Maybin stays healthy, he’ll continue to play elite defense and help make the Angels defense one of the best in baseball.

Martin Maldonado

Martin Maldonado has also made a huge impact for the LA Angels. Originally drafted as an Anaheim Angel in 2004, he was signed to platoon with Carlos Perez as the team’s primary catchers. However, after getting the Opening Day start, Maldonado has been able to make the bulk of the status behind the plate. He has been performing at about his career average. He is a career .217 hitter. In 28 at-bats he is hitting .214 for the Angels. At 30 years old, a breakout season from Maldonado is not likely. Fans should expect around a .220 average from Maldonado this season as he hits at the bottom of the lineup.

What Maldonado lacks on offense, he more than makes up for on defense. Maldonado has an elite arm. He casually throws out base runners attempting to steal on him. He also uses his cannon to gun down runners who are being a little too risky with their secondary lead offs. The Angels have a handful of pitchers who use a splitter or sinker very heavily. Maldonado does an excellent job of keeping the balls that land in the dirt in front of him. This elite defense is something the Angels and their fans can expect from Maldonado this season. His lackluster offense does not show signs of improving anytime soon, but the Angels do not have much better options at this point.

Danny Espinosa

Another new Angel playing a new position is Danny Espinosa. The Southern California native has been a shortstop all his career. However, he now resides as the everyday second baseman for the Halos. Espinosa has played remarkably in the field. Teaming him up with Andrelton Simmons in the middle of the infield makes hitting up the middle a tough task for opposing hitters. While his range is not that of an elite second baseman, his glove and arm are. This makes him an ideal fit and worthwhile player, defensively anyway, to be the team’s everyday second baseman.

On offense, Espinosa has had his ups and downs. There is not much to expect out of a career .228 hitter such as Espinosa, so the Angels can’t be too upset. While Espinosa is only batting .200, that number can be expected to climb closer to his career average, perhaps even surpassing it as he faces the lack of elite arms in the A.L West division. He has driven in 12 runs so far this season, which is a good number as Espinosa makes sure to capitalize with runners in scoring position. He has also hit three long balls this season. With a career high of 24 home runs in a season, Espinosa may be able to top that this season.

His home runs have come in clutch moments as well. In the Angels’ first victory of the season, Espinosa hit his first homer of the season to give the Angels a lead they would not let go of in the ninth inning. In the Angels comeback win over the Mariners last Tuesday, Espinosa hit another home run to get the ninth inning comeback started. If Espinosa and the rest of the newcomers can continue to play like this there is no reason the Angels shouldn’t be in the playoff race this season.

Jesse Chavez

The new pitchers for the Angels have experienced mixed results. The new starter to the rotation is veteran Jesse Chavez. Chavez pitched out of the bullpen for a couple teams last season. He had a 4.43 ERA last season. He was signed in the winter to compete for the fifth spot in the rotation, as the Angels learned last season that you can never have too much starting pitching. His start as an Angel has been a tale of two starts. In his first start he looked like a steal of a signing. He pitched 5.2 innings while striking out six batters and allowing one earned run. He only allowed four hits and one walk throughout the start, and held batters to a .190 batting average.

In his second start with the Halos, he was a completely different pitcher. He lasted 4.1 innings while allowing five runs (although only gave up five hits as well). However, he was susceptible to the long ball, giving up two home runs. He also walked two batters while striking out three.

The biggest difference between the two starts was Chavez’s strike percentage. In his first start he threw 89 pitches, 59 of them being strikes. That comes out to a 66.29 strike percentage. In his second start he only threw 67 pitches, 41 of them being strikes. That comes out to a 61.19 strike percentage. While that’s only a 5% difference, Chavez was ineffective while using the strike zone as well, evidenced by the two long balls. He lacked control throughout the game and but the team in a large hole because of it.

His next start is scheduled for the Angels Monday night against the Astros. It will be interesting to see if he has the control he had in his first game, or the lack of control fans witnessed in his second start.

Yusmeiro Petit

The LA Angels bullpen has a few new faces. The first is Yusmeiro Petit. Petit was signed this offseason to be someone who could pitch multiple innings out of the bullpen and even make spot starts every now and again. While he has yet to make a start for the Halos, he has impressed out of the bullpen. He has made four appearances, pitching six innings total. In those six innings he has given up three hits and only one earned run. He has also sent seven batters down on strikes. Petit does not necessarily own the strike zone when he pitches. He has thrown 95 pitches this year with only 57 of them being strikes. However, he has great command of his pitchers and baits hitters to swing at bad pitches to force groundouts or strikeouts.

The one knack on Petit’s game is that he has given up three walks. While the number is small, he has only pitched six innings. To be a relief pitcher walking batters every other inning can lead to trouble, as having men on base is never a good thing when playing in close games like the Angels have been all season.

Petit, who has a career 4.54 ERA, seems to be enjoying a career year so far this season. There is no reason to believe he will not be able to throw five innings of quality baseball if asked to start a game every once in a while.

Bud Norris

After pitching for the Dodgers last season, the Angels decided to bring Bus Norris across town to join their bullpen in Anaheim. Like Petit, Norris is a guy who can throw more than a few pitches in an appearance. He has thrown 6.1 innings in 2017, allowing two runs on five hits in those appearances. He allowed those two runs against Oakland on a Rajai Davis triple. However, that allowed Danny Espinosa to hit a three-run bomb in the ninth inning to take the lead for the Angels first win of the season. So, thats a positive.

Norris threw three innings of amazing ball in the Angels comeback win against the Texas Rangers last Tuesday. After Tyler Skaggs was roughed up to start the game, Norris came in and threw three innings of one hit baseball. He struck out three batters and held the Rangers in check while the Angels mounted their five run comeback. While the offense provided fireworks to end the game, Norris was the MVP of the night.

Norris has been a starting pitcher through most of his career. However, he fares much better as a reliever. In 2016, he had a 5.02 ERA in ten games as a starter. In his 12 appearances out of the bullpen, he owned a 1.96 ERA. So while he is capable of spot starts, he is much better utilized out of the bullpen.