Two non-tendered players Mike Fiers and Justin Bour could fit with LA Angels

A couple of years ago first baseman Justin Bour burst on the scene with the Marlins.  Now he has been non-tendered & the LA Angels should take a look at this left-handed power bat that can play 1B & OF.

With the LA Angels only having one first baseman on their current roster, Albert Pujols, there is a need for a left-handed platoon partner for Pujols.  Justin Bour who has a career batting batting average of .260 and an impressive OBP of .344 could be just the answer the Angels are looking for.  Bour has 84 homers and 277 runs batted in playing most of his career with the Miami Marlins before being traded at the end of 2018 to the Philadelphia Phillies.

Bour’ career numbers would be better if not for a poor 2018 campaign that saw him hit only .227with 20 homers and 59 RBIs.  Bour hit 23 homers with 73 RBIs in his rookie year of 2015.  His next season was cut short by injury as Bour played in only 90 games for the Marlins hitting .264 with 15 homers and 51 RBIs.

Bour’ best season was in 2017 when he hit 25 homers and drove in 83 runs with a .289 batting average, all of which were career-highs for Bour. Bour can also play the outfield and DH and could provide some left-handed pop and an insurance policy in case God-forbid Shohei Ohtani is not ready to go early in the season.

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Bour is still only 30 years old and will probably not cost too much based on his 2018 performance.  He could be one of those signings that could make a difference in 2019 and he is a good defender as well.

Another bargain that could help the Angels is starting pitcher Mike Fiers.  Fiers has been a solid starter for Houston in 2016 and also pitched well in 2012 and 2014 for the Milwaukee Brewers and 2018 for Detroit and Oakland.  In 2018 Fiers was 12-8 with a 3.56 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP.  In 2014 Fiers went 6-5 with a 2.13 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP for the Brewers.

For his career Fiers, 34, is 54-55 with a 4.04 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP.  He also is familiar with new Angel pitching coach Doug White and he could be both a starter or a reliever for the Angels.  He could be a low-cost option that could allow the Angels to go after at least one big fish to lead the rotation.

I hope your listening Mr. Eppler, I’m sure you have already looked into some low-cost moves that could help the team and these are two players that could make a positive impact for the Angels in 2019.