The LA Angels sign veteran Trevor Cahill to a one-year deal

LA Angels general manager has been busy the last couple of weeks trying to fill holes on the Angels team this off-season. Eppler was able to bring another arm into the fold signing 30-year old Trevor Cahill.

With all the injuries the LA Angels have had throughout the past four seasons, especially to the pitching staff, Angels general manager Billy Epppler knew that bolstering the Angels starting rotation and also the bullpen is the number one priority. While the Angels missed out on top-tier pitchers Patrick Corbin, J.A. Happ, and Nathan Eovaldi, Eppler did not give up and he has now signed two veteran pitchers that have a good upside.

The Angels signed Matt Harvey on Tuesday and now they have signed Trevor Cahill Thursday, both of who could be nice addition to the Angels starting rotation.  Eppler may not be done yet as the Angels have said to have had some interest in free agent pitcher Dallas Keuchel as well.

In addition to the pitchers the Angels have added this last week, they have also added some depth offensively signing first baseman Justin Bour last week and also outfielder Peter Bourjos in late November. The Angels are also rumored to be chasing former Dodger catcher Yasmani Grandal to fill a void left when the Angels traded away  defensive stalwart Martin Maldonado last July. There is also a possible reunion with Maldonado if Grandal does not pan out.

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These moves are definitely not what you would call sexy moves, but potentially they could go a long way to improving a team that finished in fourth place just below .500 at 80-82.

Cahill, 30, is a 10-year major league veteran breaking in with the Oakland A’s in 2009. He has been mostly used as a starter throughout his career going 80-83 with a 4.09 ERA and a 1.359 WHIP.  His best years have been when he has pitched in the American League with the Oakland A’s.  He started for three years in Oakland at the beginning of his career with his best major league season coming in 2010 when Cahill was 18-8 with a 2.93 ERA.

Cahill struggled with injuries and inconsistency after leaving the A’s in 2012. In 2012 and 2013 Cahill was a solid starter for the Arizona Diamondbacks going 21-22 with a 3.85 ERA. He dipped to 3-12 in 2014 and signed with the Atlanta Braves where he was awful going 0-3 with a 7.52 ERA in just over half a season for the Braves. He bounced back late in the year when he was traded to the Cubs.  Cahill pitched well the last two months of the season going 1-0 with a 2.12 ERA.

In the Cubs magical World Series run in 2016 Cahill was a solid arm out of the bullpen all season going 4-4 with a 2.74 ERA holding opponents to a .201 batting average. But injuries took him out for a month of the season and he was left off the post-season roster and became a free agent after the season and went to the Padres for most of 2017 before being traded again at the deadline to the Royals.  He was 4-3 with a 4.93 ERA in 2017.

Then last year Cahill came back to the A’s and achieved the success that he experienced when first came up with the A’s going 7-4 with a 3.76 ERA in 20 starts.  Injuries did hamper Cahill again in 2018 as he missed two months of the season with an elbow and Achilles injury.

The Angels officially signed Cahill to a one-year deal worth 9.5 million and incentives that could take it up to 11 million dollars. This was similar to the deal the Angels signed Matt HArvey to on Tuesday which was a one-year contract worth 11 million with incentives that could bring it to 14 million for the 2019 season.

The Angels could potentially use Cahill to bolster the bullpen as a set-up man, but more than likely they will place him in the starting rotation.  We will have to wait and see how the Angel injured starters such as Nick Tropeano and J.C. Ramirez bounce back in 2019 and also when they will both be able to pitch again.

Hopefully these moves will pan out, but one good thing is the Angels have not risked much by signing either Harvey or Cahill as both are only on one-year contracts.  For now it is definitely an improvement to the Angels pitching staff signing both Harvey and Cahill.  We will see how they both do in Anaheim and hopefully they can both stay for more than a year. Stay Tuned!!!