Angels watch centerfield market dry up after their monumental Mike Trout decision

Last week the Angels finally made the logical decision to move their franchise cornerstone, Mike Trout, from centerfield to right field in order to protect his increasingly fragile body over the grind of the 162-game marathon.

Trout moving to right is something that should have happened a year or two earlier. While late is better than never, the organization didn't seem to have much of a plan on how to handle one of the game's most important defensive positions moving forward.

Jo Adell and Mickey Moniak are the prime internal candidates to take over the role, however both are not without flaws. The Angels, almost in a panic, have somewhat surprisingly decided to give reps to two out-of-the-box alternatives during spring training.

Adding a veteran presence, even if he wouldn't necessarily start, would have been a great idea. The centerfield free agent market wasn't exactly robust to begin with, but it is officially tapped out after a couple of minor moves occurred after the first few spring training games were wrapped up.

Former Angel/Mike Trout stand-in, Kevin Pillar, inked a minor-league deal with the Texas Rangers. Veteran centerfielder Manuel Margot signed a minor-league deal with the Milwaukee Brewers, officially clearing the veteran free agent market in center.

While neither player is a star, Kevin Pillar or Manuel Margot could have helped the Angels

Both of these veterans have been known as glove-first players throughout their career, however, as they've aged their defensive chops have faded.

Kevin Pillar, 36, posted marks of 1 outs above average and 3 defensive runs saved while patrolling center last year, which are still solid numbers despite not being representative of his peak. That defensive performance, combined with a below-average 88 wRC+, made him worth 0.5 fWAR in 100 games. While that's nothing to write home about, it is steady enough for a veteran backup.

Manuel Margot, 30, has seen a more precipitous decline in his defense despite being younger than Pillar. He primarily played right field in Minnesota last season, but when he roamed center he posted a -1 OAA and -1 DRS. Those marks went along with a 79 wRC+, which made him slightly below replacement level at 0.2 fWAR.

As you can see, neither player is likely to be a real difference maker this season, however, signing either to a minor league deal would've given the Angels a nice insurance policy. Right now, if an injury were to happen to either Adell or Moniak, the Halos would either be relying on an infielder playing out of position or thrust Trout back into center on a more regular basis.

Unless the Angels have a trade up their sleeve, the centerfield situation is both volatile and precariously thin. All things considered, it makes the logical decision to move Trout to right haphazard and ill-thought-out. The Angels have to hope that their lack of planning doesn't come back to bite them.

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