LA Angels rival pitcher should be strong trade candidate to fill bullpen need

MLB Trade Rumors released their '14 Likeliest Trade Candidates After The Lockout,' and two of them were at a strong position of need for the LA Angels.

They were relief pitchers, which is a position group that the Halos absolutely still need to work on once this lockout ends. The two pitchers were guys who I really do believe the Halos should be looking after. One was Craig Kimbrel and one was Lou Trivino.

I'd pass on Kimbrel for now, as he had a lousy finish to 2021, but Trivino would be a great trade option for the Halos. There haven't been any rumors linking the Angels to the reliever, but if the A's choose to sell everybody, which most expect them to, he's one of the many pitchers the Angels should be looking into.

Lou Trivino would fit right into the LA Angels bullpen.

Right now, the plan is to be Raisel Iglesias closing out ballgames for the LA Angels, and Aaron Loup likely being the set-up man. The good thing about Lou Trivino is that he can thrive in multiple different roles.

He's versatile in that sense, so we can find whichever best way possible to add him to the fold, whether that's in the eighth inning or in the middle of ballgames. He's already proven that he can take on more than one role.

We'd also be prying him from a division rival, which does double the damage on a team we'll be playing 19 times every year. And Trivino can really pitch. One can even argue that last year was his very best.

He recorded a 3.18 ERA to go along with a 129 ERA+ and only allowed 0.6 home runs per nine frames. Recording 22 saves out of 26 opportunities, he proved that he can even go in and do a solid job in the ninth.

We haven't heard any rumors about the Angels going after relievers in the trade market, and part of that is because the Halos don't have a good enough farm system to have a lot of leverage in trade negotiations. If the A's are hosting a fire sale, however, his trade value wouldn't even be too high anyways. The Halos at least need to pick up the phone once this lockout ends, and take advantage of so many talented players being available up in Oakland.