Angels signed RHP Hiroyuki Kobayashi to a minor league contract.
The deal is expected to include an invitation to spring training. Kobayashi, 34, posted a 3.00 ERA and 45/19 K/BB ratio over 39 innings in 2011 for the Hanshin Tigers of Japan’s Central League but did not appear in a game last year. He’s put up a 3.65 ERA and 493/151 K/BB ratio over 543 innings during his career in Japan.
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Angels signed INF Bill Hall to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training.
Hall, 33, spent most of 2012 with the Orioles’ Triple-A affiliate in Norfolk, Virginia. He has 125 home runs and a .248 batting average in his 11-year MLB career.
Source: twitter.com
Albert Pujols (knee) is hoping to be medically cleared to play in the second round of the World Baseball Classic.
Pujols had a minor knee procedure in October and will not play in the first round of the tournament, but he’s hoping to join the Dominican roster eventually. “That’s why I had the operation in October, to be ready for the Classic,” Pujols told a Dominican radio station, according to the Associated Press.
Source: ocregister.com
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Angels and RHP Kevin Jepsen avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $1.181 million contract.
Jepsen requested a salary of $1.4 million and was offered $975,000 from the Angels when arbitration figures were exchanged earlier this month. The 28-year-old right-hander was arbitration-eligible for the first time.
Source: twitter.com
Tagged as: Angels, Kevin Jepsen, news
Angels general manager Jerry Dipoto said that if Ryan Madson (elbow) isn’t ready for the start of the season, he’ll likely only miss a week of action.
Madson began throwing off a mound earlier this month, but the Angels won’t have him appear in Cactus League games until mid-March. Dipoto said that the reliever is “on or ahead of schedule,” but the club will not rush things. If Madson isn’t ready to go on Opening Day, the Angels figure to use Ernesto Frieri in the ninth inning.
Source: twitter.com
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Angels signed RHP Robert Coello to a minor league contract.
He’s been given an invitation to spring training, where he’ll hope to win a long relief role. Coello, 28, didn’t pitch in the second half of 2012 because of a right elbow injury, but he’s apparently fine now.
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CBS Sports’ Danny Knobler reports that the Angels are unlikely to trade outfielder Vernon Wells.
Knobler hears that the Angels pursued trades in the weeks after signing Josh Hamilton, but that owner Arte Moreno wasn’t willing to pay a substantial portion of the two years and $42 million left on Wells’ contract. Barring a change of heart, Wells will continue to be a ridiculously overpaid bench player for the Angels.
Source: cbssports.com
Tagged as: Angels, news, Vernon Wells
Angels general manager Jerry Dipoto said on MLB Network Radio on Wednesday that the club has discussed using Josh Hamilton out of the No. 2 spot in the batting order, but that he’ll likely bat cleanup.
Such a bold move would give the Angels arguably the best 1-3 in baseball, but Hamilton will likely settle behind Albert Pujols in the batting order. Now that Torii Hunter is in Detroit, Erick Aybar is the favorite to open the season in the No. 2 spot.
Source: twitter.com
Tagged as: Angels, Josh Hamilton, news
Kevin Jepsen requested $1.4 million and was offered $975,000 from the Angels when arbitration figures were exchanged Friday.
The 28-year-old right-hander is arbitration eligible for the first time due to his super-two status. He’ll work in a middle relief role for the Halos in 2013.
Source: cbssports.com
Tagged as: Angels, Kevin Jepsen, news
Angels and LHP Jason Vargas avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $8.5 million contract.
Vargas, who was recently acquired from the Mariners, gets a nice raise from the $4.85 million he made in 2012 after winning a career-high 14 games while posting a 3.85 ERA over 217 innings. The 29-year-old left-hander can become a free agent after the 2013 season.
Source: twitter.com
Tagged as: Angels, Jason Vargas, news