Los Angeles Angels: Yasiel Puig should be on the team’s radar

The biggest need the Los Angeles Angels have this winter is starting pitching but the team could also use an outfielder to replace Koale Calhoun.

The starting rotation was the one thing that held the Los Angeles Angels back in 2019 and it will be the number one priority for the front office this winter. However, just because starting pitching is needed does not mean that the front office is going to negate any other potential additions that the team can make.

One position that the front office may look to bolster is the outfield after declining Kole Calhoun‘s club option for the 2020 season. Calhoun was set to make $14 million in the 2020 season.

After Spotrac’s estimated arbitration numbers, it appears as if the Los Angeles Angels have just over $68 million in luxury tax space for next season. However, they are $47 million under the team’s payroll from last season, which could be indicative of the team’s spending.

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The front office very well could set a self-imposed budget of $50 million this offseason. And if they get Gerrit Cole, that will leave around $15-18 million remaining, with around $33-36 million under the tax.

The Angels should not be looking to bring in a long-term outfielder with Justin Upton under contract for another three seasons and Jo Addell lurking in the farm system. What the Angels need is a one-year option and there is a big-name option that could be acquired so long that the market is not prevalent for him.

That big name is former Dodger, Yasiel Puig.

Now, if Puig is getting offers in the three-year, $52.5 million range that Spotrac is estimating then the Angels can quickly walk away from discussions. The team does not have the salary-cap space to pay Puig that much while also improving the starting rotation.

But this is Yasiel Puig we are talking about. He is the most polarizing player in the league for a reason and there exists a future in which teams do not want to take a three-year commitment, his market fizzles out and the Angels can get him on a one-year, $10 million deal.

Puig is not eligible for the qualifying offer, so this would not even hurt the Angels’ future draft picks.

As a one-year commitment, Puig would be a great addition. Adding his bat in the middle of the order alongside Mike Trout, Justin Upton and company is going to have a positive impact on Puig and he can be a run-producer from the five-hole.

He has been rather consistent over the last four seasons as well. He hit .263 in 2016 and 2017 and hit .267 in 2018 and 2019. Over the last three years, he has hit anywhere from 23-28 home runs and driven in an average of 73 RBIs.

If the Los Angeles Angels can get a .265 hitter with 25 home runs and 75 RBIs for one season out in right field it would be a huge boost to the lineup.

And for Puig, the Los Angeles Angels make sense as it brings him back home to Southern California, where his Wild Horse Foundation is still heavily involved. It all depends on his market, but if that market fizzles, Yasiel Puig is a great fit in Anaheim.