It's a new day for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of Orange County of California of the United States, now that Albert Pujols is coming to town.
But there's still plenty of reason for concern.
The Halos haven't had all that much luck of late with big-name acquisitions, and though Pujols is far and away the best player the team has brought in over the last decade (if not all-time), it's tough not to wonder if some of the dust left behind by Gary Matthews Jr. and Vernon Wells might not choke up The Machine's carefully tuned cogs.
In the winter of 2006, the Angels, then under the guidance of GM Bill Stoneman, signed All-Star outfielder Gary Matthews Jr. to a five-year, $50 million deal.
Soon after, Matthews Jr. was named in the infamous Mitchell Report as one of many to have used human growth hormone to boost his performance, albeit before MLB instituted its current drug policy.
Matthews sure performed for the Angels like a guy missing his juice, as he missed 106 games and never hit better than .252, before he was traded to the New York Mets after just three years in southern California.
Then, it was Tony Reagins' turn to make a big splash.
Signing Torii Hunter to a five-year, $90 million deal was a bit of a stretch, though Hunter has been anything but a bust during his time in Anaheim.
The more egregious error of Reagins' now-defunct tenure came this past January, when he traded Mike Napoli and Juan Rivera to the Toronto Blue Jays for Vernon Wells.
Napoli, as you may recall, went on to lead the Texas Rangers to the World Series.
Wells, on the other hand, posted career lows in batting average (.218), walks (20), RBI (66) and OPS (.660). The 32-year-old Gold Glover has another three years and $63 million remaining on his current deal.
Whoops.
Now, clearly, Pujols is (at least) head and shoulders above either of those two, if not both combined. Pujols' 30 homers and 100 RBI should fill the gaping hole in Mike Scioscia's lineup quite beautifully, at least for the first five or six years of the deal.
Key word: should.
There's no telling how he'll adjust to his new surroundings, in a new league, with a new team, for the first time in his illustrious 10-year career.
And it's not like Pujols will have Matt Holliday and Lance Berkman protecting him in the lineup. Certainly, opposing pitchers won't mind dodging him and trying their luck against Mark Trumbo and Howie Kendrick instead.
Of course, there are also concerns about Pujols' age (32 when the 2012 season starts) and his struggles with plantar fasciitis over the years, an injury that can and often does recur.
But, for now, folks in Anaheim can and should bask in the glory of pulling off one of the biggest free agent coups in MLB's recent memory.
In the meantime, the Angels would be wise to put Pujols' locker as far from Wells' as possible.
Mark Eaton Trent Hunter Andy Hilbert Bruno Gervais Dustin Kohn Andrew McDonald
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