The Angels have made a serious push for the playoffs after adding Huston Street to solidify the bullpen. The San Diego Padres provided details on the six-player trade to that transpired late Saturday night:
The San Diego Padres today announced that they have acquired infielders Taylor Lindsey and Jose Rondon and right-handed pitchers R.J. Alvarez and Elliot Morris from the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in exchange for right-handed pitchers Huston Street and Trevor Gott.
The Padres provide Street’s comments on the trade:
ESPN’s Jim Bowden first reported that the move was close:
With the deal now completed, the Angels were able to upgrade the biggest weakness on the roster. The squad has one of the best offenses in the majors with a starting rotation that ranks 11th in the league in ERA.
The problem is that the team also ranks 24th in baseball in reliever ERA. Joe Smith has done a solid job as the closer after taking over for Ernesto Frieri, but more help is clearly needed for the team to be legitimate contenders.
Street provides a major boost in this area and is certainly excited to join his new team. According to Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times, the veteran was previously asked about possibly being traded to the Angels and responded:
“I would love it,” he said.
Street cited the chance to “play with guys like Albert Pujols and Mike Trout” as well as to play for Manager Mike Scioscia. Street broke into the major leagues with the Oakland Athletics from 2005-08, when the Angels won the American League West three times in four years.
“I was probably too young to realize how good he was at the time,” Street said of Scioscia. “That’s one of the best managers, maybe, of all time. If I went there, I’d have a real chance to win.”
While not all traded players become good fits on their new teams, this seems like it will work out just fine.
Street is in the midst of one of the best seasons of his career. The 30-year-old closer was named to his second All-Star game thanks to his 1.09 ERA and 24 saves in 25 opportunities through the break.
Cody Derespina of Newsday points out that this success is not new:
The veteran is signed through the 2014 season, but he has a relatively inexpensive team option for $7 million. Although there is time to make a decision, it would not be surprising to see his new team work to keep him for another year.
Considering how far San Diego is back in the standings, this remains a good move for the rebuilding team. Friar Wire provides details on the haul the Padres received in the trade:
Prior to the start of the 2014 season, Lindsay was rated as the 93rd top prospect by Baseball America. So far this season, he is batting .274 with 73 hits and 30 RBI’s for the Salt Lake Bees.
Rondon, a top ranked prospect and native of Venezuela, recently represented the Angels for the World team at the 2014 XM Futures game and is hitting.327 for the Angels high-A affiliate.
This appears to be a smart maneuver for both sides, although the Angels will be the immediate winner with an elite reliever for the rest of the year.
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