Angels aim for fall baseball after nine years, sign two batters to help Ohtani
By Lee Sang-cheol = The Los Angeles Angels, who retained Shohei Ohtani (29) to help them reach the postseason for the first time in nine years in 2014, are looking to bolster their batting lineup.
The Angels announced on Jan. 31 (KST) that they have completed a two-for-two trade with the Colorado Rockies.
The Angels sent two minor league pitchers, Jake Maddon and Mason Albright, to Colorado for first baseman CJ Cron and outfielder Randall Grichuk. They receive an additional $2 million in salary relief cash.
The Angels, who decided to accompany Ohtani as a “prospective free agent” on July 27, made two trades.
First, they bolstered their mound with the acquisition of starting pitcher Lucas Giolito and reliever Reynaldo Lopez from the Chicago White Sox, and a day later, they bolstered their batting order with the addition of Kron and Grichuk.
The Angels currently rank fourth in Major League Baseball (MLB) with a team OPS of .781, but have lost several key hitters to injury, including Mike Trout, Anthony Rendon, Gio Aschella, and Taylor Ward.
Ohtani is struggling, but they don’t have the resources to back him up. Against this backdrop, the Blue Jays issued four intentional walks to Ohtani in games against the Angels on the 30th and 31st, strategizing to avoid face-offs and use other hitters.
In need of an offensive boost, the Angels acquired right-handed hitters Cron and Grichuk. Both players were former first-round picks of the Angels and returned to their hometown teams in the trade.
Krohn, who was drafted by the Angels with the 17th overall pick in the 2011 first round, became a big leaguer in 2014 and has spent time with the Angels, Tampa Bay Rays, Minnesota Twins, Detroit, and Colorado.온라인카지노
In 1034 career major league games, Cron batted .260 with 186 home runs, 599 RBI, 463 runs scored and a .795 OPS. He has hit double-digit home runs in every season except 2020, when he played a shortened season due to the coronavirus pandemic. In 2021 and 2022, he hit 28 and 29 arches, respectively. Krohn is also the older brother of Kevin Krohn, who played for the SSG Landers last year.
Grichik, who was drafted by the Angels with the 24th overall pick in the first round in 2009, has played for the St. Louis Cardinals, Toronto, and Colorado. He has been in the majors since 2014, batting .251 with 183 home runs, 539 RBI, 511 runs scored and a .766 OPS in 1088 career games. Grichuk has hit 20 or more home runs in five seasons.
