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Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim acquire Andrelton Simmons in exchange for Erick
Posted On Nov 13 2015
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Seattle acquired 38-year-old right-hander Joaquin Benoit from San Diego for two minor league prospects – right-handed pitcher Enyel De Los Santos and infielder Nelson Ward.
Erick Aybar wasn’t very good for the Angels last season but he’s a former Gold Glove victor and catalyst for a few of the more annoying Angels teams in recent memory. Sims had a better strikeout rate in reaching Double-A but walked 54 batters in 92⅔ innings. 304 on-base percentage. Nonetheless, Simmons is an elite defender and is now entering the third year of a seven-year $58MM dollar contract. It’s certainly an intriguing collection of talent, and the Braves are hoping that quality comes from quantity.
Aybar will likely handle shortstop duties for one season for the Braves, whose future at that position is Ozzie Albies, a 5-foot-7 dynamo who has a. 328 average and.
In his first full season in the big leagues, Simmons hit 17 home runs.
Aybar, 32, is under contract through 2016 at $8.5 million. He batted. 200 with two homers and 12 RBIs in 48 games for Atlanta. This past season, he put up an OPS+ of 81.
Simmons won the Gold Glove at shortstop in both 2013 and 2014 and is considered the best defensive shortstop in baseball.
He is under the big-budget Angels’ control for the next five seasons at a fairly hefty price, making $11 million in 2018, $13 million in 2019 and $15 million in 2020. Ken Rosenthal wrote a column just this morning imploring the Braves not to get rid of Simmons. After losing 95 games in 2015, they are determined to upgrade their roster without significantly increasing payroll.
After days of rumors that the Atlanta Braves were looking to make a deal, they finally struck. The Braves are rebuilding and it seemed as if Simmons was one of the guys who would be around for it. Instead, they’re prepared to deal him and send away a few of the best defense in the league to another city.
It is now unclear which team the Braves are in talks with.
Baseball America listed Newcomb as the 37th best prospect in baseball in July and, at the end of the season, named him the best prospect to spend significant time in the High A California League this year.
