Angels Acquire Tommy Hanson For Jordan Walden

[moneyman255]

The Angels have acquired Tommy Hanson from the Braves, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (on Twitter). Atlanta will receive Jordan Walden in the one-for-one trade, MLBTR has learned.

Hanson, 26, pitched to a 4.48 ERA with 8.3 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in 174 2/3 innings this year. The right-hander missed time with shoulder tendinitis last season, and his fastball velocity has been trending in the wrong direction as well. Hanson is arbitration-eligible for the first time this winter, and Matt Swartz projects a $4MM salary. He will remain under team control through 2015.

Walden, 25, pitched to 3.46 ERA with 11.1 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9 in 39 innings this year while missing time with a biceps strain. He was an All-Star as a rookie just last season, when he posted a 2.98 ERA with 34 saves in 60 1/3 innings. Walden is under team control through 2016. Earlier this week we heard he was "very available" after the Angels signed Ryan Madson.

The Angels are in the market for starting pitching this offseason after trading Ervin Santana and declining Dan Haren's option. Zack Greinke is a free agent as well, though he is in very high demand. Hanson gives the club a young arm to fill out the rotation behind Jered Weaver and C.J. Wilson. Walden, meanwhile, gives the Braves bullpen depth and a power right-handed setup man in front of closer Craig Kimbrel.

-MLBTR.

Like this for Atlanta. Saves 3.5 M and now can go after a guy like Swisher for LF, or maybe try and trade for Justin Upton.

 

[Villain]

Bummer. I was hoping the Dodgers could pawn of Harang and an iffy prospect for Walden.

 

[MVPete]

Another player changing teams that Villain wanted to come to the Dodgers. :cmpunk:

 

[NAHSTE]

Tremendous trade, Wren is a genius.

 

[Villain]

Another player changing teams that Villain wanted to come to the Dodgers. :cmpunk:

Who doesn't want Walden? Fireballer in his early 20s...

 

[Villain]

Besides... have zero interest in Hanson. :dempsey:

 

[NAHSTE]

Who doesn't want Walden?

:glen:

 

[MVPete]

Who doesn't want Walden? Fireballer in his early 20s...

I'll take all of the Angels relievers that they don't know how to use.

This was just me making fun of the fact that every player that has been signed or traded you wanted to go to the dodgers :rofl:.

 

[Villain]

:glen:

Want versus Can't Afford.

 

[Rudi]

Good trade for the Barves. Hanson is falling off hard.

 

[Glenbino]

Who wouldn't want the guy who lost the closer role to Ernesto Frieri and then the set-up job to Hisanori Takahashi?

Asking for a friend...

PS Dodgers are far too focused on finding ways to give :greinke: $180 mil over six years to be worried about their pen right now.

 

[Villain]

This was just me making fun of the fact that every player that has been signed or traded you wanted to go to the dodgers :rofl:.

Nah... I don't want Russell Martin either.

Just the good players.

 

[Villain]

PS Dodgers are far too focused on finding ways to give :greinke: $180 mil over six years to be worried about their pen right now.

You mad that you get Hanson instead of Greinke? :melo:

 

[MVPete]

You mad that you get Hanson instead of Greinke? :melo:

 

[Villain]

Who wouldn't want the guy who lost the closer role to Ernesto Frieri and then the set-up job to Hisanori Takahashi?

Asking for a friend...

LOL at bullpen roles and LOL at you having friends.

 

[NAHSTE]

Who wouldn't want the guy who lost the closer role to Ernesto Frieri and then the set-up job to Hisanori Takahashi?

Asking for a friend...
.

Yeah it's gonna be real hard to find a use for that 11 K/9 and low 3 FIP.

:tiptoe:

 

[Glenbino]

You mad that you get Hanson instead of Greinke? :melo:

It sucks we won't even get anything back for him because of the new CBA but I don't see him as a $25 mil per year type of pitcher.

He was good not great for us down the stretch and we have plenty of other holes where that money can be better applied.

I'm a fan of the deal because we get our #3 guy without having to pay a FA contract and mess with out draft picks or financial pool.

You can laugh at bullpen roles but this young "fireballer" has seen his velo drop over 1 mph every season for the last three years, has a slider valued at zero and a changeup with negative value.. Or maybe just look at how his K/9 fell off almost two full Ks from 2011 to 2012 despite making relatively the same number of appearances. Or maybe that he had a negative total WPA when he did come in last year, no matter what the role.

If he was so great we could have flipped him for something a lot better than a pitcher with back issues.

And there's plenty of evidence of me having tons of Asian friends. Tons...

You're out loud laughter is unwarranted.

 

[Glenbino]

Yeah it's gonna be real hard to find a use for that 11 K/9 and low 3 FIP.

:tiptoe:

May wanna take another look at his K/9 last season.. it was 9.75 and coincides pretty neatly with his consistent velo drop.

Not to mention he won't be in the friendly confines of Angels stadium anymore.. where fly balls go to die.

 

[NAHSTE]

May wanna take another look at his K/9 last season.. it was 9.75 and coincides pretty neatly with his consistent velo drop.

Not to mention he won't be in the friendly confines of Angels stadium anymore.. where fly balls go to die.

:hazard:

9.75 is his 2013 projection from Bill James, which is still pretty excellent. Anyway, his 2012 K/9 was 11.1. And speaking of velo drops ...

 

[Glenbino]

:hazard:

9.75 is his 2013 projection from Bill James, which is still pretty excellent. Anyway, his 2012 K/9 was 11.1. And speaking of velo drops ...

No doubt but you can survive in a rotation with velo drops especially in Anaheim.. Jared Weaver has done it for years.

I obviously looked at the wrong set of numbers for K/9 but that doesn't change the fact that Walden is a negative WPA reliever with only one real value pitch in the FB and that value is questionable because like I said before he's been consistently been losing 1 mph off that fast ball every year since 2010. Throw in a walk rate that jumped from 3.88 to 4.15 over one year and its not hard to see why the Angels were willing to move this kid.

I'll take the extra 140 innings of added work we'll get from a (healthy) Hanson.

That said.. pen is still a mess. The Angels front office has a lot of work to do but this deal and the Madson deal are both low risk/high ceiling moves.

A stark contrast from last off-season and the Greinke trade.