FanHouse TonyReagins

SAN FRANCISCO -- Angels general manager Tony Reagins said the answers for the Angels' uncharacteristic bullpen struggles are "in-house."

Unfortunately for the Angels, one of those answers, maybe the only one, just went on the disabled list.

Kelvim Escobar, who represents the Angels' best hope to settle their tattered bullpen, went on the disabled list on Monday with a recurrence of the shoulder problem that cost him the first two months of the season.

The Angels' company line is that Escobar had only a mild setback, similar to one he had in April, and he'll be ready to go in a week. Since he hasn't pitched since June 6, he's eligible to come off the DL next Monday. When he does, he'll try to get the Angels bullpen righted.

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OAKLAND -- The Angels have been just a shell of the team that was supposed to run away with the AL West, having lost five top starting pitchers and their best hitter, but general manager Tony Reagins said things are about to turn.

"There is some light at the end of the tunnel," Reagins told FanHouse before the Angels opened a two-game series against the A's on Monday night.

Reagins said that injured starters John Lackey, Ervin Santana and Dustin Moseley all could be back within weeks, and Vladimir Guerrero might be back by early June. (Kelvim Escobar has had a few setbacks and now is likely to come back a reliever sometime in June, at the earliest.)

MLB Power Rankings: Where we care what you've done for us lately when we break down the who's who and the what's what in the baseball world each week.

HAVE YOU HEARD? YANKEE STADIUM HAS A WIND TUNNEL!!! Does it matter/is it real? Probably not. In fact, it might actually be on the other end of the spectrum of importance when compared to MLB Power Rankings. This week, we welcome another brand new No. 1 at the top of our rankings, although, all spoiler alerts aside, it's from the same division as last week! Debate the quality of your team, after the jump.

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Jered Weaver gave the Angels a much-needed respite Tuesday night. Weaver, along with left-hander Joe Saunders, is one of the last men standing in a Los Angeles rotation ravaged by injuries and, of course, the tragic death of Nick Adenhart.

He pitched seven innings and allowed three runs as the Angels beat the Tigers, providing a quality start and taking some of the pressure off of a bullpen which entered the night with a major league-worst 8.31 ERA.

Unfortunately, it was only one night, and Los Angeles has many ahead.

In the wake of pitcher Nick Adenhart's tragic death in a car accident early Thursday morning, the Angels and Athletics have elected to postpone the game scheduled for Thursday night.

It was the only logical choice for the two teams given the circumstances.

"We are going to deeply miss him," said Angels general manager Tony Reagins at a press conference. "Making phone calls to a lot of our players and coaches this morning, the fact of disbelief is just prevalent."

"We are all in shock."

During the offseason Angels pitcher John Lackey made it known to the Halos that he would like to sign a contract extension with the club, but that he was only going to negotiate before Opening Day. Well, Opening Day was on Monday and Lackey still doesn't have his contract extension, so I guess that means he won't be signing a new deal this season.

Or does it?

The market for Adam Dunn and Bobby Abreu has been barren for much of the offseason. At this point, it might behoove any team interested to just float a one-year deal to either player in hopes they land him on the cheap.

Thus, sportswriters are left speculating on good fits. The latest entrants linked to Dunn? The Houston Astros and Los Angeles Angels -- and apparently the Angels like Abreu as well.

After losing Mark Teixeira to the Yankees and doing nothing (yet) to replace him, the Angels need a healthy Vladimir Guerrero more than ever -- which is why GM Tony Reagins announced Monday that the team will block Guerrero from playing in the World Baseball Classic.

Major league teams are allowed to prevent players recovering from injuries from participating, and Guerrero underwent knee surgery in October. If it counts for anything, at least Guerrero can take solace in the fact it's not personal: Mike Napoli, recovering from shoulder surgery, won't be allowed to play for Italy.

Right now the Angels are focused on the 2009 season and possibly adding free agents like CC Sabathia or Mark Teixeira to the mix. Of course, signing a big name free agent often causes a team to make changes somewhere else down the line. For instance, a year after giving Gary Matthew Jr. a 5-year $50 million deal, the Angels signed Torii Hunter and now Matthews has been relegated to a fourth outfielder the team is trying to trade.

So if the Angels are going to spend what could end up being another $100 million on Teixeira or Sabathia, that probably means there's somebody else on the team that won't be getting a big payday from the Angels. And it looks like that player could end up being Vladimir Guerrero. Just because the Angels picked up his $15 million option for 2009 doesn't mean they're ready to start negotiating long term.

The Angels have tabled contract negotiations with Vladimir Guerrero, raising the possibility that the star outfielder could leave the team as a free agent next fall.

The Angels exercised their $15-million option last week but opted not to revive discussions about a long-term extension. General Manager Tony Reagins said the Angels based the decision on the results of preliminary negotiations held last winter.

Garret Anderson and the Angels go back -- way back. He's been with the team for 15 seasons and is the franchise leader in, well, just about every important category there is, including games, runs, hits, RBI. He's been with the team through three name changes, debuting as a California Angel, winning a World Series as an Anaheim Angel and most recently playing as a Los Angeles Angel.

And now ... he's being cut loose. The Angels officially declined Anderson's option on Tuesday, deciding to buy out his final year for $3 million rather than giving him $12 million to play. From a strict, business sense, the move makes sense. Anderson is still productive (he hit .293-15-84 in 145 games) but at 36 years old, he's much closer to the league average (97 OPS+) than a superstar.

Before nostalgic Angels fans start sending hate mail to the front office, realize that Tuesday's announcement does not officially close the door: GM Tony Reagins admitted that the team may still try to sign Anderson to a smaller contract. But with guys like Francisco Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira (and who knows, maybe even CC Sabathia) hoping to break the bank, it makes sense to be frugal elsewhere when possible.

But in the meantime, the face of the franchise for the last decade and a half is on the outside looking in.