Angels get needed pitching in three-team trade
ORLANDO, Fla. -- At the top of the Los Angeles Angels' wish list coming into the Winter Meetings was pitching, pitching and more pitching.
That is why the always-upbeat Angels general manager Jerry Dipoto was smiling more broadly than usual Tuesday after being part of a three-team trade with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Chicago White Sox.
The Angels received two left-handers, Hector Santiago from the White Sox and Tyler Skaggs from the Diamondbacks. Arizona got first baseman/outfielder Mark Trumbo from the Angels, and the White Sox received center fielder Adam Eaton from the Diamondbacks.
The Diamondbacks will also get a player to be named or cash considerations from both the Angels and White Sox.
"We addressed our biggest need," Dipoto said. "It's not easy to trade a guy like Mark Trumbo but we've been able to turn him into a 26-year-old lefty and 22-year-old lefty, which is something this organization needed to do."
Santiago and Skaggs will join right-handers Jered Weaver and Garrett Richards and left-hander C.J. Wilson in the Angels' starting rotation.
Santiago, 26, was 4-9 with a 3.56 ERA in 34 games, including 23 starts, this season. In three years with the White Sox, he went 8-10 with a 3.41 ERA.
Skaggs, 22, goes back to his original organization as he was a first-round draft pick by the Angels in 2009. In parts of the last two seasons with the Diamondbacks, he went 3-6 with a 5.43 ERA in 13 starts.
Trumbo, 27, will play right field and add a big bat to the Diamondbacks' lineup after hitting .234 with 34 home runs and 100 RBIs in 159 games this past season. In his four-year career, all with the Angels, Trumbo has batted .250 with 95 homers.
"Our biggest need was a power bat to go with (first baseman Paul) Goldschmidt," Diamondbacks GM Kevin Towers said. "We came here looking for pitching and looking for power. We feel we have two of the better right-handed power bats in our lineup now with Goldie and Mark."
The White Sox, meanwhile, added speed as Eaton is expected to become their leadoff hitter. The 25-year-old played in a combined 88 games with the Diamondbacks over the past two seasons, hitting .254 with five homers and a .332 on-base percentage in 88 games.
"We weren't really balanced in our lineup," White Sox general manager Rick Hahn said. "We need a guy who can bring some energy and get on base at the top of the order."
