Last week Bobby Abreu was cut loose by the Los Angeles Angels to make room for top prospect Mike Trout. The Angels had been shopping Abreu for some time, but LA finally decided to hand the slugger his unconditional release. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reported yesterday that the Baltimore Orioles could be a fit for Abreu.
The Orioles have been one of the surprises of the young season. After their 7-1 victory over the New York Yankees last night, the O’s find themselves a game out of first place in the American League East.
Heyman believes Abreu could be a fit for the Orioles due to one player’s ineffectiveness and another’s injury.
Nolan Reimold figures to miss at least a few games due to a back injury. Though Reimold has started the year off strong, the 28-year-old has a history of injury problems due to his style of hard-nosed play.
Surprisingly, Nick Johnson is healthy. However, even though Johnson has managed to remain available this long, the veteran hasn’t done much at the plate. In fact, Johnson collected his first hit last night and is only batting .033/.147/.067 on the year.
For these reasons Heyman believes Abreu could be a fit in Baltimore. Though his numbers have continued to decline into the 2012 season, Abreu does have a career on base percentage of .397. Of course, the Orioles already have a veteran with a high career OBP in Johnson, but who knows how long he will remain healthy.
If the Orioles can get Abreu on the cheap, it wouldn’t be an awful pickup. It’s to be determined if he’d be viewed as a temporary replacement for Reimold in left field, but general manager Dan Duquette has said that he’s interested in improving the team’s on base percentage.
Call to the Pen’s Joe Soriano took a look at what Abreu has to offer this weekend following the veteran’s release.
For more on the Orioles be sure to check out Birds Watcher.