ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Los Angeles Angels acquired veteran outfielder Cameron Maybin from the Detroit Tigers on Thursday in a trade for right-hander Victor Alcantara.
While swinging the first trade of the off-season, the Angels also announced they will exercise Maybin’s $9 million contract option for 2017.
Maybin batted a career-best .315 with four homers, 43 RBIs and 15 stolen bases in 94 games for the Tigers, posting one of his best big-league seasons despite injury problems. He also hit .380 with runners in scoring position, one of the majors’ best marks.
Maybin has played centre field for most of his inconsistent big-league career, but will play left field for the Angels alongside Mike Trout and right fielder Kole Calhoun. Maybin hasn’t played in left since a five-game stint during his first big-league season in 2007 with Detroit.
The 23-year-old Alcantara has spent five years in the Angels’ minor league system. He went 3-7 with a 4.30 ERA in 29 appearances for Double-A Arkansas last season, yet the alarmingly shallow depth of the Angels’ farm system made him one of their better prospects.
But the Angels needed a steady contributor in left field after getting minimal production from the position in 2016, the team’s worst season since 1999.
The Angels have a dismaying recent history of acquiring veterans who underperformed once they joined the Angels’ outfield, including Josh Hamilton, Gary Matthews Jr., Vernon Wells, Matt Joyce, Daniel Nava and Craig Gentry.
The Tigers also exercised their $6 million option for 2017 on closer Francisco Rodriguez, who finished second in the AL with 44 saves. The option contains a $2 million buyout.
