Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

To say that the offseason for the Los Angeles Angels was a little contentious is akin to saying that the citizens of Egypt just wanted some minor tweaks to government.

After coming off a season in which they went 80-82 and finished out of the playoffs for only the second time in seven seasons, Halos fans were clearly looking for improvement during the offseason. What they got instead were two additions to the bullpen and a very controversial trade for the expensive Vernon Wells.

Hot stove conversation is terrific, but the start of spring training is even better.

I’ll definitely be following the hoops as closely as possible as we head toward the conference tournaments and beyond.

But the fact that big league camps are about to open means we can start counting down the days until the start of the 2011 baseball season.

Make no mistake, baseball has always been my favorite game, and I’m looking forward to another great summer on the diamond.

Ervin Santana has been good but not great. He was 17-10 last season, with a 3.92 ERA, 1.320 WHIP and he chewed up 222.2 innings. At 28 years old, he isn't likely to improve very much, but he could hold those numbers for some years. The Yankees lost Andy Pettite this week, who had a career 3.88 ERA, so Santana could be a logical replacement. But why would the Angels deal a valuable piece of their young rotation? 

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No one ever anticipated that a dramatic, game winning, walk-off grand slam would ultimately lead to the demise of an entire season. On May 29, 2010 in a game against the Seattle Mariners, the Angels and their fans witnessed the team's most productive power hitter fracture his left leg while celebrating with fellow teammates at home plate.

The Super Bowl, the greatest event in sports, is only moments away. Which means baseball, my humble submission for the greatest sport, is just around the corner.

Spring training is fast approaching, and with it, Albert Pujols' self-imposed deadline for a contract extension with the St. Louis Cardinals. By Feb. 18, Pujols expects to be the highest paid player in baseball history, relevant to his status in the game today, or else.

The “or else” part of that is getting very interesting.

So Mike Napoli and Juan Rivera were both sent to the Toronto Blue Jays today in exchange for Vernon Wells. This leaves the Halos with Jeff Mathis, Bobby Wilson, and Hank Conger as their catchers.

Shut out from signing Cliff Lee, Carl Crawford and Adrian Beltre (Ouch!), the Angels overreacted and made a trade for Vernon Wells. Guess there really is one born every minute.

Wells' seven-year, $126 million contract with the Toronto Blue Jays, which has been one of the worst deals in baseball since it was signed in 2006, is now the Angels' problem, or at least $86 million of it is.

But money is just one reason for Angels fans to hate this deal.

Let's take a look at some other reasons...

With Vernon Wells being traded over from the Blue Jays for Mike Napoli and Juan Rivera, the instant reaction follows something like this:

"Why?"

To the average observer, Vernon Wells is just another overpaid outfielder who puts up above-average stats, but nothing worth the mighty contract he received.

The Angels made somewhat of a desperation move after losing out on both Carl Crawford and Adrian Beltre.

Despite the enormous amount they'll have to pay Wells, he should pan out to be an impact player in the middle of their lineup and in the outfield...right?

Dice-K, Jay Bruce, Matt Wieters, Jayson Heyward, and now you can add Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout to the elite list of top prospects in all of Major League Baseball as MLB.com made the announcement Monday in their annual listing of the Top 50 Prospects in Baseball.

In the midst of arguably the most disappointing offseason in franchise history, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim finally made a big move. The kind of move that could alter the course of the AL West in 2011.

So why isn't anyone happy about it?

On Friday, the Angels sent Mike Napoli and Juan Rivera to Toronto in exchange for three-time All-Star, three-time Gold Glove winning, slugging center fielder Vernon Wells.