Angels fans: Meet the new outfield, same as the old outfield.
Juan Rivera has signed a three-year deal to stay with the Angels (terms of the deal have not been released, but he made $2 million last year). The 30-year-old outfielder hit .246 with 12 home runs for the Angels last season.
Those aren’t thrilling numbers, something Angel fans will be happy to tell you, but they are solid and it led a year-long debate about whether Rivera or Gary Mathews Jr. should be a starter. Rivera had a blistering July and August, when all of his home runs came and he passed Mathews to get into the starting rotation. However, he cooled when Mathews heated up late in the season and returned to being mostly a pinch hitter.
Rivera struggled in the playoffs, going 1 for 8 at the plate and 0 for 3 with runners in scoring position.
He likely will return to spot duty in the outfield, behind Vladimir Guerrero, Torii Hunter and Matthews. Reggie Willits also will be part of the outfield picture for the Halos next year.
With all those bodies, there is little chance the Angels will go spending big to bring in Manny Ramirez.
