To DH or Not DH? The Los Angeles Angels' Outfield Situation

Tim Brown, a baseball reporter for Yahoo! Sports, reported earlier this week that the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim might have too many outfielders on their roster.

And unlike the Toronto Blue Jays' dilemma after they inked Shannon Stewart to a minor-league deal, the Angels' quartet consists of proven veterans who all deserve to be everyday players.

One problem though. Apparently none of them is willing to be a full-time DH.

The Angels, who signed free agent Torii Hunter last November, will play the former Minnesota Twin in center field. After all, Hunter has won seven straight Gold Gloves for his defensive abilities in the outfield, making weekly highlight reel-catches on a consistent basis.

And Hunter's appearance in center field will push aside Gary Matthews Jr., who was signed to a 5-year deal worth $50 million just an off-season ago. Matthews, who himself is a solid defensive outfielder, surprisingly had the lowest fielding percentage among centerfielders in the junior circuit last season (.987).

Matthews' offensive numbers were almost the same last season (18 HR, 72 RBI) compared to 2006 (19 HR, 79 RBI) despite his getting fewer at-bats, though he hit only .252, 61 points below his '06 average.

Matthews has played 650 games out of 993 in center field in his big-league career thus far, and moving him to right field is out of the question.

That's because right field is Vladimir Guerrero's territory. Guerrero, an eight-time All-Star and 2004 AL MVP, has been one of the premier sluggers in baseball for the last ten seasons, averaging 35 homers in that span. Guerrero is also a .325 lifetime hitter.

Guerrero, however, had indicated on Tuesday that he doesn't want to be a DH, a position that the Angels probably feel will do the slugger good especially because of the number of injuries that have seemed to slow down his bat at times during the second half in the last few seasons.

And what about left field then?

That's where Garret Anderson, who has donned only an Angels uniform--albeit different ones as the team has changed logos and city names so frequently--during his entire 14-year big-league career, has patrolled predominantly since 2001.

And Anderson, like his other outfield mates, apparently has no desire to become strictly a DH.

Anderson, who will turn 36 in June, is not a better fielder than Matthews, so it would seem that the logic would be to play Matthews in left. There is no logic in moving either Hunter or Guerrero, so those two will take up the center and right field positions.

Anderson though, has been quoted as saying that he wants to be a left fielder and feels it is still his job.

Assuming that none of them is traded, word is that the Angels will rotate Anderson, Guerrero, and Matthews in the outfield and at DH, rather than having one being a DH exclusively.

Will that make everyone happy, not playing the outfield every day? Will each player contribute offensively despite playing "out of" his natural position?

My take on this is that Anderson should accept being the DH, since that is the most logical thing.

Yes, Anderson has been with the team since 1994, and was a member of the 2002 World Series championship team. However, for the good of the team, he has to realize that he is not in the top three defensively on this current squad.

And that brings a whole debate--in any sport, whether it be Brett Favre with the Packers or Mats Sundin for wanting to remain with the Maple Leafs--about whether a long-time player deserves to call the shots and lay claim to his position while it might be logical and better for the team to go an alternate route.

However, the DH role has been one that many over the years have not liked, despite the fact that it might prolong one's career.

Of course, Blue Jays fans remember this scenario before 20 years ago, when George Bell, coming off an MVP season, was asked to become a DH. Bell rebelled and eventually reclaimed his position when Sil Campusano flopped badly with his .218 average. (And yes, Bell slugged three home runs on Opening Day as the DH.)

And there was the Joe Carter deal a decade later, when the 1993 World Series hero and Toronto icon refused to become a DH during his final season (1997) with the Blue Jays despite the fact his best days were gone.

In Bell and Carter's cases, though, they had been long-time Blue Jays with proven credentials.

The Red Sox example I recall was when Jack Clark was upset at being a DH exclusively in his first year in Boston in 1991. Still, the unhappy slugger belted 28 home runs despite not getting his wish of playing at first base.

So, given the competition in the AL West, the Angels will likely win their division. (Sorry, Seattle, Oakland, and Texas.)

The questions that remain are:

Will all the Angels outfielders contribute as expected?

Should the Angels just relegate one of Anderson, Guerrero, or Matthews as a full-time DH (leaving Hunter in center)? Or should those three be rotated?

Should a player lay claim to his position just because he's been with the team for a long time?

Discuss.