The Biggest Issues the LA Angels Must Address at the Trade Deadline

About a month before the All-Star break and roughly six weeks prior to the trade deadline, the Los Angeles Angels are stuck in the mud. Los Angeles sits with a record of 33-32, floating around .500 as it has been for much of the season.

Their record places the Angels in third place in the AL West, having been hopped by the Texas Rangers in recent weeks. Their minus-three run differential actually places them fourth. They are one of just five teams in the entire American League with a negative run differential thus far.

It is easy to see why this team has struggled in the first half of the season. It hasn't been pitching. The pitching has been pretty solid despite a topsy-turvy starting rotation schedule. It has actually been the bats that have let the Angels down.

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This is hard to fathom after the show Los Angeles' offense put on last season. Nevertheless, the team ranks near the bottom of the AL in many integral categories: 12th in OPS, 13th in total bases, 12th in runs, 14th in stolen-base percentage and last in triples.

The last two stats hint at a problem that had been obvious even during times of good offense. The team has very little speed. This is one of the bigger issues the team should address at the deadline.

Besides speed, there are specific lineup positions that require reinforcements if the Angels are to compete for the playoffs this season.

Production from third base and shortstop has been poor in 2015, but there is little chance the team will move away from the entrenched David Freese and Erick Aybar. Besides, there are other, far more pressing needs elsewhere.

Anaheim has gotten a zero from its catchers. With a .207/.272/.309 slash line from the position, LA catchers are hitting like Mario Mendoza.

The designated hitter position has delivered equally terrible results. However, the Angels are unlikely to add a strict DH bat as they use the position to rotate in hitters, giving half days of rest. While C.J. Cron has the most at-bats there this season, 10 different players have already seen a plate appearance at DH.

Johnny Giavotella has been OK taking most of the at-bats at second base, but he provides very little outside of a single or a walk. This is an area that could be upgraded more easily than the others too. Teams aren't giving away top-hitting catchers for nothing, for example.

Additionally (I said the offense is bad!), left field is a horror show. While catchers usually provide value outside of their bats and, as discussed, DH is a valuable place to have open from a full-time guy, left field is historically a spot for a team's weakest defensive outfielder; someone who relies solely on their bat. For Los Angeles, the options hardly qualify for that.

The left fielder numbers are incredible, as in they are difficult to believe. Matt Joyce is the main culprit, having taken 134 of the 219 at-bats. No one else has fared much better, though, in anything more than a single-game sample.

With so many holes in the lineup, it's hard to fathom where to begin. The spots that must be addressed are catcher and left field. Ideally, an incoming left fielder would also supply the team with that much-needed speed and baserunning in addition to a quality bat.

If those two spots can be filled, the next step is bringing in help for the middle infield. Someone with plus speed who can slide between second and short (and perhaps third as well) would be perfect. None of Giavotella, Aybar or Freese have played well enough to guarantee themselves 600 at-bats.

If the offense picks up and runs are created on the basepaths, suddenly this team has the makings of a team bound for the postseason. It won't be easy to patch up all these issues, though.