Report: Angels add Alburquerque to bullpen mix
The Los Angeles Angels have made an addition to their 2016 bullpen.
According to Jon Heyman, the club signed free agent right-hander Al Alburquerque to a one-year deal on Friday.
al alburquerque 1-year MLB deal with #LAAngels is for $1.1M plus performance bonuses
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) January 15, 2016
The 29-year-old has spent the entirety of his five-year career with the Detroit Tigers, appearing in 241 games over that span.
His best season to date was 2014, when he posted a 2.51 ERA and held right-handed hitters to a .192/.283/.273 clip. This past year, Alburquerque totaled 62 innings for Detroit, posting a 4.21 ERA in the process. Of particular concern, perhaps, was his drop in effectiveness against right-handed hitters: they hit .278/.361/.326 off him in 2015.
With the Halos, he'll presumably slide into the middle of the bullpen, ahead of setup man Joe Smith and closer Huston Street.