The Los Angeles Angels are focused in trading for another ace type starting pitcher before the July 31st trade deadline. Zack Greinke, Josh Johnson and James Shields are the top targets for the Angels, and they have the young players and prospects to make a deal happen. I think the Angels are going to get one of those three guys. If they miss out on them, look for them to turn their attention to Francisco Liriano, Paul Maholm or Ryan Dempster. Make no mistake though, the Angels are going to be really busy at the trade deadline.

As of right now, the Angels are 42-33, which has them in second place in the A.L. West….4.5 games behind the Texas Rangers. Looking at the roster, the only really upgrade I see the Angels needing is at 3B. No big time 3B are on the free agent market, so I could see them making a small deal for a righty swinger to platoon with lefty swinging Alberto Callaspo at the hot corner. Brandon Inge and Chris Johnson would likely cost the most of the available 3B. If the Angels want to aim lower, they could bring back Chone Figgins or deal for Danny Valencia or Jeff Baker. I like the idea of Valencia or Baker, as they wouldn’t cost much while providing some thump against lefty pitching on the cheap.

With 3B Evan Longoria and Jeff Keppinger on the D.L., the Angels should be calling up the Rays about a deal. Alberto Callaspo would be a really good fit for the Rays, and righty reliever Brandon Gomes would be a good fit with the Angels…who still need more help in the bullpen. This would be a good deal for the Angels, because it would open up 3B for Mark Trumbo. If Trumbo can’t handle the job, the Angels would still have Maicer Izturis, who is just as good of a player as Callaspo is. Call the Rays already.

The Los Angeles Angels are talking to C.J. Wilson right now, but the starting rotation is one of the strengths of the team right now. They need to get more thump out of 3B and they need to get some offense out of the catcher position in 2012. With that in mind, here is how I would spend owner Arte Moreno’s money:

1. Aramis Ramirez - The Angels need to get some power out of 3B and Ramirez is by far the best player on the free agent market. Alberto Callaspo did a decent job last year, but 3B is a power position.

2. Ramon Hernandez - The Angels were essentially a National League style team last year as their catchers hit like pitchers last year. Hernandez is a solid .270 hitter who can whack 10-15 homers in a season.

3. LaTroy Hawkins - LaTroy Hawkins would essentially replace Fernando Rodney in the Angels’ bullpen and that would be a nice upgrade.

I just don’t see the Angels making any big changes this week. They could use a power hitting 3B, a righty reliever and a backup outfielder. The 3B that are likely available (Ty Wigginton, Edwin Encarnacion, Chone Figgins, Kevin Kouzmanoff, Casey Blake and Juan Uribe) don’t offer much of an upgrade over Alberto Callaspo. Wigginton is the best of that group but he won’t come too cheap as a lot of teams are going to be in on him. The Angels will likely be after Frank Francisco, Jon Rauch, Octavio Dotel, Jason Frasor, Grant Balfour, Koji Uehara, Kerry Wood, Rafael Betancourt, Matt Lindstrom, Matt Guerrier and maybe even Mike Adams. They only really need one of them, so they might be able to improve the bullpen before August 1st. The Angels also should be able to get one of these backup outfielders (Felix Pie, Scott Hairston, Jason Michaels, Chris Denorfia, Corey Patterson, Ryan Sweeney, Reed Johnson or Willie Harris) by next weekend. The Angels might be a better team on August 1st with only minor tinkering to the roster.

The Angels need a spark on offense and I think I have a solid solution. The Mariners just can’t figure out how to get Chone Figgins going and he’s rotting away on the bench for them. With that in mind, I think the Angels should offer 3B Alberto Callaspo, catcher Bobby Wilson and outfielder Reggie Willits to the Mariners for Chone Figgins and cash. I think a return to the Angels would give Figgins the spark needed to get his career back on the right path. I wouldn’t stop there though. I would call up the Blue Jays and offer them righty reliever Kevin Jepsen, Trevor Bell, Bobby Cassevah, Ysmail Carmona and IF/OF Alexi Amarista for outfielder Corey Patterson and righty relievers Jon Rauch and Octavio Dotel. Those moves would tighten up the bullpen and the bench, and if Chone Figgins gets back to the player he was earlier in his career with the Angels…..3B.

Angels’ owner Arte Moreno has deep pockets so don’t be surprised to see the Angels trying to make big moves at the trade deadline to improve the roster. I think the Angels are going to try to take advantage of the Mets’ money situation and try to make a play for 3B David Wright if he proves he’s healthy in July when he comes off the D.L. I also think the Angels could use some righty relief help and I think they will be placing calls to the Nationals (about Todd Coffey), the Cubs (about Kerry Wood), the Orioles (about Koji Uehara) and the Blue Jays (about Frank Francisco, Jon Rauch, Jason Frasor and Octavio Dotel). The Angels have spent too much money on payroll to give up on the year and be sellers at the trade deadline.

The Angels only have two free agents heading into this winter so I see them being very active. Here is a look at what I would do with the three free agents the Angels do have:

Hideki Matsui: 36-year old lefty swinging DH/OF Hideki Matsui played in 145 games for the Angels last season and he was 132 of 482 (.274 avg, .820 OPS) with 55 runs scored, 21 homers and 84 RBIs. VERDICT: Despite Matsui having a decent year I look for the Angels to go after a big time hitter for either the outfield or DH.

Scot Shields: 35-year old righty reliever Scot Shields had troubles coming back from knee surgery last year. Shields pitched in 43 games (1 start) for the Angels last season and he was 0-3 with a 5.28 ERA and a 1.72 WHIP. VERDICT: I would let him walk.

The Angels will likely have to beat out the Rangers if they want to make the playoffs. That means it’s time to ante’ up or get out of the game. With that in mind I would be calling the Cubs and offering them 1B Mark Trumbo, OF Chris Pettit and righty relievers Kevin Jepsen and Francisco Rodriguez for 1B Derek Lee and 2B/3B Jeff Baker. I would then stick Lee and Baker (at 3B) right into the starting lineup. I would then flip catcher Bobby Wilson to the Pirates for lefty reliever Javier Lopez to give them a situational lefty. Getting Lee, Baker and Lopez would make the Angels a much better team for the rest of the season but the price would be high.

The Los Angeles Angels are 46-39 on the season which has them 3.5 games behind the Rangers in the A.L. West. The Angels should be aggressive in their pursuit of a 1B and 3B in the trade market. Of the 1B likely available Jorge Cantu, Prince Fielder, Derek Lee, Lance Berkman and Adam LaRoche make the most sense. Lyle Overbay, Ty Wigginton and Casey Kotchman are likely fallback options at 1B. Edwin Encarnacion, Jose Bautista, Ty Wigginton, Miguel Tejada, Jose Lopez, Jorge Cantu, Pedro Feliz and Akinori Iwamura all made sense at 3B in verying degrees. As far as the lefty out of the pen it seems as if Scott Downs, Will Ohman, Rafael Perez, Jerry Blevins, Doug Slaten, Tim Byrdak and Javier Lopez look like possible targets. If the Blue Jays fall any further behind I would attempt to make a huge deal with them involving Jose Bautista, Lyle Overbay and Scott Downs.