Angels add Prinz to bullpen

By Jim Callis
March 29, 2005

The Angels have a diverse collection of arms in their very effective bullpen, and they added another on Tuesday. Anaheim acquired Bret Prinz from the Yankees for catcher Wil Nieves.

Prinz, a 27-year-old righthander, was out of options and in danger of not making New York's roster. He split last year between Triple-A Columbus and the Yankees, going 1-0, 5.08 in 26 big league appearances. He had a 22-14 strikeout-walk ratio in 28 innings, while opponents batted .259 with five homers. When he keeps his pitches down, Prinz can be tough on hitters because he throws 92-95 mph from a sidearm angle. When he works up in the zone, he gets hammered. He uses a slider as his second pitch. Prinz owns a career 5-3, 4.83 record with nine saves in 95 big league games.

Nieves, 27, signed with the Padres as a 47th-round pick out of a Puerto Rican high school in 1996. The Angels picked him up after San Diego released him in December 2002. Nieves, whose older brother Melvin was a big league outfielder from 1992-98, will serve as Triple-A catching insurance for the Yankees. He consistently has hit for average but with little power in the minors, including a .297/.316/.458 performance with 10 homers and 53 RBIs in 108 games at Triple-A Salt Lake last season. He has solid catch-and-throw skills and blocks pitches well. Nieves got a brief taste of the majors in 2002, hitting .181 in 72 at-bats. He's a career .292/.342/.404 hitter in the minors with 41 homers and 347 RBIs in 779 games.