According to a recent tweet by Jon Morosi of Fox Sports News, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have the piece to lure Cole Hamels away from the Phillies.  

With Victorino headed for free agency, Bourjos likely would intrigue the #Phillies in any Hamels talks.

— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) July 5, 2012

A move that makes the speedy 25 year-old Bourjos all the more alluring from a trade standpoint, considering Cole Hamels and starting centerfielder, Shane Victorino’s, looming free agencies. 

Boujos is clearly the Angels’ most movable player right now for a myriad of reasons. He’s young  and cheap — signed through 2014 on a rookie level contract — and has been replaced by the emergence of Mike Trout. Through 63 games Bourjos is hitting just .233 despite an impressive debut last season.  Despite his slow start to the season, he has tremendous offensive upside coupled with a gold glove in the outfield.

The question is whether or not the Angels have the ability to realistically ink Hamels long-term while solidifying  Trout and Mark Trumbo as the franchise faces. Hamels will seek a long-term contract worth at least $20 million per season. While I look forward to the concept of slotting him third of fourth in a rotation abounding with lock-down guys like Jared Weaver, Dan Haren and C.J Wilson, I’m uncertain as to how prudent signing another mega contract would be.

Despite Ervin Santana’s inconsistency in the fourth slot in the rotation, the 29 year-old has historically been a second half pitcher. Last year, he started 1-9 in the first half and finished 10-3 with a low two era and a no hitter in late July.  Signed through 2013 the Halos have another year to assess whether or not Santana is worth another three to five year contract extension at his affordable 11.2 million dollar rate.

I would welcome a move only if the Angels can package Santana and either Maicer Izturis or Alberto Callaspo alongside Bourjos in exchange for Hamels. But all the Hamels talk has been speculation without word from the Halos camp regarding Bourjos’ future in Anaheim.

At the moment, according to this article by Ken Rosenthal, the Angels are unwilling to part with Bourjos because of his future as a major team building block and Garret Richards, who is a solid low-cost option at the bottom of the rotation. Angels’ General Manager Jerry DiPoto is thinking not only about the team now but the team in the near future when big names like Torii Hunter, Vernon Wells and perhaps Santana, come off the books.  Shoring up their long-term ability to retain Trout and Trumbo alongside future hall-of-famer Pujols and a top-five rotation would seem to be the primary goal at this point.

Considering their 37-19 record over their past 56 games, sitting solid in a wild card slot, and scoring more runs than anybody in baseball right now there really isn’t the need there to make a major move. Hamels would make more sense in a Dodger uniform behind the formidable Clayton Kershaw, to help relieve tension in what is becoming a disturbingly odd season of highs and lows for manager Don Mattingly’s team.

The Dodgers before injuries to Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier, Dee Gordon and Mark Ellis, held the best record in baseball through mid-June. Since then, they have slid into turmoil, slugged by inefficiency at the plate and a rotation plagued by Chad Billingsly’s erratic performances. Currently 1 1/2 games ahead of the surging San Francisco Giants, the Dodgers have a hard road ahead of them if they hope to get themselves into the postseason.

After a deal for first-baseman Carlos Lee fell through early this week, Matt Kemp according to this article remains hopeful. “It’s always good to get people to make your team better,” Kemp said. “I don’t know exactly what people think we need. We did a great job with what we have here. If we get somebody, that’s good. But if we don’t, it keeps going on and we have to keep playing the way we have in the first half.”

But I wonder how Dodger fans must feel. How long will the team sit around and wait for a potato sack at first like James Loney to make a difference? According to Mike Potriello of mikescosciastragicillness.com, fans might be willing to listen to offers for a prospect like right hander Zach Lee, in exchange for a bat like the above average Chase Headley at third.  Which proves just how desperate the Dodger fan base is to get into the postseason now rather than tomorrow.

Both teams have had moody beginnings to the 2012 season, but one is surging and the other is desperately limping just to remain relevent. The Angels are looking for that 4th starter to shore up a small blight while the Dodgers seek a plethora of parts just to keep the engine running. It’s all a matter of how far DiPoto’s team can fly but a desperate matter of how long Colleti’s bunch can keep their heads above water.  And that all goes without saying whether or not Tim Lincecum decides to become Tim Lincecum again.

For this week’s “what-if,” I decided to turn the equation around. Lots of pro athletes think they can act. Recent revelations about Charlie Sheen have been interesting. He seems to be doing a new outlandish interview every day. The first of these interviews was with a sports personality, Dan Patrick. In that interview, Sheen talks about his love of baseball, the movie Major League, and his open pass to the UCLA batting cages. His tips to the UCLA team were humorous but didn’t spark my imagination as much as thinking of Sheen as an athlete.

So my question is this: What if Sheen was a pro athlete and not an actor?

The mention of Sheen in the entertainment world is akin to the mention of Kobe or Lebron in the sports world. It brings about such a wide variety of opinions and emotion. My wife’s eye rolls at Sheen are legendary. Everyone cares one way or another- or tries so hard not to care, that it comes off as caring.

In his Dan Patrick interview, which I posted here, Charlie came off as engaging, honest, and energetic. Someone on the show described his energy as contagious — one of the things that probably makes his show the top rated show on television. As an athlete, Sheen would probably be something between ManRam at his best, Magic Johnson, and the Red Sox version of Curt Schilling. Engaging and fun first, enjoying life, and seemingly indifferent to any negative opinions.

I said I would go back and explain why the NBA fosters guys who want to be actors so here goes. The NBA, more than any league, is star-driven. Stars make more of a difference in the daily winning and losing of a team more than any other professional team sport in this country. An NBA Coach once said that the winning team will be the one that gets the most shots for their best player.

That being said, NBA players likely have egos bigger than those in other sports. They are one of 12 on a given team rather than one of 25 or one of 53. They don’t wear helmets and the NBA purports to be one of the most theatrical professional leagues. Baseball players have a few instances where they use theatrics, but nothing like the NBA. NFL players aren’t flopping trying to take charges.

To be an NBA player means you are one of the elite and have been treated differently for a long time. Charlie Sheen has always been part of the Hollywood elite. His father and brother are both famous actors, and he has never known how to be any different than he is. The problem with this, of course, is that he’s never known how to be any different than he is.

What kind of a teammate would Charlie Sheen be and could he relate to his teammates? Contrary to what a fan’s initial reaction might be, I think Sheen would probably be a really good teammate. His infectious positive attitude is one that, like ManRam did for the Dodgers or Magic to the Lakers, can soak deep into the attitudes of his teammates.

One of the things Athletes have in common with Charlie Sheen, at least on the surface, is money. But looking more closely, there are under five athletes who can hold a candle to Sheen’s money and none who can match his power as an actor – at least until his show canceled the rest of its season recently.

Not that I have any personal experience with any of it, but $3 million per week is a lot more than what any athlete makes. At $3 million per week (even if it’s hugely taxed and you’re only taking home, say, half…), you are able to do pretty much whatever it is you please. With no repercussions from his employers until the past week, Sheen has pulled in his huge income and has been able to do whatever he has wanted whenever he pleased.

When sitting around with a bunch of dudes tonight, I brought up the question and the first name that came out of people’s mouths was Tiger Woods. Unlike Woods, Sheen would probably be a great teammate. All indicators are that he is trying to make sure the crew of his show are taken care of, even while it isn’t shooting.

The money Sheen makes and the power he wields as an individual are what make Sheen and Woods Similar.  Sheen’s income has probably been closer to that of Woods than any other pro athlete. The psychology behind being a singularly popular sensation has to be similar. Like Woods, Sheen’s misdeeds have finally caught up to him. Like Woods, I can’t be sure if Sheen will ever be the same.

Unlike Woods, though, Sheen would be an excellent teammate in his chosen sport, which would almost certainly be baseball. The unwritten rules and unexplainable cosmic principles that guide baseball are to Sheen the basic fundamentals of life itself. While Sheen may not have been able to control himself while on his own, why couldn’t a team keep him in line. With talent like Sheen has, he would be a Gold Glove outfielder willing to do anything for his teammates. Having never spent any time in his presence, my best guess is that, as a pro athlete, he would be equal parts Shane Victorino, Tiger Woods, Curt Schilling, and, unfortunately, Miguel Cabrera.

I hope Sheen stays sober. The world is more interesting with him around, and I wouldn’t say that about any actor or any celebrity. His Ochocinco-like panache would make any sport more interesting.

As long as his skills stay strong in his field and as long as he takes care of himself enough to continue in the craft of acting, Sheen will be interesting. Here’s hoping he doesn’t  start declining like Ochocinco. Here’s hoping he hasn’t already blown his chance.

owen@fansmanship.com