The Angels today acquired four-time All-Star Justin Upton and cash considerations from the Detroit Tigers in exchange for minor league right-handed pitcher Grayson Long and a player to be named later or cash considerations. Today's announcement was made by Angels General Manager Billy Eppler.
Upton, 30, entered his 11th MLB campaign in 2017 with the Detroit Tigers. Named to the 2017 A.L. All-Star Team, Upton appeared in 125 games with the Tigers batting .279 (128/459) with 81 runs, 37 doubles, 28 home runs and 94 RBI. He ranks among A.L. leaders in several categories including doubles (T4th), runs (T7th), OPS (.904; 6th) and RBI (3rd).
A native of Norfolk, VA, Upton joins his fifth MLB team in the Angels. He has appeared in 1,462 games in the big leagues with Arizona (2007-12), Atlanta (2013-14), San Diego (2015) and Detroit (2016-17). Upton has compiled a career average of .269 (1443/5358), with 856 runs, 299 doubles, 37 triples, 249 HRs, 797 RBI and 134 stolen bases. The veteran has averaged 28 HRs and 87 RBI the last five seasons.
Long, 23, was originally drafted by the Angels in the third round of the 2015 First-Year Player Draft out of Texas A&M University. He entered the 2017 season ranked by Baseball America as the seventh best prospect in the Angels organization. After opening the 2017 campaign with three starts for Adv.-A Inland Empire, he was promoted to Double-A Mobile on April 20. In 23 starts for the BayBears, has gone 8-6 with a 2.52 ERA (121.2 IP - 34 ER) with 111 strikeouts. In 54 career minor league appearances (53 starts) in the Angels system, has gone 13-13 with a 3.05 ERA (218.1 IP - 74 ER).