Los Angeles Angels release veteran first baseman Carlos Pena

Veteran first baseman Carlos Pena will turn 36 years old on May 17th of this year. He’s played with eight times prior to being picked up with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, starting off with the Texas Rangers back in 2001.

He was a surprise trade chip in 2002 when he was a member of the Oakland Athletics, a move that would send him to the Detroit Tigers for three and a half seasons. He would then move onto Boston in 2006, where he only played in 18 games before landing with the Tampa Bay Rays.

In his first four years with the Rays, Pena put up some of the biggest numbers of his career. It was clear that the fresh start he needed, was down south in Florida. He slugged a career high 46 home runs and 121 RBI’s in his first year with the Rays.

Then he decided to sign with my favorite team, the Chicago Cubs. This happened after the Cubs picked up right handed starting pitcher Matt Garza, a move that I felt would happen. Fast forward a couple years and he ends up with the Rays before splitting the 2013 season with the Kansas City Royals and the Houston Astros.

I wasn’t aware that he was picked up by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, but it made sense. He would look to provide this team with depth at either first base or the designated hitters spot. With the other power hitting first baseman (Albert Pujols) coming off a year where he pretty much had to hit for power with only one leg, Pena could have been an insurance plan.

Now according to Tyler Blake Ward on Twitter, the Angels released Carlos Pena along with infield veteran Chad Tracy.

It’ll be interesting to see if either Carlos will continue his professional baseball career or decide to call it quits.