Bobby Abreu might end up being one of the smartest acquisitions of this strange offseason.

First, the Angels got him for the bargain-basement price of $5 million. That's much less than the three-year, $48 million deal Abreu sought at the start of the offseason. Even with another $3 million in incentives, he is going to reward the Angels for being patient in the wake of the loss of Mark Teixeira.

Abreu isn't Teixeira. He isn't going to fill that hole in the lineup. He simply is a really good player joining a really good team, and it is amazing how much of a difference a player like that can make. Abreu, who will turn 34 next month, is coming off a season in which he had a .371 on-base percentage. He is a career .300 hitter with a career .405 on-page percentage.

He isn't a Hall of Famer, but he has done some things only Hall of Famers do. Barry Bonds and Rickey Henderson are the only other players with at least 200 homers, 300 steals and a .400 on-base percentage. Abreu has stolen at least 22 bases in each of the past 10 seasons and has driven in at least 100 runs in seven of the past eight years. He never gets hurt, either, playing at least 151 games in 11 consecutive seasons. He won a Gold Glove in Philadelphia in 2005 and can rotate between right field and designated hitter to give Vladimir Guerrero some days off.

Abreu is the perfect lefthanded-hitting addition to a lineup built around righthanded swingers: Guerrero, Torii Hunter, Juan Rivera, Howie Kendrick and Mike Napoli.

The Angels won't ask Abreu to carry more than his share of the load, and the environment around the Angels is among the best in baseball. In other words, if he has any good years left in him, he can have them in Anaheim. No one would be foolish enough to make the case that Abreu makes up for the loss of Teixeira, but the Angels might end up winning more games than the Yankees. Isn't that the point of this stuff anyway?

Meanwhile, Adam Dunn might have more of an impact in Washington. Yes, the Nationals made the other smart move of the week.

Dunn brings power and credibility to a franchise that needs plenty of both. He also is on a mission to show how foolish teams were to allow him to languish on the free agent market for almost the entire offseason. Dunn has worked out hard this winter, lost 17 pounds and would like to prove he still can be the franchise hitter he was once projected to be. Dunn is just 29 years old and has languished through an offseason that he believed would go differently.

Unlike Abreu, who fits in easily, Dunn needs to prove to some executives that he is committed to being a great player. He never appeared to focus on his defense the way he should have, and he looked like a guy carrying too many pounds.

Given his low batting average -- just .233 in 2008 -- and huge strikeout numbers, teams were reluctant to even consider him. Dunn has hit at least 40 home runs for five consecutive seasons, but hasn't had fewer than 164 strikeouts in a season during that span.

Once upon a time, Dunn looked like he might become a legitimate star. So far, he hasn't gotten there. When he struck out for the 190th time in 2004, he told reporters, "At least I beat a Bonds at something."

Dunn joins a team that led the majors with 102 losses in 2008. Even if he does nothing more than hit 40 home runs again, he'll bring excitement to a franchise desperate for some. No Nationals player hit more than 14 homers in 2008.

Slideshow   The Week in Sports Pictures The Giants on top of the football world, getting ready for the London Olympics and more. more photos

Few franchises have ever wasted a beautiful new ballpark the way the Nationals have. They might be building from the ground up, but they've lost thousands of fans with their lousy play. The Nationals were just 19th in attendance in 2008 -- their first year at Nationals Park -- and local television ratings were so low that team officials hoped there was some kind of mathematical error.

Dunn gives Washington the best power hitter it has seen since Frank Howard's days with the Senators. He won't help the lousy pitching staff much, but his arrival is a start when it comes to building a legitimate franchise.

The Angels are one of the franchises the Nationals hope to emulate. This week, both teams took steps in the right direction.

Also on NBCSports.com Beyond the Arc: No. 11 Mich. St. takes big step forward Chandler: Jeremy Lin was special even in 8th grade What NFC teams need this offseason  |  And AFC DeMarco: Dodgers could become a contender Follow us on Twitter: @NBCSports  |  And Facebook