We need to find players who can get it done...

[floplag]

So if we had Miguel Cabrera, Victor Martinez, Torii Hunter, JD Martinez, Ian Kinsler, Max Scherzer, David Price you'd rather want Aoki, Cain, Hosmer, Butler, Vargas and Moustakas instead?

The playoffs are a crapshoot. The Angels ran into a buzzsaw, period.

 

This, all day, every day, twice on Sunday.  100% agreed Chuck.  The overreaction and nonsnese on this board the last week has reached new levels of absurdity.

[Torridd]

And how do you find these guys? There's no market for "clutch" players. I hope with experience we do a lot better. The Royals probably won't even be in the playoffs next year.

[floplag]

not to mention if you talk about clutch the SABR guys and every stat head on the forums will actually have a heart attack

[Taylor]

Pujols' career in the postseason: .330/.449/.607 with 18 HR and 52 RBI. When the Angels signed him, everyone thought he was a guy who could "get it done" in the playoffs.

 

Two years later, it's kind of a moot point as he has devolved into a marginally productive hitter. But it doesn't change the fact that he had a reputation and statistics for being a clutch postseason guy when the Angels signed him.

[ettin]

So if we had Miguel Cabrera, Victor Martinez, Torii Hunter, JD Martinez, Ian Kinsler, Max Scherzer, David Price you'd rather want Aoki, Cain, Hosmer, Butler, Vargas and Moustakas instead?

The playoffs are a crapshoot. The Angels ran into a buzzsaw, period.

I would change "the playoffs are a crapshoot" to "any statistical oddities can occur over a short sample size" And yes they ran into a buzzsaw.

[Angels]

Pujols' career in the postseason: .330/.449/.607 with 18 HR and 52 RBI. When the Angels signed him, everyone thought he was a guy who could "get it done" in the playoffs.

Two years later, it's kind of a moot point as he has devolved into a marginally productive hitter. But it doesn't change the fact that he had a reputation and statistics for being a clutch postseason guy when the Angels signed him.

Pujols' career postseason numbers mean as much as his career regular season numbers at this point of his career...not much.

Not the same guy.

Edited October 6, 2014 by Angels

[stormngt]

Its not a crap shoot.  The same players repeatedly choke every postseason.  Kendrick has had several chance to prove himself, he always craps the bed every time we make it.  CJ and Hamilton have always been useless in October, but we signed them anyway and look what happened.  

 

You can try to call it a crap shoot as much as you want, but how many times do we have to get eliminated before people start realizing you dont just luck yourself to a championship.  Theres a reason the Cardinals and Giants have won.  The Red Sox won last year because they had a roster full of postseason performers.  Saying its a crap shoot is just a cop out for a team that always dominates the regular season but cant get it done when it matters.  

wasn't Hamilton a ALCS MVP?  I tend to think that goes against the "useless in the playoffs comment".

[Taylor]

Pujols' career postseason numbers mean as much as his career regular season numbers at this point of his career...not much.

Not the same guy.

 

Thanks for completely missing the point of my post.

[stormngt]

I'd love to see the team trade for a guy like a Lorenzo Cain or Adam Eaton. Someone with great defense, speed, and who plays with intensity. Put him in left and move Hamilton to DH.

Hamilton's problem is his bat, not his glove.  We need to find either an impact bat for LF where Hamilton can DH or an impact bat at DH.

[Angels]

I didn't miss the point of your post. That was just an open statement.

[stormngt]

For all of the big money players we have signed/traded for the past several years, how many have even been close to performing to their salary in season? 

Even Pujols, despite the top 5 AL standing in rbis, BARELY surpassed an .800 OPS.    That is NOT what $240 million should get you! 

No production is worth 240 million.

 

Do you really think Trout's production this  year is what 30 million a year gets? (that is what his free agent years were bought out for)

[Section517]

How about get a manager, along with a coaching staff, that can have players prepared to play in postseason games.

[stormngt]

This, all day, every day, twice on Sunday.  100% agreed Chuck.  The overreaction and nonsnese on this board the last week has reached new levels of absurdity.

I don't think the playoffs are completely a crap shoot.  However, I agree 100% that the best teams don't always  win.  And teams who are marginally weaker can turn into a "buzz saw".

 

If you think about it, Game 3 ended up what most of us feared and predicted.  The Angels played way over their heads this year.  There were not close to being the best team in baseball on paper.  They had no pitching depth.  They had little offensive depth.  

 

What happened during the regular season:  players like Cowgill, Cron, Green, Navarro played way over their heads for most of the season.  Shoemaker and Richards played way better than anyone expected.  Then when Skaggs and later Shoemaker goes down we get Santiago getting hot for a long stretch and who the hell thought Rasmus and the bullpen could win as much in the "bullpen games".  

 

At the beginning of the season most predicted a 3rd place finish.  Most were "hoping for a playoff run with a WC or maybe squeaking out the West Division".  We dominated, thus giving people the impression that we were better than we were.

[19HALO71]

How about get a manager, along with a coaching staff, that can have players prepared to play in postseason games.

Really?

 

The only way that happens is to win your division or the wild card in the last few games. The Royals were hot, just like the Angels were about 3 weeks before the end of the season. You can't prepare to "Flip the Switch", it just happens. The Tigers had (I think) three former CY Young winners (Not sure on Price) lose all three games. Surely, CY Young winners can "Flip the Switch", right?

[Jimmag]

Billy Beane is the answer.  What you say he has gone fishing also?  Never mind.

[QuinlansMinion]

Nelson Cruz is a bad example?  Has anyone seen his postseason statistics?

 

Hamilton may have an LCS MVP, but his postseason numbers overall have always been bad.  He had a terrible postseason OPS prior to when we signed him, in over 100 at bats.  Hes never proved to be a player that can hit good pitching, he flails at everything and looks awful in any at bat vs a respectable pitcher.  Does that sound like anyone on our team?  Oh yeah, Howie Kendrick, a guy who has been flailing in October for almost a decade.  

 

I thought Pujols was a good signing, and he at least had a couple of good moments for us, certainly better than most of the lineup.  The length of the contract is what kills us.  But this thread isnt about Pujols or his shortcomings.  

Im tired of hearing this postseason is a crap shoot crap.  It clearly isnt.  You would think one of these years we would get lucky and win it.  There is a reason Mike Scioscia led teams continue to perform like this and get humiliated in the playoffs.  You cant tell me the Red Sox, Giants, and Cardinals just get lucky because its a crap shoot.  Its the same damn excuse every year from super fans and its gotten old quickly.  How many more times must we be eliminated to realize there is a correlation between guys who can hit in this so called "Crap shoot," and guys like Howie Kendrick and Josh Hamilton who cant.  

[Thomas]

The 2006 Cardinals would like a word...

[QuinlansMinion]

The 2006 Cardinals would like a word...

Give it a rest.  That was an Albert Pujols led team with Yadier Molina catching and Chris Carpenter as an ace.  That was no fluke, they had guys who could get it done and mash in October.

[DEATHRACERCHEVY]

Its not a crap shoot.  The same players repeatedly choke every postseason.  Kendrick has had several chance to prove himself, he always craps the bed every time we make it.  CJ and Hamilton have always been useless in October, but we signed them anyway and look what happened.  

 

You can try to call it a crap shoot as much as you want, but how many times do we have to get eliminated before people start realizing you dont just luck yourself to a championship.  Theres a reason the Cardinals and Giants have won.  The Red Sox won last year because they had a roster full of postseason performers.  Saying its a crap shoot is just a cop out for a team that always dominates the regular season but cant get it done when it matters.  

THANK YOU. I've been trying to explain this to my fiancé who was uber pissed last night.

[mtangelsfan]

you mean the Albert Pujols that is on our team?  LOL.  We had Weave and Shoe who did just fine.

[mtangelsfan]

THANK YOU. I've been trying to explain this to my fiancé who was uber pissed last night.

 

Where have you been all season?

[Thomas]

Give it a rest.  That was an Albert Pujols led team with Yadier Molina catching and Chris Carpenter as an ace.  That was no fluke, they had guys who could get it done and mash in October.

 

But none more so that World Series MVP David Eckstein...

[DEATHRACERCHEVY]

Where have you been all season?

Been trying to plan a wedding, and working myself to death, and of course crying in a hole since the Sox went 71-91.

[Docwaukee]

3 game sample vs. 162 game sample.  

 

 

how do you build your team for a 5 or 7 game series against and unknown opponent?

 

you do your best in the offseason and during the first half of the year to improve your team as much as possible in order to win as many games as you can and get to the post season.  if you get there, you hope that you perform the same as you did to get there but there is nothing you can do in advance to guarantee that.    

[QuinlansMinion]

3 game sample vs. 162 game sample.  

 

 

how do you build your team for a 5 or 7 game series against and unknown opponent?

 

you do your best in the offseason and during the first half of the year to improve your team as much as possible in order to win as many games as you can and get to the post season.  if you get there, you hope that you perform the same as you did to get there but there is nothing you can do in advance to guarantee that.    

Here we go again.  Yeah your right, guys who get it done in October are just lucky.

 

Derek Jeter is the luckiest athlete on earth.  Its not like he ever had a great approach at the plate.  Its not like he ever knew how to hit the ball the other way.  Its not like he knew how to hit good pitching, and have good at bats, and not swing at junk.

 

Howie Kendrick is just the unluckiest guy on earth.  That darn crap shoot I tell you.  Josh Hamilton just got unlucky, all those swings and misses were just pure crap shoot luck.  The Royals just got lucky, that buzz saw I tell you.  Its not like they werent batting what like .600 with RISP?  Its not like they ever stole bases and manufactured runs.  Its not like they put together good at bats and swung at their pitch.

 

What was I thinking.  Its all just luck.