Pile on the hate: The Angels looks like Dbags today

[eligrba]

I am sure my employer would support me in a similar situation....... when monkeys fly out of my ass.

[Richard]

Hamilton was a ticking time bomb and the Angels knew it.

 

Bomb exploded. System that was meant to protect the Angels didn't on a "technicality", and now the Angels and MLB are "the bad guys" for looking like they're piling on him and trying to save millions rather than get him help.

 

I refuse to pass judgement on the situation until we know everything, but the thing that bothers me is that Hamilton confessed to his drug use, the details of the night are out there, and he was given a free pass. This was his 3rd relapse in the past 5 years and it should have been apparent that they needed a new strategy in dealing with Hamilton and MLB blew an opportunity leaving it to the arbitrator, while Hamilton is on a ranch hitting balls off a tee and collecting his millions. 

 

 

If the Angels don't want to deal with this, the best is to just be done with him and let him be someone else's problem. A costly lesson unfortunately.

[Docwaukee]

Regardless of how the halos feel about the situation, their statement was poorly timed and frankly not very smart.  

 

It's not that I disagree with it, because I don't, but it could have easily been said 2 weeks ago or a month from now.  

 

Releasing these comments on the day the decision is made public screams of petulance and a lack of insight.  

 

There is way more to this than anyone knows.  This was not just about a one time blip on the radar with Josh doing a little coke.  But the Angels FO should have the insight to realize that no one else knows what they do.  

[The Ghost of Bob Starr]

I don't think you remember Lifetime very well...

I remember him as dropping into threads, not commenting on the subject, but trying to be a great contrarian, ultimately starting more off-topic arguments with posters.

[nate]

The dude has been ****ing terrible and instead of trying to get better he was out boozing and doing blow.  If I were his boss I would be pissed off too.

[QuinlansMinion]

Oh please.  Hamilton has been an a hole and a jerk ever since he got here.  And besides all that, he hasnt done his job and continues to make the same idiotic mistakes on and especially off the baseball field.  Nobody is dumping anything on him, he brought all of this on himself. 

 

But nice try though.

[Angelfaninidaho]

The one good thing about all of this is MLB and the Angels are doing all of this talking on a Friday afternoon.  It's the best day to crush the news cycle and allow opening day to be the story on Monday.  He's still hurt so there's plenty of time to manage the situation.  The Angels definitely need to put up some wins before he starts rearing his head though.

[Blarg]

It could just be that you're older now Eric, but man you have become Randy 2.0. You troll every post, and you're a mod, so you wave around your ruler like a nun.

Just change your name to Lifetime already.

 

Look, if you don't like my assessment of your topic then defend it. Otherwise all you have done is posted an opinion piece without anything to substantiate it. I disagree with your opinion because it has no substance.

[Crampknees]

It is only my opinion but I still doubt he sees the field much or at all.  We have been through some ugly contracts in the past.  Remember it is just my opinion and if I am wrong I like bbq crow the best. 

[GregAlso]

"An a hole and a jerk"? How do you figure? I've watched him sit for hours in Diablo Stadium signing for any and everyone. He did it everyday he could on his own time when every other player had left. He made some stupid decisions but that doesn't make an a hole or a jerk.

[AngelsSurfer]

I would ask this: what does anyone think the Angels or MLB should be saying at this point? They've got a player who by all appearances seems to have a very poor attitude, who has had numerous drug violation sin the past and has actually been suspended for two years for the same, who has escaped any and all punishment for taking drugs by a technicality and an arbitrator's decision. Are they supposed to be happy about that?

The Angels have given Josh years to get his s**t together. They haven't said anything when he's faltered in the game. They gave him time off last year to get his head together. They hired his accountability coach to work with the team. They let him rehab his injury in Houston instead of coming to ST and being with the team the way everyone else does. They didn't comment negatively on his lack of progress in surgery rehab. I think they've been more than compassionate toward Josh and their comments today are not about being "haters," they're about reaching the end of their rope with this situation.

 

In addition, when they're saying they are concerned about Josh getting help as a person - they're right. He does need help, and that's the most important thing for him; not baseball. Are they supposed to smile and nod and say they support anything he does? Woud that help him in any way at all?

 

As to MLB? Manfred came out this morning and said that he was not pleased by the ruling and that the drug laws in MLB need to be reformed, and he's absolutely right. A player with mulitple past offenses shouldn't be able to get off the hook this way.

Edited April 3, 2015 by AngelsSurfer

[fan_since79]

If Josh could hit breaking balls again like he did in the first half of 2012, all would be forgiven.

[Adam]

We all know there's a way to be a hater without being public and vocal.

I'm pretty disappointed in the org.

Yeah we all sit here and hope there's a way that Hamilton's albatross of a contract would vanish. But if he was the MVP Hamilton, we'd be laughing all over this decision not to punish him.

There's a double standard here. If this were Trout, the Angels wouldn't be acting this way.

Their loyalty is sickening. It's safe to say they'd pretty much throw everyone else (but Trout) under the bus.

In the professional world, corporations are supposed to help troubled employees. That's whay Josh is. He's a troubled employee. For Carpino and Dipoto to comment this way is very disappointing.

The Angels should be supporting Hamilton - which may or may not include another stint in a treatment center.

But to come out and blow the guy up over a very serious illness, so that they can protect their money is all wrong.

They gambled on Hamilton and loss. Now they don't want to pay what they owe, and they have no problem dumping on a sick man.

Humanity over business.

I know I'm heavily in the minority here.

Now pile it on, because to most of you here, it's all about the on field product and winning-at-all-costs. In fact it's another reminder of how much the Angels are just like every other organization the fans here like to hate (Yankees, Red Sox, Dodgers.).

 

I agree with you wholeheartedly. The Angels blew it big time. Lost a ton of respect for the front office. 

[Amazing Larry]

"An a hole and a jerk"? How do you figure? I've watched him sit for hours in Diablo Stadium signing for any and everyone. He did it everyday he could on his own time when every other player had left. He made some stupid decisions but that doesn't make an a hole or a jerk.

Ya I don't think he's an a-hole or a jerk. He's just a dumbshit who puts partying above his career and his family. You can be really stupid and still make it to the majors.

[Oz27]

I'm personally not offended or upset by what the Angels FO said, except for the fact it was stupid from a baseball and public relations point of view. Some of us are going to be fine, personally, with those statements but it should have been clear to anyone that it was not going to go down well. Now we've got one hell of a distraction coming our way soon and a drug addict we owe the best part of $100 million to who would feel even more unsupported.

 

Obviously all of this means that Arte is pissed (thank the Lord that seemingly no reporter has tracked him down today, imagine what he would have said) and there's plenty of possible reasons. It might just be as simple as Josh made assurances when he signed the contract that he's failed to uphold. Maybe it's that the Angels saw it coming when things were going badly last year, urged him to get help and he fobbed them off. Maybe this wasn't the only time. Either way, any danger of dealing with this PR nightmare in a less stupid way?

[HaloMagic]

I am sure my employer would support me in a similar situation....... when monkeys fly out of my ass.

Many companies have programs set up to where if you admit to them you have a problem with drugs or alcohol they will provide you with resources and ensure that when you are able to return to work you still have a job. These things are actually fairly common throughout the business world.

[stevestevens]

Soto,

 

My take is that the comments by the Angels FO are not directed at Hamilton at all.  These comments are directed at the arbiter, the MLBPA, and the MLB.  I think it is fairly obvious that the Angels and Hamilton are not on the best of terms.  The guy waited to have surgery on his elbow, he is rehabbing at a ranch in Texas, one of his closes friends said he should just quit baseball because his life is just too crazy. I really do not think there is much of a relationship anymore.  I have serious doubts that he ever plays for the Angels again.  There is no standing behind him because he is already gone.  If some of the rumors that we originally heard were true then I think the Angels have every right to disenfranchise themselves from him.  The bottom line is that the Angels org is a top notch run organization.  They do not pop off one bit to anyone.  So for two guys in the FO to release statements within an hour of each other that denounce the decision leads me to believe that there is a lot more going on behind the scenes than any of us know about.  

 

And as far as "In the professional world, corporations are supposed to help troubled employees......The Angels should be supporting Hamilton - which may or may not include another stint in a treatment center.".....Hamilton has been troubled both on and off the field for two years now (just with his tenure as an Angel).  He sucks on the field and he has issues off the field.  How long do you stand by a guy?  The guy is a freakin' disaster.  If a troubled guy is effecting the outcome of the overall product then you cut the cord.  Is his disease sad? Of course it is! Would his actions have gotten him fired from pretty much any other job in the country? Most likely.  Is that sad? Of course it is.  Two years is a long time to stick by an employee.  I am sure that the Angels brass thought this was a scapegoat to save some money.  No doubt about that.  They know everything that went on behind the scenes.  We don't.  They are upset about the rulings.  Not upset with Josh (that relationship most likely is done) but upset with the ineptness of the MLB front office and arbiter and the crap that MLBPA continually throws out at everyone.   

Edited April 3, 2015 by Stevestevens

[HaloMagic]

Not sure why people are calling it a technicality. The rule is purposely worded. It's not a loophole. It's the intent of the rule.

[Chuck]

I have not read anything from the Angels front office that supports the OP.

Same here.

[beatlesrule]

Not sure why people are calling it a technicality. The rule is purposely worded. It's not a loophole. It's the intent of the rule.

 

And Hamilton just showed how flawed the rule is.

[The Ghost of Bob Starr]

Look, if you don't like my assessment of your topic then defend it. Otherwise all you have done is posted an opinion piece without anything to substantiate it. I disagree with your opinion because it has no substance.

Easier to throw you on ignore. Im sure there's some new threads for you to troll.

[Jeff Fletcher]

Here's the thing....

The Angels are going to be paying Hamilton $90 million over the next three years no matter what.

What's the best way to get something for that?

Seems to me you wanna make Hamilton feel supported, like you want him back.

The best thing for the Angels is that the guy comes back and produces.

You can wish all you want that he'd just disappear and his contract would be voided but it's not gonna happen.

[HaloMagic]

And Hamilton just showed how flawed the rule is.

Possibly. I'm not gonna argue that point. It's just hard to read people saying he got off on a technicality. The only reason the rule exists is to allow what happened to happen. There is no other intent of the rule. It wasn't a technicality. It was the purpose.

[The Ghost of Bob Starr]

Same here.

I think Carpino's comments were out of line, outraged at the lack of discipline. I'm not alone reading that. Not on this board nor among some baseball writers. Rosenthal, Heyman, and Bob Nightengale all had a less that positive reaction regarding the Angels' position.

I respect you Chuck and what youve created here, but everything can't be rainbows and unicorns regarding the Angels. Sometimes you need to go against the grain and hold those entities accountable.

You guys don't want negative posts on the team because it jeopardizes your one hour yearly talk with Tim Mead, or the potential guest lists at ST, I can certainly understand that.

I'm disappointed in the franchise I like. If you don't feel Carpino's original comments, before he apparently tried to backtrack, aren't indicative of my OP, then so be it.

Edited April 3, 2015 by SOTO

[fan_since79]

Bill Shaikin of the Times says Arte is "livid". Not a quote, but inferring it from the other statements by the FO.

 

http://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-sn-josh-hamilton-angels-arte-moreno-20150403-story.html