If we could only emulate the Astros

[Mark68]

I took my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry.

[SoWhat]

Astros are this years A's. They will fall off.

Wrong. The Astros aren't going anywhere for a very long time. They are the American League version of the Cardinals.

[Lou]

Wrong. The Astros aren't going anywhere for a very long time. They are the American League version of the Cardinals.

 

They cheat, too?

[VariousCrap]

I think the Astros are more like the Royals than the Cards.  They have definitely turned it around and will have a winning season this year, but they are 2-3 years away from making it to the playoffs.

 

That said, it still doesn't change the fact that this Angels team is still looking like a .500 team at best for 2015.

[Stradling]

I like your Royals/Astros comparison. If the Astros had the Royals bullpen this year, the Astros could win it all, even with a starting staff that isn't that great.

[19HALO71]

No thanks!!

 

I'll take my Halos playing .500 ball all season and just barely win the AL Wild Card.

 

Then watch them play the best baseball of their season.

 

And if not, then there is always next season.

 

Go Halos!!!

Edited June 24, 2015 by 19HALO71

[Angel Oracle]

That would mean a 180 from October 2014.

[Stradling]

That would mean a 180 from October 2014.

Does this team feel anything like last years team to you? It certainly doesn't to me. So why would October be the same? I don't think we will make the playoffs, not without a couple of moves.

[Mark68]

Emulating the Astros (and the Cubs, for that matter) would involve several years of high draft picks, which assumes last place finishes. While I'm not opposed to rebuilding so that the farm system can be restocked with an eye toward the future, I don't think that is possible while Pujols and especially Trout are under contract.

[The Ghost of Bob Starr]

Emulating the Astros (and the Cubs, for that matter) would involve several years of high draft picks, which assumes last place finishes. While I'm not opposed to rebuilding so that the farm system can be restocked with an eye toward the future, I don't think that is possible while Pujols and especially Trout are under contract.

While Arte is the owner. He wouldn't allow last place finishes.

[Stradling]

Complete rebuilds take a very long time. So for those of you in favor of a rebuild you have to choose, trade Trout to speed up the process or expect Trout to walk when his contract is up because he will be playing on a very bad team for the last five years of his contract.

[Mark68]

Complete rebuilds take a very long time. So for those of you in favor of a rebuild you have to choose, trade Trout to speed up the process or expect Trout to walk when his contract is up because he will be playing on a very bad team for the last five years of his contract.

That's why I said that as long as Trout is under contract, it won't happen.

 

Of course, if he's traded, it would go a long way toward restocking the system.

[Stradling]

I would not under any circumstance trade Trout for a rebuild.

[TroutCron]

I don't think that the Astros will fall off only because the division is so weak. They are certainly better than the Angels, Mariners and As.

The Angels have dug a huge hole by spending huge amounts on a few players and giving up draft picks in return. It takes time to rebuild a farm system to a point where you can relie on a few yearly replacements. Houston and Pittsburgh are examples of this. Sometimes being a big market club can be a curse. Now that Arte has set the limit on spending it makes it more difficult to add free agents to fill positions of need. The prudent way to build a team is through the farm. Free agency is a crapshoot.

[Ohtaniland]

Complete rebuilds take a very long time. So for those of you in favor of a rebuild you have to choose, trade Trout to speed up the process or expect Trout to walk when his contract is up because he will be playing on a very bad team for the last five years of his contract.

If you look at the final 2011 Angels roster you will clearly see that 90+% of this team was completely rebuilt already.

[Stradling]

If you look at the final 2011 Angels roster you will clearly see that 90+% of this team was completely rebuilt already.

Rebuilds are more about having minor league depth than it is just going out and signing a bunch of guys that fill out a major league roster.

[Ohtaniland]

Rebuilds are more about having minor league depth than it is just going out and signing a bunch of guys that fill out a major league roster.

So the "we don't rebuild, we just reload" system no longer applies? I think that Dipoto has put his signature on this team and it's not working. I was kinda surprised that Arte jumped the gun on picking up Dipoto's option so early. It's not like he was going anywhere. I mean we are a .500 team right now so we are no better than we were when Dipoto was hired. This is his team.

[Mark68]

I would not under any circumstance trade Trout for a rebuild.

I am not under any circumstances suggesting that Trout be traded. I was just throwing it out there that if this team wants to rebuild, he would net a pretty nice haul if he were traded.

[fan_since79]

Rebuilding can sometimes take many years. Ask the New York Yankees, who missed the playoffs from 1982-1994.

[eaterfan]

So the "we don't rebuild, we just reload" system no longer applies? I think that Dipoto has put his signature on this team and it's not working. I was kinda surprised that Arte jumped the gun on picking up Dipoto's option so early. It's not like he was going anywhere. I mean we are a .500 team right now so we are no better than we were when Dipoto was hired. This is his team.

It's really hard to reload without rebuilding. Saying let's do that is like saying "why doesn't Mike Trout just hit a home run every at bat?"

[Stradling]

Claude give me the list of players drafted after the Angels drafted that are in the majors contributing since Dipoto took the reigns. Was Sonny Gray drafted during Dipoto's watch or the year before, because he was drafted one pick after Cron?

[Angel Oracle]

Gray was drafted when Reagins was still GM in 2011, and it was Ric Wilson's first year running the Halos draft.

Edited June 24, 2015 by Angel Oracle

[mancini79]

We should emulate losing 2 out of 3??

[Hollyw00d]

We should probably emulate 1st place with half the payroll and no big splash contracts

[Richard]

What happened to the DBACKS Soto? Thought they were the role model franchise?