MLBTR Offseason outlook Angels

[beatlesrule]

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2015/11/offseason-outlook-los-angeles-angels-of-anaheim-3.html

 

 

I don't agree with some things but a good read.

[NrM]

pretty shitty article tbh

It was filled with shit like

 

"Arte could go over the luxury, but he maybe might not.....but maybe will.."

 

 well thanks for that..

 

"The angels could sign this cheap free agent pitcher or they could sign this expensive free agent pitcher"...

 

 ugh okay...

Edited November 14, 2015 by Poozy

[KevinJ14]

Ian Kennedy has a connection to Eppler...

 

and lol Caleb Kowart

Edited November 14, 2015 by KevinJ14

[Ohtaniland]

I don't think that Arte / Eppler will sign any high priced free agents until 2016 is over. That Hamilton deal really changed the dynamics of Arte's spending plan. I can see another trade or minor signings to fill the gaps followed by a mid-season trade deadline deal if it makes sense at the time. Eppler is probably thinking more about post 2016 in my opinion.

[gotbeer]

sigh.  $50 million committed to players not playing on the team.

 

 

(Now-former pitching coach Mike Butcher has since been reported to have been heavily resistant as well.)

 

 

 

First I've heard of this.  

[beatlesrule]

Regarding the maybe maybe not, I think the article is pointing out that Arte can do whatever he wants. As far as Hamilton, that was just an arrogant mistake. The board and I'm sure a lot of higher ups wanted Torii back but the big boss man decided on the 33 year old coke head. No free agents the article discussed are 33 year old drug addicts. The oldest player a lot here are clamoring for is 35 and will cost nowhere near Hamilton. The most expensive one is 26 and fills a glaring need. Way different situations.

[eligrba]

That's probably why Butcher slept like a baby.  His mind was never distracted with data.

[AngelsFanSince86]

I don't think that Arte / Eppler will sign any high priced free agents until 2016 is over. That Hamilton deal really changed the dynamics of Arte's spending plan. I can see another trade or minor signings to fill the gaps followed by a mid-season trade deadline deal if it makes sense at the time. Eppler is probably thinking more about post 2016 in my opinion.

 

I would hope not seeing as how the FA market sucks after this year. There are some good players mixed in, but mostly for positions the Angels do not need filled.  It would make zero sense to wait till next year.  Not saying they won't because who knows with Arte, but realistically if they want solid FAs to fill their gaps for next several years it has to be now because those solid FAs won't be there after this year.  I'm fairly certain they are going to hit the FA market and spend big on at least one guy.  I think they go hard at Heyward and Upton.  Eppler has shown he wants to make this team younger with proven guys.  He wants to strengthen the core that will be here for the rest of Trout's contract.  Upton and Heyward both satisfy that goal.  And its only ones season Arte will have to bite the bullet.  If they go over this year, Weaver and Wilsons contracts coming off the books at the end of the year will likely put them back under.  Hamiltons will come off the year after that. They will have to start thinking about extentions for guys like Calhoun andRichards, but by that time almost 60 million AAV will have come off the books. So its really only one year.  And the big thing about the luxury tax is when you are over it for multiple years and the percentage you pay starts to get larger.  Being over for one year isn't really that big of a deal.

[Troutstanding]

That article seemed to have been written by someone not totally familiar with the Angels team. 

[Second Base]

That article seemed to have been written by someone not totally familiar with the Angels team.

Gotta agree on that one. It sort of like when an A's centric site creates an Angels Top Prospect list, there are subtle nuances completely missed that change the direction of any outlook.

For example, the author thinks the Angels will sign a middle tier SP to handle innings, yet this team is already loaded with middle tier pitching like Heaney, Skaggs, Tropeano, Wilson and Santiago. It also doesn't help their cause when the misspell prospect names or completely fail to address the glaring need for relief, and instead offer very surface analysis of Morin and Bedrosian that even non-fans would regard as more of a "duh" approach.

[Troutstanding]

I was irked by the notion that Pujols is an average or below average first baseman. 

[NrM]

I was irked by the notion that Pujols is an average or below average first baseman. 

 

I mean outside of that fluke month, he was pretty damn terrible..

.231/.288/.419 .707 in the second half.

 

Overall .788 OPS which is below average for a 1st baseman.

 

Edit: Just realized you're talking about defense...point still stands.. He wasn't any good defensively. No range or mobility.

Edited November 14, 2015 by Poozy

[Troutstanding]

I mean outside of that fluke month, he was pretty damn terrible..

.231/.288/.419 .707 in the second half.

 

Overall .788 OPS which is below average for a 1st baseman.

 

Edit: Just realized you're talking about defense...point still stands.. He wasn't any good defensively. No range or mobility.

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/the-2015-american-league-gold-gloves-by-the-numbers/

[NrM]

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/the-2015-american-league-gold-gloves-by-the-numbers/

 

fangraphs defensive calculations seem too inconsistent for my taste.

 

w/e.. I guess he wasn't so bad.

 

Edit: Pujols and Napoli are basically on par with each other in every asset of their game, except one make 26 million a year and the other was traded for Vernon Wells.

Edited November 14, 2015 by Poozy

[Troutstanding]

fangraphs defensive calculations seem too inconsistent for my taste.

 

w/e.. I guess he wasn't so bad.

 

Edit: Pujols and Napoli are basically on par with each other in every asset of their game, except one make 26 million a year and the other was traded for Vernon Wells.

Pujols is an above average defensive first basemen whether he is worth his salary or not. 

[Ohtaniland]

I would hope not seeing as how the FA market sucks after this year. There are some good players mixed in, but mostly for positions the Angels do not need filled. It would make zero sense to wait till next year. Not saying they won't because who knows with Arte, but realistically if they want solid FAs to fill their gaps for next several years it has to be now because those solid FAs won't be there after this year. I'm fairly certain they are going to hit the FA market and spend big on at least one guy. I think they go hard at Heyward and Upton. Eppler has shown he wants to make this team younger with proven guys. He wants to strengthen the core that will be here for the rest of Trout's contract. Upton and Heyward both satisfy that goal. And its only ones season Arte will have to bite the bullet. If they go over this year, Weaver and Wilsons contracts coming off the books at the end of the year will likely put them back under. Hamiltons will come off the year after that. They will have to start thinking about extentions for guys like Calhoun andRichards, but by that time almost 60 million AAV will have come off the books. So its really only one year. And the big thing about the luxury tax is when you are over it for multiple years and the percentage you pay starts to get larger. Being over for one year isn't really that big of a deal.

Hamilton's contract is like a boat anchor. The Wilson and Weaver contracts in 2016 end up eating a lot of the budget. Is a $145M budget not enough to "win now"? KC just won a championship with a $112M budget. At some point Arte needs to draw the line and let his new GM get creative and shed salary obligations through trades or attrition. I don't think that signing more expensive free agents is the answer unless they purge some of the expensive existing players that can no longer perform at a high level.

[nikkachez]

Don't like the starting pitchers they suggest (aside from maybe Chen). I still think they need to upgrade the pen, the guys from MLBTR seem to overvalue the Halos pen. I still like the idea of Escobar or Prado for the infield. 

[Docwaukee]

It's hard to agree or disagree with the article considering that it essentially rehashes the past and speculates just about every option for offense and pitching. 

 

Their assumption that the pen is fine isn't something I can get on board with.  It's mediocre at best and needs to be improved.  The back end is solid, but beyond that is questionable.  I don't feel comfortable with Morin, Bedrosian, Salas, Alvarez, and Ramos manning everything else.  The team had a ton of comeback opportunities in the second half of 2014 when the middle of the pen was amazing. 

 

The offense is much more fixable than people think.  Even as bad as it seemed, they were 10th in the AL and within a couple of WAR from the top 5.  Probably at least a standard deviation, but certainly attainable.  In particular because they had three positions that were awful where even mediocre players would put them into that range.  Their park factor has a lot to do with it plus the fact that the offense was so good the past 3 years previous that the perception is that we should be better even though we probably don't need to be. 

 

Any article about the Angels at this point should include some speculation about their 5 yr strategy.  Especially considering that they were willing to gut their already weak farm system for a player that doesn't fill one of their most glaring needs for 2016.