And we wonder why Dipoto quit...

[AngelsLakersFan]

It seems pretty clear.

[Jobu]

The commute?

[Docwaukee]

I don't find anything to be all that clear with this org right now.  

[Tyler]

Cause he handcuffed the organization in several ways and damaged Moreno's confidence in Front Office personnel. 

 

The only way you don't go over the luxury tax is if you don't have faith in the plan, presented by the FO, to win and draw fans, working out.

 

With that said, Eppler needs to have made several trades by Spring Training to get this team where it needs to be headed into the season. 

[AngelsLakersFan]

I don't find anything to be all that clear with this org right now.  

 

That's part of it. The team has a complete lack of direction. We have Eppler making win-now moves, then signing platoon outfielders while saying we're still in on big free agents. Then 15 minutes later we have Arte - on a boat - saying he's broke and it's not gonna happen. 

[Stradling]

Haha, Dipoto was absolutely part of the problem. He quit because of Arte and Scioscia, but when the guy that takes over for you and trades two pitchers and that constitutes trading the farm, Dipoto is certainly not free of blame.

[AngelsLakersFan]

Cause he handcuffed the organization in several ways and damaged Moreno's confidence in Front Office personnel. 

 

The only way you don't go over the luxury tax is if you don't have faith in the plan, presented by the FO, to win and draw fans, working out.

 

With that said, Eppler needs to have made several trades by Spring Training to get this team where it needs to be headed into the season. 

 

There is no plan. 

[Erstad Grit]

because he wanted to trade Trumbo again? 

[AngelsLakersFan]

Haha, Dipoto was absolutely part of the problem. He quit because of Arte and Scioscia, but when the guy that takes over for you and trades two pitchers and that constitutes trading the farm, Dipoto is certainly not free of blame.

 

He definitely shares in the blame, but moves are not always going to work out, and I do think his time with the Angels was very much a learning experience for him. That said Dipoto had a vision for the team and if he was allowed to implement it perhaps it would have worked out. He quit when he realized that he was not going to get to implement that vision.

 

What we have now is a complete lack of vision, and that is because the GM role has been squeezed between Arte Moreno and Mike Scioscia into this tiny box of mild significance. Tony Reagins is about as bad of a general manager as you can have, but when you consider the pressures to placate ownership and appease Mike Scioscia is it any wonder that these guys fail?

[Troll Daddy]

There is no plan.

Says you? ... sorry, I don't buy it.

[AngelsLakersFan]

The commute?

 

I think it was actually having to look at Mike Scioscia in his baseball uniform. Other than that they got along great.

[zenmaster]

I wonder what we were complaining about last year at this time?

[Inside Pitch]

That's part of it. The team has a complete lack of direction. We have Eppler making win-now moves, then signing platoon outfielders while saying we're still in on big free agents. Then 15 minutes later we have Arte - on a boat - saying he's broke and it's not gonna happen. 

 

I don't view Simmons as a win now move -- it's 5 years of club control.   I see Escobar as a possible cost savings move -- guess we find out whether or not that's the case whenever Freeze signs, but at worst they are paying the same amount as last year for 3B.   Losing Gott stinks, so did losing Jeppy...  and Waldon.  

 

The one silver lining as it relates to the farm system is that there is no shortage of potential RPs..   Not RP prospects as much as guys who could fit into the sabermetric idea of cheap bullpens.

 

When it's all said and done -- the holes at 3B, 2B, LF and C were created by the previous front office....   Based on what he's done in Seattle Im guessing JD would have brought back Iannetta...   So that still would have left problem spots at three positions and a looming problem at SS.

 

 

He definitely shares in the blame, but moves are not always going to work out, and I do think his time with the Angels was very much a learning experience for him. That said Dipoto had a vision for the team and if he was allowed to implement it perhaps it would have worked out. He quit when he realized that he was not going to get to implement that vision.

 

The mismanagement of the farm system is entirely on him and his lieutenants.  People have been deluding themselves talking about how the farm system was much improved -- it took all of one deal to disprove that theory.   Even the decision to blow their international budget on Baldoquin is extremely questionable when you take into consideration they were locking themselves out of the Vladdy Jr, sweepstakes.  Vlad 2.0 signed for 3.9 mil -- was easily one of the most acclaimed prospects in his signing period and unlike others that may still think the Angels were cheats -- his family knew the team wasn't going to dick him under.

Edited December 17, 2015 by Inside Pitch

[Inside Pitch]

I wonder what we were complaining about last year at this time?

 

Pujols, Hamilton, Arte, and MS..  

[Inside Pitch]

Tony Reagins is about as bad of a general manager as you can have, but when you consider the pressures to placate ownership and appease Mike Scioscia is it any wonder that these guys fail?

 

Tony Reagins is the ONLY reason people don't judge JD more harshly -- that and the fact that he could pour honey water down people's throats anytime he spoke in public.

[AngelsLakersFan]

I don't view Simmons as a win now move -- it's 5 years of club control.   I see Escobar as a possible cost savings move -- guess we find out whether or not that's the case whenever Freeze signs, but at worst they are paying the same amount as last year for 3B.   Losing Gott stinks, so did losing Jeppy...  and Waldon.  

 

The one silver lining as it relates to the farm system is that there is no shortage of potential RPs..   Not RP prospects as much as guys who could fit into the sabermetric idea of cheap bullpens.

 

When it's all said and done -- the holes at 3B, 2B, LF and C were created by the previous front office....   Based on what he's done in Seattle Im guessing JD would have brought back Iannetta...   So that still would have left problem spots at three positions and a looming problem at SS.

 

 

 

The mismanagement of the farm system is entirely on him and his lieutenants.  People have been deluding themselves talking about how the farm system was much improved -- it took all of one deal to disprove that theory.   Even the decision to blow their international budget on Baldoquin is extremely questionable when you take into consideration they were locking themselves out of the Vladdy Jr, sweepstakes.  Vlad 2.0 signed for 3.9 mil -- was easily one of the most acclaimed prospects in his signing period and unlike others that may still think the Angels were cheats -- his family knew the team wasn't going to dick him under.

 

You could also describe the Simmons move as a cost savings move, if you consider the alternatives after the 2016 season.

[Blarg]

Absolutely.

[laagamer]

Is it because this organization sucks balls right now? 

[ABC]

Pujols, Hamilton, Arte, and MS..  

 

The good ole days.

[Inside Pitch]

The good ole days.

 

This shouldnt have made me laugh..  but it did.  a lot.. 

[Docwaukee]

This has been an eroding situation for several years now.  

 

From 2005-2008 their drafts produced hank conger, jorden walden, peter bourjos, andrew romine, and tyler chatwood.   Other than Kendrys, we didn't really sign any significant international players (that I can remember) and then we completely pulled out of the international market in 2009.  

 

Reagins came along in 2007 and under the direction of Arte (and maybe MS to a degree), took a hammer to the eroded area blindly, further damaging it.  

 

Eddie Bane found a brand new piece of drywall and borrowed his dad's killer set of tool to give it a nice cosmetic appearance but the mold was still underneath.  

 

In 2010, he and reagins tried to fix it even further and ended up exposing the damage but got pissed at each other and just left it.  

 

Then Jerry came along and said 'I can fix that shit easy.'  So he got out his metric socket set but alas, the materials were standard so he put some spit, wd40, duct tape and patch all over it to hold every thing together.  But it looked like shit.

 

Scott Sevais came by one day and tried to cover it up with liquid paper and he lit a scented candle but when he came back the next day a sharpie note in MS handwriting said 'For a good time, call Jill Servais' with Scott's home phone number underneath.

 

Then Arte came along one day and said 'are we still working on this shit?  It looks worse than ever."  So he put a picture of a painting over it with a very fancy and expensive frame.  But he realized the painting was a knock off so he put a mirror with white powder all over it over the top.  Then he realized the mirror was a gift from his ex wife so he got rid of it not realizing it was an expensive family heirloom.  

 

Jerry saw the mirror in the trash and after seeing his reflection he realized how inappropriately tan he was which made him angry.  So he demanded that no one else was allowed to touch his eroded mess of a structure.  But Butcher, Baylor and Scioscia got really drunk one night and wrote mean stuff about jerry all over it.  So Jerry told Arte to fix it but Arte thought it really tied the room together and felt they should leave it.  

 

So Jerry left.  

 

Then Billy came along.  He took one look at it and said 'holy shit!  What the F is that thing?!" Arte told him it was the franchise and Billy laughed.  But after some consternation, Billy put together an estimate of what it would cost and showed it to Arte who told him to get started fixing it.  

 

But then Arte realized he didn't see one of the zeroes in the quote total.  So he said '**** it', took a shit on it, and then went sailing.

[AngelsLakersFan]

I love how you started out serious and then just drifted into absurdity. Well done. lol

[Kevin]

I don't view Simmons as a win now move -- it's 5 years of club control. I see Escobar as a possible cost savings move -- guess we find out whether or not that's the case whenever Freeze signs, but at worst they are paying the same amount as last year for 3B. Losing Gott stinks, so did losing Jeppy... and Waldon.

The one silver lining as it relates to the farm system is that there is no shortage of potential RPs.. Not RP prospects as much as guys who could fit into the sabermetric idea of cheap bullpens.

When it's all said and done -- the holes at 3B, 2B, LF and C were created by the previous front office.... Based on what he's done in Seattle Im guessing JD would have brought back Iannetta... So that still would have left problem spots at three positions and a looming problem at SS.

The mismanagement of the farm system is entirely on him and his lieutenants. People have been deluding themselves talking about how the farm system was much improved -- it took all of one deal to disprove that theory. Even the decision to blow their international budget on Baldoquin is extremely questionable when you take into consideration they were locking themselves out of the Vladdy Jr, sweepstakes. Vlad 2.0 signed for 3.9 mil -- was easily one of the most acclaimed prospects in his signing period and unlike others that may still think the Angels were cheats -- his family knew the team wasn't going to dick him under.

Good post. Only part I disagree with is Jepsen. He pitched great for us at times and then shit the bed. 2014 being a good example. Pitched great during the regular season and got lit up in the playoffs. Over all just inconsistent. Having said that I'll take him over Salas.

[seenoevil]

He was fired. Sosh ran him out

[Pucknut22]

Why all the panic? It is December 17th.  I personally don't like Gordon, Cespedes, or Upton.  What I have learned is you do not give a long term contract to FA when they are over 30.  It always

bites you in the butt.  Angels had injuries and terrible LF play and no backup infield and they still got it down to the last game of the season. Oakland and Seattle have not improved. Texas and Houston are good but not much better than the Angels. If the Angels can get a OBP with speed to play left they will be right there.  Simmons is going to be a fan favorite when they see this kid play every day. 

I don't blame Arte for not wanting to go over the luxury tax.