Predictions - Biggest surprises this year (Good and bad)

[zenmaster]

Good - I predict Simmons hit's better than we thought and hovers at or around .300

 

Bad - Santiago never finds it this year and finishes with more losses than wins and an ERA well over 4.

 

 

What do you all think?

 

[halomatt]

Giavotella improves dramatically on defense. 

[laagamer]

Good- Pujols hits .270

 

Bad- We finish 3rd ahead of Mariners & Oakland 

[Docwaukee]

Good - Richards, Gia, Nava, Cron, Perez, Calhoun

Bad - Heaney, Joe Smith, Pujols, 

[Ohtaniland]

Good......We will field a very competitive team this season. Arte will stay out of the way while Eppler and the new coaches will breath new life into the organization.

Bad.....No matter what we will start the season in 2nd place because of the schedule makers.

[HaloNArizona]

Good - Nava/Gentry, Gia, Heaney, Skaggs and Richards

 

Bad - Pujols, Weaver, Wilson, Catching platoon.

[IEAngelsfan]

Good - Nava, Escobar, Gia, Heaney and Richards.

 

Bad - Pujols (injured), Wilson and Weaver.

[Angelsjunky]

Bad....Tropeano, Choi, and every prospect sucks.

 

Good...we get to mock ScottyAllen about it.

[Adam]

Good - Ticket prices and availability will be very fan friendly by mid-summer

 

Bad - The baseball team

[marcosantinia12]

Good -
Mike Trout of 2012-2013 returns. BA around .310-.320, 35 HR, 30 SB, 9.5-10 WAR. 

Cron puts up a solid. .265/.310/.460 25-30 HR

Calhoun has a career year from the 5 spot. All-Star, another gold glove nomination, .275/.325/.465 25-30HR

Nava/Gentry do a fine job to hold down the 2 spot in the lineup with an obp around.350

Skaggs surprises largely when he returns. 

 

Bad -
Relief Pitching crisis 

Pujols is out for sometime during the season, HR numbers fall drastically while maintaining his other numbers. 

Giovotella's hitting falls

Weaver is done. 

 

After a roller coaster of an off-season, I feel more optimistic than pessimistic, not to say that we will make the postseason but that we will strongly exceed expectations.  Our team on paper looks really bland other than that  Trout guy. Mediocre on paper, but I think that the team on the field will over perform our projections and make a playoff run. I see us finishing off at 88-74 tied with Texas and behind the Astros, but surprisingly missing both wildcard spots to AL Central/East teams.
 

Edited March 22, 2016 by marcosantinia12

[Chuck]

Good: Pujols' lower half is finally healthy and he returns to St. Louis Cardinals form. Mike Trout has his best season yet. Heaney is the staff ace. Nava surprises the baseball world. Calhoun knocks in 100 run. Escobar is a legit leadoff hitter, sparkplug. Rasmus turns out to be our best reliever. Gia gets better on both offense and defense. Our bench.

 

Bad: The bullpen. Weaver is toast. Richards is more of the 2015 version than the 2014 version. Cron doesn't improve enough. C.J. Wilson is awful. 

[Angel Oracle]

Good - Richards returns to 2014 form without the injury. Heaney continues to pitch like a #3 starter. Trout benefits from Escobar and Nava hitting in front of him, and drives in some 115 runs. Giovatella improves with the glove now that the vision issue is behind him. The bullpen pitches better than expected.

Bad - Weave will likely leave the rotation later than he should. Nibs never gets fully healthy. Santiago continues with the Nibs impression.

Meh - Pujols improves a little, but still only has around an .800 OPS.

[Angelsjunky]

Good: Pujols' lower half is finally healthy and he returns to St. Louis Cardinals form. Mike Trout has his best season yet. Heaney is the staff ace. Nava surprises the baseball world. Calhoun knocks in 100 run. Escobar is a legit leadoff hitter, sparkplug. Rasmus turns out to be our best reliever. Gia gets better on both offense and defense. Our bench.

 

Bad: The bullpen. Weaver is toast. Richards is more of the 2015 version than the 2014 version. Cron doesn't improve enough. C.J. Wilson is awful. 

 

 

Love your eternal optimism, Chuck.

[ten ocho recon scout]

I know i for one want pujols to have a healthy lower half.

[zenmaster]

If Pujols returns to St. Louis day numbers I'll eat my left shoe and post the video to AW.

[halobob]

Good: Angels make the WS.

Bad: They lose the WS to the Giants.

[Second Base]

Bad....Tropeano, Choi, and every prospect sucks.

 

Good...we get to mock ScottyAllen about it.

 

Oh I'll play your game you rogue.....

 

Bad: Weaver is done, CJ comes down with another injury while altering his delivery, Simmons and Nava fail to hit .260.

Good: Richards finishes top 5 in Cy Young, Nick Tropeano establishes himself as mid rotation starter, Shoemaker finishes with an ERA under 4 and Cron hits more than 30 doubles and more than 20 homeruns. 

 

*Also, I should add that my standings predictions are almost always WAY off every year and my personnel predictions are like prospects, hit or miss. 

[WestCoastOriolesFan]

Good:  Mike Trout finally gets through farting around and starts taking baseball seriously. He puts up a 20 WAR season.

 

Bad:  It takes the Angels 7 games to beat the Dogs in the World Series.

[Chuck]

Love your eternal optimism, Chuck.

I really do not know how to be any other way, AJ.

[tdawg87]

Good: Mike Trout finally gets through farting around and starts taking baseball seriously. He puts up a 20 WAR season.

Finally somebody says it.

[NrM]

Good:

Skaggs becomes our 2nd best pitcher by the allstar break

Gia has another solid year. Improves defensively 

Nava has a great bounce back season.

 

Bad:

Cron posts a .739 OPS for the 3rd straight year. 

Pujols continues his decline

Our Bench struggles when inevitably forced to play more than expected because we lack AAA depth

Escobar ends up with a sub .700 OPS

Edited March 23, 2016 by Mr. Meeseeks

[arch stanton]

Good- Better overall baseball this season. More baserunners, better defense, better control of the opposing team's running game. Late game options both offensively and defensively are much more effective.

 

Bad- bullpen struggles that don't get corrected until a month or two into the season that cause issues preventing runs in the 6th and 7th innings

 

Result- Chase the Texas teams early then catch them by late August and cruise into the division title

[ettin]

Good - Cory Rasmus will shine this year in whatever role he ends up in.

 

Bad - C.J. Cron doesn't quite tap into the power that we hope he can.

[Erstad Grit]

Joe Smith will tank and be released

 

Morin will be our best relief pitcher 

[totdprods]

Good:

-Richards has a dominant season (unfortunately, also the best season of his career)

-Gia officially becomes the next Eckstein with improved defense and offense (even hitting a walk-off grand slam)

-one of the Morin/Bedrosian/J. Guerra trio becomes the 8th inning guy mid-season

-inexplicably, Hector Santiago prevails and pitches like a #2-#3 all season. 

-Ortega and Choi both become vital bench pieces

-Wilson, Weaver both surprise and pitch well - not great, but better than expected - though both miss significant time (I actually wrote this down in January)

-Huston Street

-Simmons' defense

-Pujols has his best year as an Angel - and DH's most of the year.

-Nate Smith and Nick Tropeano both do well in spot starts.

Meh:

-CJ Cron. Improves defensively, stays middle of the road offensively.

 

Bad:

-Mike Trout has a really poor April, freaking everyone out. He rebounds and has a good year, but on the slightly underwhelming side by Trout standards.

-Calhoun has a rough year, never finding his groove. Nagging injuries lead the Angels to playing him at first more than usual.

-Gentry/Nava don't do as poorly as everyone feared, but they don't do particularly well either.

-Simmons winds up being as bad offensively as we all hoped he wouldn't be. 

-Perez struggles offensively and loses significant playing time to Soto. 

-Escobar is okay. Not necessarily bad, but doesn't quite live up to the .350 OBP lead-off hitter we hope for.

-One of Heaney or Skaggs gets knocked around and moves to a temporary pen role that lasts far longer than we hope, and the org begins to consider keeping one in that role. 

-Al Alburquerque

 

Ugly: 

-Shoemaker rebounds early in season, then struggles sharply, eventually needing TJS

-Joe Smith does so poorly we start DFA Countdown threads by end of April. 

 

With no team running away with the division, the Angels make a massive blockbuster trade in July in an attempt to not only compete for a playoff spot, but address needs for 2017 and beyond. The Angels acquire both Andrew Cashner and Jon Jay, players due for free agency, giving the Angels a head-start in resigning both players ahead of the weak '16 FA class. In addition, the Angels also acquire one of Nick Vincent or Kevin Quackenbush to replace Joe Smith's late-inning role. The big prize though is one of Hunter Renfroe or Wil Myers. The Angels pay a steep price, sacrificing one of Heaney/Skaggs, as well as a combination of Cron/Cowbitza/a catcher, Tropeano/Smith, Baldoquin, or Alcantara. 

Edited March 23, 2016 by totdprods