Finally, a solid MOTO (and why Next Year's Lineup Could be Good)

[tdawg87]

8 minutes ago, Blarg said:

Then July he went full Gorilla

Racist.

[wopphil]

1 hour ago, Jeff Fletcher said:

Ok. I disagree because there was a tangible, significant, change in his swing from the first two months to when he came back in June.

I don’t think it was reasonable to think he had suddenly become a 1.000 OPS hitter by changing his swing, and what happened in September was probably the expected correction, a slump that all hitters have.

The sum of his 80 games with the new swing was an .800 OPS. 

I think it’s reasonable to think, if he brings back the same swing next year, he can perform somewhere around that level (770 to 830), which would make him a slightly above average offensive RF (as well as an above average defensive RF).

I don’t believe the Angels have any internal options who can do better, and all the external options would require too many of their resources best used on filling more serious holes (pitching, catcher, 1B).

I also believe Jo Adell will be ready by 2020, if not sooner, so it’s a further waste of assets to acquire anyone who would block him.

That is my opinion of Kole Calhoun.

I agree with much of this, but am not nearly as optimistic as you about Calhoun. His last 37 games (nearly a quarter of a season) he slashed .159/.269/.246/.515. That's horrific, and almost exactly what he did for the first two months of the season.

But I agree that we probably shouldn't spend on a right fielder. For the price of a Harper, we could have a Corbin, a Keuchel, a Kimbrel and a still have money left over.

[Stradling]

5 hours ago, Scotty@AW said:

RF was wide open for the taking because Kole Calhoun sucked at his job for a long time. No one took advantage. Performances aren't static Flop, guys get better and worse. But look at the Angels roster and that core you're boasting about....

Upton isn't going to get better. Sorry. He is what he is, and he's been that for years. Nothing is out of the question with Trout, but how much better can he get? It'll be exciting to find out. I won't count on him improving. That's not how you team build. And Ohtani....will he have a ST? How much will he play?

That core, needs more. We need more offense from catcher, RF, 2B and 3B. Catcher will require outside help. Either 2B or 3B will require Cozart to stay healthy and perform better. I wouldn't count on it, but because of the contract, that's the reality they're looking at.  Calhoun has shown over a few years now, that he's not going to be improving in RF. He's actively declining. It happens. He needs to be replaced. Whether that happens this year or now, I don't know, but if the Angels actually intended to win in 2019, then no, he wouldn't be the starting RF. We'll see. 

What I'm advocating is that the Angels improve with very short term deals at 2B and RF. 

I believe that either Fletcher, Rengifo or Jahmai Jones are going to be so good that they'll be major assets at 2B, in the future or at utility in a Rengifo and Fletcher's case. I wouldn't want to block them because they're all in AA or higher, so all we need is a one or two year improvement, that's it. And in RF, I'm hoping Jo Adell is ready in 2020, but you never know. But it really shouldn't be that difficult to improve offensively over Kole Calhoun. 

He doesn’t have to get better.  He could simply have the same season, but get back to his normal career numbers with RISP and have a much bigger effect on the performance of the team.  He saw a 140 point drop in his BA and almost a 300 point drop in slugging.  If he simply has a normal year for him with RISP we score 20-30 more runs.  

[Second Base]

1 hour ago, Stradling said:

He doesn’t have to get better.  He could simply have the same season, but get back to his normal career numbers with RISP and have a much bigger effect on the performance of the team.  He saw a 140 point drop in his BA and almost a 300 point drop in slugging.  If he simply has a normal year for him with RISP we score 20-30 more runs.  

Agreed, though that assumes we'll have runners in front of him just as frequently. But I suppos f he's batting behind Trout and Ohtani, that's about as safe as any bet you could make regarding this team.

[Troll Daddy]

5 hours ago, Dtwncbad said:

Nah. Nobody needs to get off his case.  It is on Calhoun 100% to prove RF isn't a spot to upgrade.

Nobody owes him the benefit of the doubt.  I love the guy and how he plays but production matters.

It's on him.

Every player has to prove their worth year in year out ... Trout included.

[floplag]

7 hours ago, Jeff Fletcher said:

I’m going to nitpick one point.

Hernandez was down, for him, last year, but still above MLB average offensively as a 2B and well above what the Angels had. If he just repeats his “bad year,” it would be an upgrade. If he gets back to 2017 (which I think is possible since he’s 28), that’s a huge upgrade. 

But Eppler doesn’t want him, so .....

Carry on....

Oh, also, I think it’s a safe bet Ohtani gets 500+ PAs next year. 

I also think the Angels definitely have a chance to be a top 10 offense with the right tweaks. They do not need to blow it up or go all-in on Harper or anything. 

Fair enough, but its like other a spot we have candidates for that have very high potential.  For me that doesnt seem the spot to spend prospects on based on that.
RF on the other hand, is not, unless a couple guys that looked wholly overmatched in 18 suddenly learn how to hit ML pitching.
Ohtani getting 500 ABs, i pray you are right. 

[Jeff Fletcher]

1 hour ago, floplag said:

Fair enough, but its like other a spot we have candidates for that have very high potential.  For me that doesnt seem the spot to spend prospects on based on that.
RF on the other hand, is not, unless a couple guys that looked wholly overmatched in 18 suddenly learn how to hit ML pitching.
Ohtani getting 500 ABs, i pray you are right. 

I don’t think Hernandez would have an excessive prospect cost like Realmuto. 

Again, Eppler doesn’t want him, so moot point. 

[Dtwncbad]

1 hour ago, Troll Daddy said:

Every player has to prove their worth year in year out ... Trout included.

I disagree.

If Trout slumped badly for a year, his body of work and the infrequency of being lousy would prevail, and he would get the benefit of the doubt that the slump wasn't normal.

Calhoun body of work and recent history doesn't give him the same consideration.

The point is if the Angels moved on, there would be no good argument that he wasn't treated properly.

I don't think the Angels are moving on from Calhoun but nobody has to feel guilty about telling the truth about his performance or feel guilty if they have no confidence in him.

[UndertheHalo]

Calhoun is probably going to suck next year.  It doesn’t matter tho because at this point it would be dumb to block Adell.  They just have to hope for the best from Calhoun. 

[floplag]

42 minutes ago, Jeff Fletcher said:

I don’t think Hernandez would have an excessive prospect cost like Realmuto. 

Again, Eppler doesn’t want him, so moot point. 

Im sure you are right, but whatever we would spoend to get him would be something we would not have to get someone else in an area of need.  I would argue this for anyone that isnt an obvious concern where we have depth/options a la Sonny Gray.  

[Lou]

11 hours ago, Troll Daddy said:

 

No