I'm the GM: Here's My (Latest) Offseason Plan

[Second Base]

2 hours ago, Tank said:

you don't want to know.

and i'm not allowed to talk about it.

[Angelsjunky]

On 10/24/2020 at 1:18 PM, Dochalo said:

I'm actually at a bit of a loss on how I'd proceed this off season.  

the complicating factors are the expanded playoffs and decreased revenue.  

Expanded playoffs will make it less likely that teams trade away major league players for minor league talent.  Only a couple of the truly awful teams are going to be willing to do that.  Like the pirates who will likely be able to cut a fat hog on moving musgrove as there will be many more suitors than usual.  Teams like boston and texas really don't have cheap pitching assets that are club controlled.  

The Angels don't have major league ready assets they can trade.  We need Walsh.  We need Fletcher.  

An do we really think that Arte is going to take payroll to 190m in light of decreased revenue?

There might end up being some free agent bargains out there.  Maybe.  

I know people want the team to go hard after pitching, but I think I'd kinda kick the can down the road a bit till next year.  There just aren't that many options to get good pitching as far as I can see and I don't think I'd totally force it.  

so I'd go with a little pen help, a cheap option at 2b, and one free agent pitcher like Gausman or Stroman.  I don't want to get raked over the coals on a trade which I think teams would be looking to do to us.  The other way to do it would be to take on some salary from an expensive player from a team looking to cut payroll.  There could be a couple of surprise teams that might want to off load some contracts.  I don't see Arte having the stomach for that but it could be an option.  

You may be right as to what actually happens. I think a minimalist approach would be a starting pitcher, a couple relievers, and a catcher. The Angels could get away without acquiring a second starter, more relievers, and another infielder or outfielder. It might piss off fans, but that's all they "need" and they can hope that the team continues to take steps forward, and that the second half performance is their true level.

We may also see a situation where a few premium free agents are signed early, and then owners balk and most signings are delaying until next year, and a lot of players can be had for the cheap. I think, at least, owners and GMs will be hesitant at first, see what others do, and it might end as a quiet stand-off for awhile, until someone splurges. 

In this climate, it seems likely that Trevor Bauer does indeed just take a one-year deal and hope for a better money environment next year. On the other hand, his agent has to be telling him that his earning potential will never be higher, as another 4.00 ERA season will cause his value to plummet from $30M+ a year to $15-20M.

[totdprods]

On 10/24/2020 at 12:18 PM, Dochalo said:

I'm actually at a bit of a loss on how I'd proceed this off season.  

the complicating factors are the expanded playoffs and decreased revenue.  

Expanded playoffs will make it less likely that teams trade away major league players for minor league talent.  Only a couple of the truly awful teams are going to be willing to do that.  Like the pirates who will likely be able to cut a fat hog on moving musgrove as there will be many more suitors than usual.  Teams like boston and texas really don't have cheap pitching assets that are club controlled.  

The Angels don't have major league ready assets they can trade.  We need Walsh.  We need Fletcher.  

An do we really think that Arte is going to take payroll to 190m in light of decreased revenue?

There might end up being some free agent bargains out there.  Maybe.  

I know people want the team to go hard after pitching, but I think I'd kinda kick the can down the road a bit till next year.  There just aren't that many options to get good pitching as far as I can see and I don't think I'd totally force it.  

so I'd go with a little pen help, a cheap option at 2b, and one free agent pitcher like Gausman or Stroman.  I don't want to get raked over the coals on a trade which I think teams would be looking to do to us.  The other way to do it would be to take on some salary from an expensive player from a team looking to cut payroll.  There could be a couple of surprise teams that might want to off load some contracts.  I don't see Arte having the stomach for that but it could be an option.  

I think this is going to be one of the most critical aspects of this offseason. I'm expecting a lot of marginal/average players will be non-tendered, and we'll see a glut of 'everyday' players hit the market and depress contracts. The lack of a minor league season last year, plus minor league contraction, will mean a 'surge' in young players/minor leaguers being added to 40-man rosters and more reliance on kids being pushed into the depth that typically would not have been.

Purely as an example, it's why someone like Livan Soto, a glove-first middle infielder who I don't believe has more than a few games experience past Inland Empire in 2019 could be added as he's Rule 5 eligible, and could slot immediately into the depth chart where we've seen the Angels have guys like Wilfredo Tovar, Gregorio Petit, and Eliot Soto. Not on the MLB club, not the first guy recalled in the event of injury, but maybe the next in line if things get that far - and ironically, we've seen that happen almost every year. So instead of dropping a couple mil on a Cliff Pennington-type, like most MLB clubs would have done 2015-2019, we'll be in a new era now, where a team would settle on paying a 20-year old kid who, by prior definitions "wasn't ready", to serve as a league minimum, optionable, glove-first UT IF depth piece.

It's not necessarily fair to Soto - who instead of going through a conventional development process, he gets launched forward, maybe collects some MLB pay for bits of a season or two, then eventually gets DFA'ed because his bat "didn't come around" when the next similar player or Paris/Blakely/Vera becomes equally as 'ready' as Soto had been.

You could also replace Soto with Denny Brady and replace someone like Noe Ramirez or Matt Andriese with him, and so on.

It's part of why I could see the Angels taking a sort of lop-sided approach. They'll sock away $20-$25m for one player, Bauer, Stroman, Lindor, Realmuto, take your pick...someone with 'impact', and then probably turn cheap elsewhere, be it non-tendering a bunch of bullpen arms and replacing them with guys like Rodriguez, Yan, Reyes, and also waiting until January and February and seeing which of the non-tenders are still around, winding up with guys like Jake Junis or Trevor Williams or Mike Montgomery or Kyle Freeland as rotation signings. It's also why I can see a trade being our first or second biggest move for an impact player, as it could involve the least amount of salary absorbed relative to impact. 

Edited October 25, 2020 by totdprods

[greginpsca]

Here is the trade i would like to see. Pirates get Thaiss, Middleton, Rojas, Hermosillo, and Mulrine. Angels get Musgrove and Jacob Stallings. 

[Slegnaac]

15 hours ago, Tank said:

you don't want to know.

and i'm not allowed to talk about it.

Rule #1. Don't talk about what happens in Tank's office.

Rule #2. Don't talk about what happens in Tank's office.

[Slegnaac]

15 hours ago, Tank said:

you don't want to know.

and i'm not allowed to talk about it.

Rule #1. Don't talk about what happens in Tank's office.

Rule #2. Don't talk about what happens in Tank's office.

[Vegas Halo Fan]

2 hours ago, Angelsjunky said:

In this climate, it seems likely that Trevor Bauer does indeed just take a one-year deal and hope for a better money environment next year.

This is the one great unknown about the off-season this year - how teams will react to the significant loss of income that this season has brought. I doubt that there will be any free spenders, and some teams may dump payroll.

[failos]

AngelsJunky for GM!

[Tank]

2 hours ago, failos said:

AngelsJunky for GM!

[failos]

7 minutes ago, Tank said:

 

[Tank]

9 minutes ago, failos said:

 

[failos]

34 minutes ago, Tank said:

 

[Ace-Of-Diamonds]

On 10/23/2020 at 11:07 AM, Angelsjunky said:

Offseason plan, according to GM Angelsjunky, listed in terms of priority.

1. Sign the best starter possible. I don't think Bauer is realistic, so start with Stroman, then Gausman, and on down the line.
2. Consider trade targets. Prioritize Joe Musgrove, but look at others. Unless it is a top-flight young pitcher with club control, don't trade any of the top prospects (especially Marsh, Rodriguez, Detmers, but also preferably Adams, Paris, etc). If a second starter is acquired via trade, skip 3 and move on to 4.
3. Sign a swingman/secondary starter, preferably to a one-year deal. Nothing too fancy, but see if Garret Richards wants to come home.
4. Relievers. At least two, and hopefully--if money allows--one of them elite, or at least really good.
5. Sign a platoon catcher. Don't overspend.
6. If any cash is left, pickup a journeyman infielder and possibly an outfielder. But wait in the hopes that someone decent can be had on the cheap.

The numbers are not only in order of priority, but (hopefully) order of acquisition. Or at the least, get at least one good starter before spending on anything else. And shore up the pitching staff before signing any bench players. This also may give greater freedom later, if--for example--money is saved on pitching via trade, the Angels can go after a more expensive (and better) catcher like James McCann.

You? Try to keep it succinct.

1. I would at least check in on Bauer.
2. Sign La Stella to play 2B, better options in FA next year .
3. I wouldn't spend much money on a catcher.
4. 1 or 2 of these: Stroman, Tanaka, Hamels, Happ, Gausman, Fiers, and some relievers (Richards) and we should be able to go.
5. I wouldn't spend on OF we are pretty stacked with Adell and Marsh.