Time to face the truth: this is not a good team

[Angelsjunky]

I bitched about it at length in the "Pause and Acknowledge" thread, so I'll try to be brief and summarize in bullet points:

• 7th year in a row of mediocrity
• We haven't won 90 games or made the playoffs since 2014
• Poor results despite having a top 10 payroll, year after year, #5 this year
• Farm system has some upside, but isn't deep and is weaker than I thought six months ago (I mean, look at those rosters!)
• No clear or easy fixes to be made

I could go on. The bottom line is that this is a mediocre at best, and could actually be a truly bad team. And it isn't like we have a farm system brimming with talent. In a best-case scenario, we're probably 2-3 years away from being good, and that's only if the Angels make far more good than bad moves, and history tells us that's unlikely. Meaning, we're continuing to tread water and the horizon is as far away as its been for the last few years.

Feel free to try to convince me otherwise, but I've been mostly playing an optimist for years and it is finally growing thin. If the place we want to get to is a perennial contending, 90+ win team, it is really hard to see how to get there from here, without putting on the rosy glasses.

I suppose the one ray of hope is, well, hope springs eternal. Why? Because baseball is a funny game, and things can change quickly. But, for now, this kind of sucks.

[tdawg87]

I think "mediocrity" is a bit generous.

This team, as of right now, is a far cry from that term. This is a train wreck from top to bottom.

There's no fix for it either. You just have to hope the players start playing better. 

Unfortunately I don't have that hope anymore and haven't for a few years now.

[Angelsjunky]

2 minutes ago, tdawg87 said:

I think "mediocrity" is a bit generous.

This team, as of right now, is a far cry from that term. This is a train wreck from top to bottom.

There's no fix for it either. You just have to hope the players start playing better. 

Unfortunately I don't have that hope anymore and haven't for a few years now.

Yup, which is why I wrote "mediocre at best, but could be truly bad." 

Knowing the Angels, they'll finally get hot in a month or two and finish the year in the 80-85 win range, earning a worse draft pick and giving us a hint of hope for next year. Rinse and repeat.

They're caught in a vicious cycle of mediocrity - never truly bad, never good...at least not for seven or more years, and really not since 2009. 

If we imagine the team is like a human being that is struggling, people only really make change for one of two reasons: Either they're really smart and driven and make positive changes by choice, or they are forced to change through suffering. The former hasn't happened. Whether it is Reagins, Dipoto, Eppler, or Minasian, none of them have turned the ship around. In other words, none of them have been the genius we've been hoping for.

Which is why I'm hoping this team utterly tanks this years, finishing below 70 wins, in the hope that this will wake them up a bit. 

 

[bloodbrother]

This has largely been the Angels roster building model for the past 6 years now

[Docwaukee]

14 minutes ago, bloodbrother said:

This has largely been the Angels roster building model for the past 6 years now

this is great.  

[T.G.]

Wait... I thought this team was magical? @Angelsjunky will you freaking make up your damn mind?

[fan_since79]

We were magical for about a week and a half, then reality set in.

Losing Trout now for so long is really going to hurt.

[Docwaukee]

For the first time in a few years I am actually a bit surprised at the level of such poor play.  

With how well Trout, Ohtani and Walsh are playing, I'd figure we'd have a top 5 offense.   We have the lowest bb rate in the league.  Poor base running.  

The starting pitching isn't good but I'm pretty surprised that they're this bad.  And that's in the least starter innings in baseball.   

The pen is a hot mess and I thought it could be but the additions of Watson, Cishek and Iglesias gave me some hope.  I actually kinda figured Mayer wouldn't be good again but thought there was enough depth there to be mediocre.  

The defense is still the thing that gets me the most.  I just can believe it's that bad with an infield of Iglesias, Rendon and Fletch.  Granted it's only been that way in limited fashion.  But holy hell it's been awful.  

Joe Maddon led teams seem very binary to me.  His shtick either works or it doesn't and you put up with his poor on field management if he's that guy who can bring people together which is why he essentially wears out his welcome eventually.  

I actually feel kinda bad for Minasian in that every player he's touched has just turned to shit.  My big off season goal was to not only get some talent but minimize downside which I thought he'd done a decent job of on the surface but all his moves have crapped the bed so far.  

It's really quite a mess right now.  We might lose 95 games and be 15 games out by the end of July.  It wouldn't totally surprise me if they bagged on Minasian after two or even one year in panic fashion and brought in a stodgy old dude to run the team in short order.  

The problem is still from the top down in my opinion.  There could be a lot more going right this year but maybe that would just enable the fact that the process is still broken from above.  

GM's/Teams have to get a little lucky sometimes and we haven't had much of that, but some of them seem luckier because they put themselves in a better starting position.  

Communication.  Infrastructure.  A cohesive and uniform philosophy from the top down.  An org chart without internal lines drawn from certain people in umpteen directions.   Very little in the way of hidden agendas, ulterior motives and diverging or inconsistent leadership within certain departments.   

[Angelsjunky]

20 minutes ago, True Grich said:

Wait... I thought this team was magical? @Angelsjunky will you freaking make up your damn mind?

You realize this joke is as old as Stradling's fanny pack? I said "magical" about a month ago, and a few of you keep going on about it. 

[Taylor]

You all should take a trip to Hawaii. It'll get your mind off the Angels.

 

[Docwaukee]

And all companies have their nits btw.  But the good ones can actually identify their strengths and weaknesses pretty readily.  The Angels haven't had conventional leadership since Arte took over and that can work in some situations if the right people are empowered.  If it's the wrong ones then who rule the roost then you're in deep caca.  

[Taylor]

1 minute ago, Angelsjunky said:

You realize this joke is as old as Stradling's fanny pack? I said "magical" about a month ago, and a few of you keep going on about it. 

It might be the new Craig. Craig embraced the Craig. Will you embrace the magic(al)?

[Stradling]

1 hour ago, NrM said:

Farm system has been awful under Billy Eppler. Been saying this forever. For some reason everyone here wanted to believe differently. I've also been of the opinion that we should've went full rebuild mode every season for like 5+ years now.

Again, the superfans here lambasted me. Toxic superfans make me sick

 

Incoming troll reactions to my post. You guys can suck my dick.

 

p.s. I'm a little drunk

Thanks @sammyscioscia, tell @Throwman91 and @Angel that I said hi.  Remind them that they suck for me. 

[Stradling]

3 minutes ago, Angelsjunky said:

You realize this joke is as old as Stradling's fanny pack? I said "magical" about a month ago, and a few of you keep going on about it. 

My Fanny pack?  I’m confused. 

[T.G.]

1 minute ago, Angelsjunky said:

You realize this joke is as old as Stradling's fanny pack? I said "magical" about a month ago, and a few of you keep going on about it. 

We're like Penn and Teller, you can't fool us.

I'm afraid you're going to have to wear that magical top hat for a long time.

 

[Angelsjunky]

1 minute ago, Stradling said:

My Fanny pack?  I’m confused. 

I just figured you as a guy who never left the 80s. Or is that Lou?

[Angelsjunky]

OK, fine. This team is not magical. Or rather, it is cursed magic.

[Stradling]

Just now, Angelsjunky said:

I just figured you as a guy who never left the 80s. Or is that Lou?

I was a teenager in the 80’s. 

[Stradling]

I wore Bugle Boy jeans in the 80’s

[T.G.]

1 minute ago, Stradling said:

My Fanny pack?  I’m confused. 

Pick a card... any card.

He's trying to use the old slight of hand trick and divert your attention away from what he's really doing.

[Angelsjunky]

7 minutes ago, Dochalo said:

For the first time in a few years I am actually a bit surprised at the level of such poor play.  

With how well Trout, Ohtani and Walsh are playing, I'd figure we'd have a top 5 offense.   We have the lowest bb rate in the league.  Poor base running.  

The starting pitching isn't good but I'm pretty surprised that they're this bad.  And that's in the least starter innings in baseball.   

The pen is a hot mess and I thought it could be but the additions of Watson, Cishek and Iglesias gave me some hope.  I actually kinda figured Mayer wouldn't be good again but thought there was enough depth there to be mediocre.  

The defense is still the thing that gets me the most.  I just can believe it's that bad with an infield of Iglesias, Rendon and Fletch.  Granted it's only been that way in limited fashion.  But holy hell it's been awful.  

Joe Maddon led teams seem very binary to me.  His shtick either works or it doesn't and you put up with his poor on field management if he's that guy who can bring people together which is why he essentially wears out his welcome eventually.  

I actually feel kinda bad for Minasian in that every player he's touched has just turned to shit.  My big off season goal was to not only get some talent but minimize downside which I thought he'd done a decent job of on the surface but all his moves have crapped the bed so far.  

It's really quite a mess right now.  We might lose 95 games and be 15 games out by the end of July.  It wouldn't totally surprise me if they bagged on Minasian after two or even one year in panic fashion and brought in a stodgy old dude to run the team in short order.  

The problem is still from the top down in my opinion.  There could be a lot more going right this year but maybe that would just enable the fact that the process is still broken from above.  

GM's/Teams have to get a little lucky sometimes and we haven't had much of that, but some of them seem luckier because they put themselves in a better starting position.  

Communication.  Infrastructure.  A cohesive and uniform philosophy from the top down.  An org chart without internal lines drawn from certain people in umpteen directions.   Very little in the way of hidden agendas, ulterior motives and diverging or inconsistent leadership within certain departments.   

I'll say it differently and, for me, in a rare succinct mode: Something is rotten in Denmark. This team, this organization, is broken. 

[Docwaukee]

The farm system isn't good.  It's about avg and what you'd expect relative to the resources that previous regimes had available.  There's still a fair amount of upside but it was so decimated that to be where it's at is pretty damn good.  Prospects are still a highly volatile asset and always will be.   Billy didn't do a perfect job with the farm but better than most could have done.  

[Angelsjunky]

1 minute ago, Stradling said:

I was a teenager in the 80’s. 

And? Did you have a fanny pack?

[Docwaukee]

1 minute ago, Angelsjunky said:

OK, fine. This team is not magical. Or rather, it is cursed magic.

Is it on a magical train?  

[Stradling]

Just now, Angelsjunky said:

And? Did you have a fanny pack?

No. Did anyone?