SI: Angels take Shohei Ohtani off trade market, will buy

[Ace-Of-Diamonds]

1 hour ago, Stradling said:

Ok, then get two bullpen arms, a catcher and a starter.

O'Hoppe Should be back mid August

[Stradling]

2 minutes ago, Blarg said:

Oh for fucks sake, Wallach wouldn't hit water if he fell out of a boat because his bat is dry docked. He fucking sucks at the plate his entire fucking career and 4 more hits over the next three months isn't going to power the team anywhere but the basement. 

He is a DFA if the Angels even had a substandard replacement. You can't be hitting .194/.275/.380/.655 in the majors and it is definitely a cut line in the minors. The sooner the Angels part ways with him the better. 

Careful, you have a lot of posts, and because of that you will pray on guys with less posts.

[Stradling]

Just now, Ace-Of-Diamonds said:

O'Hoppe Should be back mid August

Yes, but it doesn’t mean he will instantly be effective.  

[VladdyforHOF]

5 minutes ago, totdprods said:

I'm gonna weigh in here...it's not Wallach's production I'm worried (well, it's a small part) about when I say we need a catcher. It's the depth that I'm worried about. 

When O'Hoppe is back, Wallach gets waived. Probably claimed. Say something happens to O'Hoppe or Thaiss (or even Okey) in September. The Angels are competing or better yet, make the playoffs. Anthony Mulrine? Zach Humphreys? Scramble to see which vet catcher is sitting around without a job and get him up to speed with the staff? Even if nothing like that happens, rolling into the stretch run on the backs of a a kid who has less than 100 MLB PAs coming off shoulder surgery and a guy who has less than 1,000 innings of MLB catcher experience seems like a recipe for...not disaster, but, maybe a Josh Paul-level blunder that could have been avoided. O'Hoppe hasn't even started a rehab yet.

I'll admit it's an unlikely scenario, but it's a highly specialized and critical position where the Angels have no depth, a position that is rarely available to add to in August and September, and a need that should be able to be filled relatively cheaply now. It's hardly unusual for playoff teams to grab vet catchers this time of year for exactly this reason, why shouldn't the Angels do the same? We're super fortunate Thaiss and Wallach held up as long as they did.

Snag someone like Gomes or Barnhart, waive Wallach now (who knows, maybe we sneak him to AAA or if not, have two months to find another AAA guy), and roll with 3 catchers when O'Hoppe returns and proves healthy. Thaiss can take Escobar's 1B/3B PAs if need be.
 

You're banking on this September catcher injury and I gotta say, it's kinda awkward. Dude, if shit hits the fan, I'm a million times more fine with Okey over Wallach/Thaiss (I mean, both suck defensively anyway) than I am with Velazquez over Neto. What if Neto gets injured again? Trade for a shortstop.

You play out the rest of the season from this point assuming no one will get injured and you fill the biggest needs from there. Catcher ain't one of them. Pitching, pitching, pitching.

Wanna really play it safe? Trade for Goldschmidt and get Cabbage off the roster since he doesn't belong here.

[Blarg]

20 minutes ago, VladdyforHOF said:

You're worried about a 2nd string catcher that isn't hitting when the whole lineup has been generally bad at hitting for large stretches of time this season.

The Angels are 4th in OPS in all of baseball, 3rd in home runs.

You are not a bright guy. 

[Ace-Of-Diamonds]

Just now, Stradling said:

Yes, but it doesn’t mean he will instantly be effective.  

Doesn't mean he won't. l would rather have an extra pitcher.

[Stradling]

Rengifo and Velazquez are much better back ups to Neto than Wallach is to Thaiss.  

[Stradling]

Just now, Ace-Of-Diamonds said:

Doesn't mean he won't. l would rather have an extra pitcher.

My wish list is 3 pitchers and another catcher.  

[VladdyforHOF]

1 minute ago, Blarg said:

The Angels are 4th in OPS in all of baseball, 3rd in home runs.

You are not a bright guy. 

How they doing in OPS with runners on base bright guy?

OPS with the bases empty doesn't score many runs.

[Blarg]

2 minutes ago, Stradling said:

Careful, you have a lot of posts, and because of that you will pray on guys with less posts.

[VladdyforHOF]

3 minutes ago, Blarg said:

The Angels are 4th in OPS in all of baseball, 3rd in home runs.

You are not a bright guy. 

Did you ace calculus in high school?

I'm so much fucking brighter than you, Blarg, that the sun would be impressed.

[Stradling]

2 minutes ago, VladdyforHOF said:

How they doing in OPS with runners on base bright guy?

OPS with the bases empty doesn't score many runs.

With men on base they have an .815 OPS, which is very good.  

[The Ghost of Bob Starr]

7 minutes ago, Stradling said:

Careful, you have a lot of posts, and because of that you will pray on guys with less posts.

Is Blarg grooming the Rookies again?

[Stradling]

Just now, The Ghost of Bob Starr said:

Is Blarg grooming the Rookies again?

No Vladdy is a victim.  

[The Ghost of Bob Starr]

1 minute ago, Stradling said:

No Vladdy is a victim.  

Ok. I thought there was something Notti going on. 

[Blarg]

2 minutes ago, VladdyforHOF said:

How they doing in OPS with runners on base bright guy?

OPS with the bases empty doesn't score many runs.

Look it up and tell me, how many runs do they average per game and where does that rank? 

Let me save you some time. They are 6th highest in runs scored per game in baseball. 4th highest in the American League.

You are at the adult table, come prepared with facts.

[Stradling]

1 minute ago, Blarg said:

Look it up and tell me, how many runs do they average per game and where does that rank? 

Let me save you some time. They are 6th highest in runs scored per game in baseball. 4th highest in the American League.

You are at the adult table, come prepared with facts.

Haha.  

[Blarg]

Meanwhile, everyone enjoy watching Ohtani on the Angels for the remainder of the season.

[Angel Oracle]

11 minutes ago, Stradling said:

With men on base they have an .815 OPS, which is very good.  

Yep, really only Renfroe has flunked with RISP.

[VladdyforHOF]

5 minutes ago, Angel Oracle said:

Yep, really only Renfroe has flunked with RISP.

Ward, dude. Trout. Really not just Renfroe.

[UndertheHalo]

LISTENING MODE DEACTIVATE 

[VladdyforHOF]

So some people think the team should trade for offensive improvement, when the offense is already a powerhouse in their mind. Oh, and grab like 3 pitchers too.

Take out the Colorado game and this team has a negative run differential.

So we really gotta improve on our catching position that has overperformed offensively this season compared to the last 2 decades of Angels catching.

Got it.

[HanfordGuy]

[TroutField]

I’m happy they are making a run to the playoffs. If you told me the angels were in the running for a wild card spot and still had an outside shot of the division at the end of July even with all the injuries and non effective starters, at the beginning of the season I would have been thrilled. 

we have a pretty solid path to the playoffs, keep winning series and you’re in. 

[Angel Oracle]

17 minutes ago, VladdyforHOF said:

Ward, dude. Trout. Really not just Renfroe.

Ward does have a .553 RISP OPS, but has improved recently.

I wouldn’t call Trout’s .715 RISP OPS flunking, although it’s disappointing.

Renfroe’s is in the .400s.