AngelsWin Podcast - Episode 15

[Chuck]

The Angels put all their chips into the middle of the table at the trade deadline with some big moves!  Since then, the team is 0 for August.  Is it too late?  Is this really just a .500 team and that’s all they’re going to be?  Victor Rojas, Chuck Richter and Geoff Stoddart commiserate and discuss what, if anything, can be done.  Plus …. a deep dive discussion on pitching philosophy!  Do teams need to start relying more on their manager’s eyes, instead of deciding in advance how long a pitcher will go before they’ve even thrown a pitch? Why just 3 times through a lineup? Why stop at 100 pitches?  Victor shares a behind the scenes story on this topic that happened during the Billy Eppler days. 

[Chuck]

YouTube video coming soon! 

[jsnpritchett]

I never listen to podcasts (of any sort), but did listen to the first 20 minutes or so of this one--and Victor is pretty much saying exactly what I've said in various threads here over the past couple of weeks (and which some folks have ragged on me for).  So just wanted to say I heartily approve of this episode. 

[Chuck]

4 minutes ago, jsnpritchett said:

I never listen to podcasts (of any sort), but did listen to the first 20 minutes or so of this one--and Victor is pretty much saying exactly what I've said in various threads here over the past couple of weeks (and which some folks have ragged on me for).  So just wanted to say I heartily approve of this episode. 

 for listening @jsnpritchett!!!

[Chuck]

YouTube video

 

[Chuck]

I have to say, I wasn't motivated going into this podcast with the way the Angels have played this week, but the way this one unfolded ended up being one of my favorite podcasts to date. 

[UndertheHalo]

AW to the winter meetings! 

[UndertheHalo]

Anyway, good ep.  I do think Victor was being a little rough on Detmers, Canning and Sandoval going forward.  Detmers especially.  Anyway.  Enjoyed the show. 

[FabulousFabregas]

Victor's story about Billy Eppler's idiocy with the openers encapsulates how poorly run the Angels have been for the last decade. Victor really provides the best insight on the Angels organization I've ever heard. Great work on the podcast guys!

[SlappyUtilityMIF]

GREAT EPISODE GUYS !!!

Ex. Silseth gave up the Homerun in the 7th... Hitter got an elevated fastball. Well, if you look at the TOP Part of pitch Trax box that's belt high! 

That's the issue. We get ahead in the count and they pitch to the Top Part of the zone and not the Top Part of the hitter (above the hands) (up and in) (up and out) etc. Then go back down to the bottom part of the zone. Unless, you are truly up shoulder/hand high then they are still able to drive the ball.

3rd time through you have to adjust. IF you've started the last 2 at bats with a fastball then go slider/change. Etc. 

CROD use to throw for 3innings (40-50-60) pitches before they would bring him in... 

Plus, Ryan was working the farm hucking hay bales all winter long.

[Chuck]

11 hours ago, UndertheHalo said:

AW to the winter meetings! 

I'm actually super stoked about this! 

[tomsred]

This one was really good, well done.  Actually I have listened to just about all of them, it a good way to climb down from a frustrating season.  It's a little bit like therapy, always better to discuss problems openly.  And it's good to touch on glimmers of hope for the future.

[Chuck]

8 minutes ago, tomsred said:

This one was really good, well done.  Actually I have listened to just about all of them, it a good way to climb down from a frustrating season.  It's a little bit like therapy, always better to discuss problems openly.  And it's good to touch on glimmers of hope for the future.

Thanks, @tomsred. This episode gave me a ton of enthusiasm going forward on doing podcasts despite the Angels record or overall play. 

There's just so much to discuss win or lose with this team. Victor also has a ton of insightful stories. We've only tapped into a few of them thus far. 

[Taylor]

Will listen later. I think it will be kind of therapeutic.

[Lhalo]

Jealous of your bourbon deals @Chuckster70. Buffalo Trace is a great distillery. Can't believe you got a bottle of Eagle Rare for $40 you bastard!

[Chuck]

3 minutes ago, Lhalo said:

Jealous of your bourbon deals @Chuckster70. Buffalo Trace is a great distillery. Can't believe you got a bottle of Eagle Rare for $40 you bastard!

 

[Lhalo]

[Chuck]

56 minutes ago, Taylor said:

Will listen later. I think it will be kind of therapeutic.

@Lhalo I also got a Woodford Reserve for $29.99. Just crazy prices overall. 

[Torridd]

15 hours ago, Chuckster70 said:

The Angels put all their chips into the middle of the table at the trade deadline with some big moves!  Since then, the team is 0 for August.  Is it too late?  Is this really just a .500 team and that’s all they’re going to be?  Victor Rojas, Chuck Richter and Geoff Stoddart commiserate and discuss what, if anything, can be done.  Plus …. a deep dive discussion on pitching philosophy!  Do teams need to start relying more on their manager’s eyes, instead of deciding in advance how long a pitcher will go before they’ve even thrown a pitch? Why just 3 times through a lineup? Why stop at 100 pitches?  Victor shares a behind the scenes story on this topic that happened during the Billy Eppler days. 

Just finished listening on YouTube. Great show! I have a question. If the Angels are a .500 club, why is that? On paper, they don't seem like one to me although the results show it. 

[Chuck]

4 minutes ago, Torridd said:

Just finished listening on YouTube. Great show! I have a question. If the Angels are a .500 club, why is that? On paper, they don't seem like one to me although the results show it. 

That would be a question for @VictorRojas and @Spirit. 

I'm a little more optimistic and always thought they were better than a .500 team on paper. But to their points, they have played like a .500 team all season. 

[Chuck]

Here are the street tacos I referenced on the podcast. So good. 

[Spirit]

I mentioned the dinner and golf tournament that had been working on all weekend and zapped my energy.  I'll be back on my game next week!  For those that are interested and might want to donate to help fight childhood Osteosarcoma bone cancer, please check out our site: https://fightfore.org

[Chuck]

@Spirit I was so hoping for this energy and get-up last night from you.  

[Spirit]

13 minutes ago, Torridd said:

Just finished listening on YouTube. Great show! I have a question. If the Angels are a .500 club, why is that? On paper, they don't seem like one to me although the results show it. 

 

There's an old saying:  "You are who your record says you are."  While they might be a playoff team on paper, they don't play the games on paper.  When you listen to the story that Victor shared at the end of the podcast, it's becoming more clear to me that we probably have the wrong leadership in place.  Good enough, cannot be good enough anymore.  There needs to be a culture change.  How high up does that need to start?  It's easy to say it needs to start with Arte, but that's the piece that really can't be dealt with unless he decides to sell. 

So ... a new manager?  Maybe.  But only if it's someone who has the authority to implement the changes that needs to be made.  They can't be a puppet.

A new GM?  Maybe.  But how big is his role in building the culture of this team?

It just seems like there is a culture of ... meh. 

 

 

[Smartass24]

Thank you for answering my question on pitching philosophy. It was based in part on this quote from Madden’s book "From a pitching perspective, our pitching coaches really didn't have a game plan. The game plan is instituted by the analytical approach. For the most part, it's macro. Big picture stuff. And it doesn't address enough what the pitcher does well. It's more about what the hitters on the other side do poorly. And what happens is in the game if it's not done properly or something goes awry, the coach will get blamed.".  The quote and Victor’s story seem to point to an over reliance on metrics and not enough on what your eyes are telling you. Pitching to a hitters weakness makes sense but not so much that you are going completely away from a pitchers strengths. Gubi has talked about it during broadcast. He was a sinker ball pitcher. His strength was down in the zone. If he was up in the zone it probably wasn’t a good day for him. When Loup went on the IL he made reference to the team changing how he attacked hitters. He was throwing more off speed pitches and needed to get back to throwing his fastball more and working off that. Without knowing the inter workings it really seems like there is a huge push to throw more sliders (sweepers) even when it’s not that pitchers best pitch. Ohtani has a great fastball, an almost unhittable splitter and he’s out there leaving sweepers over the middle of the plate that are getting crushed. These are major league hitters for a reason, sure they might struggle against a certain pitch but not if you throw it so much that they can sit on it and wait for you to hang one.