Contender, or not?

[Splint7438]

I voted yes. A lot has to go right for us to run away with it but we can definitely get into the playoffs. Then it is a crapshoot as you all know. Even if most of the players do what they did last year we should improve abit by replacing Schuck with Calhoun, Alberto with Freese and last years Bullshit with a Bullpen. The riddle isn't how are we going to play much much better as much as it is "how did this team play so bad"?

[avejoe1]

I believe this year will be an early golf outing.  The Angels in 2013 finished 12.5 games back of Texas and 18 games back of the A's.  That's not just 3rd place in the AL West but a distant 3rd place.  This team has made some modest improvements on last years team.  The acquisitions of David Freeze, Tyler Skaggs and Hector Santiago were good trades.  But they were also trades in which the Angels had to give up value in order to get value losing Trumbo and Bourjos. In my opinion, the improvements are not enough to make up that 12.5 games back on Texas much less get into the conversation regarding the A's.  One could argue Texas had a significantly better off season than did the Angels adding Fielder and Choo.  This team should be congratulated for keeping the first round draft pick in the 2014 draft and actually signing a couple of international players.  Other than that this looks to be another rather long disappointing season.

Edited February 1, 2014 by avejoe1

[LBHalos17]

They are in the mix for the postseason this year.  For the Angels, it always depends on April and May...

[FabulousFabregas]

Like I said in another thread, they're definitely not a contender.  I don't see how this team is any better than the last 2 teams that made the playoffs.  Texas and Oakland are just far better.  I hope they can pull a Wild Card spot out of their ass though.

Edited February 2, 2014 by FabulousFabregas

[Hollyw00d]

A lot will have to go right and we will need zero injuries in the rotation unless we pick up some more serviceable depth (not arroyo)

[Inside Pitch]

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/2014-zips-projections-texas-rangers/

Rangers' projections are interesting.  Choo/Kinsler is a wash to slight downgrade performance wise.  I know ZIPs using multiple year trends and the sort to come up with some of these numbers but the Fielder projection seems pessimistic given what he was dealing with last year having his wife banging one of his teammates.

 

Pretty Crazy to see Trout at 10 WAR is almost as valuable as Betre/Darvish.

[sneaky_flute]

ZIPS should be taken with all the salt in the Mediterranean Sea.

[Docwaukee]

ZIPS should be taken with all the salt in the Mediterranean Sea.

or maybe the Gulf of Mexico?

[Inside Pitch]

ZIPS should be taken with all the salt in the Mediterranean Sea.

 

As should every projection system.   At least it tries to view everyone using the same guidelines.

[Hoops McCann]

The pitching staff (both starters and the pen) just isnt good enough to win the division let alone a play-off series.  In order for the team to be in the mix then, the offense will have to make up for the pedestrian pitching, which is a possibility.  However, this assumes that Pujols and Hamilton (and Freese to some extent) need to have solid years.  Not spectacular, but very solid.

 

Sure, it is possible and the team is in the mix, but I have a feeling that the achilles heel will be the pitching and it will be the root cause should the Angels not be playing in October.

[19HALO71]

*Bump*

 

Why not?

 

Let's see how we did.

[Angel Oracle]

It's possible due to the talent level.

Enough has to go right though.

No more bad hitting from Pujols/Hamilton, the young starting pitchers needing to take the next step like they do in Oakland,

Calhoun building on his 2013 debut, Freese hitting like he did in 2011/2012, the catchers improving their CS%, the bullpen stabilizing, and health not playing a huge factor again

Pujols has been decent to solid.

Hamilton started off great, got hurt, really struggled, and just recently started a good stretch of hitting.

Young pitchers GRich, Shoe, Santiago, and Skaggs all stepped up in one way or another.

Calhoun continued his solid play.

Freese since June has been almost back to his 2011-2012 self, his first 2 months skewing his stats.

The bullpen has been nails for the past 2-3 months.

Injuries have been an issue as with most teams.

Calhoun and Hamilton missing 6 weeks, and GRich and Skaggs having their seasons end early.

[Spirit]

They will win the World Series.

 

I'm sticking with this.

[arch stanton]

First of back-to-back World Series teams. Book it.

And I'm sticking with this.

[tdawg87]

Like I said in another thread, they're definitely not a contender.  I don't see how this team is any better than the last 2 teams that made the playoffs.  Texas and Oakland are just far better.  I hope they can pull a Wild Card spot out of their ass though.

 

I agree.

[nate]

I think I predicted 75 wins.

 

Of course I am always right so this is a shock.

[Stradling]

I'm taking a wait and see approach. How did I not have a post in this thread? I, being a "superfan" would have been right.

[Count Orlok]

I think there's a decent chance they'll overshoot my 85 win guess.

[Blarg]

I think you have to look at some of the other teams in the AL to get a feel for where the halos chances lie.

 

Legit shot at winning the division:

Boston Last place in division 4th worst record in AL

Tampa 9 games out in the wild card

Detroit Where predicted

Texas Last place in division worst record in AL

Oakland Where predicted

 

 

Outside shot at winning the division but in the WC mix. 

NYY Where predicted

Angels Best record in baseball

KC Where predicted and currently leading their division

Cle Where predicted although a longshot right now

 

Outside shot at a WC spot

Bal Leading their division

Sea 1 game back in the Wildcard

Tor Where predicted but not making the WC

Min No shot at Wildcard

 

No real chance

CWS Shooting fish in a barrel

Hou Dropping a grenade in the barrel

 

I think more has to go right then wrong for us to make it to the playoffs at this point, but I still look back at 2012.  That pen was awful and the SP was well below average yet the team won 89 games.  We'll see, but it's far from needing an act of God

 

Not to take a shot at you but this is why the best predictions based on the previous season and off season aquisitions mean so little in baseball. You can weigh every factor and make your best prediction and then watch as teams exceed expectations or fail miserably. I'm betting that if you take your predictions and match them with the "experts" you're probably scoring more hits than misses.

Edited August 30, 2014 by Eric Notti

[Lou]

On 5/8/2017 at 7:08 AM, Dtwncbad said:

Too early to tell?  Not sure Yet?

I'm dumbfounded.  This team has zero chance of contending this year.  Zero.  They are not good enough.  The top half of the rotation is barely equal to the bottom half of other teams rotations.  That cannot be ignored.

This team has got to live in reality and move some bodies to continue the project of building from within.

Any other move at the deadline, or lack of moves, would be a mistake.

 

On 5/8/2017 at 7:15 AM, Dtwncbad said:

I'm talking about at the deadline, not now.  I'm just saying that it is painfully obvious TODAY that this roster isn't good enough to contend and I don't want to pretend otherwise.  That's all.

 

On 5/8/2017 at 7:50 AM, Claude said:

I disagree. I think we've seen enough of this team to know its potential. Eppler should put the yard sale sign out and make sure that he puts everything on the table. I wouldn't mind seeing half of this team sent packing for prospects. I certainly don't envision guys like Maybin, Espinosa, Revere, Pennington and some of the other scrap metal getting us into contention. Cut bait and build for the future now. 

 

On 7/7/2017 at 9:05 PM, JarsOfClay said:

Bud Norris could be valuable to a team like the Nats, Maybin could fetch a pretty good return as well.

I honestly would trade Simmons if it could give us 3-4 good prospects in return.  His value has never been higher and I think the angels are at least 5 years away from contending again, and trading Simmons could help lower that number.

I agree 

[arch stanton]

19 minutes ago, Lou said:

 

 

 

I agree 

Ha. Everyone you quoted in that post has long been on my ignore list

[Dtwncbad]

Touche Lou.

Believe me I am thrilled and having fun watching this team.

But in reality the spirit of my posts were not off.

1). If you consider the nature of normal hyperbole in language on a message board, saying this team had "zero chance" of contending was certainly factually incorrect but I am pretty comfortable that 93 out of 100 baseball experts would have also categorized the Angels as among the teams to be the long, longshot.

2). On 5/8 I thought the best plan at the deadline was to move some expiring contract bodies.  I still thought that at the deadline (so did many "experts"), and I still dont think that would have been a mistake.

I want the team to win as much as anybody with my heart, but my brain still thinks this team doesn't have a roster good enough for success in a postseason.

So have fun poking at me for hyperbole instead of perfectly accurate language but there isn't much valid point to it.

All of baseball is surprised but I guess I am an idiot for being surprised?  Something like that?

What will prove me literally 100% wrong will be if the Angels all along have known they will aggressively address all of their 2018 needs in free agency/offseason trades so unloading extra bodies for any fringe prospects isnt necessary.

I hope to be wrong more than you hope I am wrong.

I want to win, but what I really want is to go into the playoffs with a team built to actually win it. . .not just check off a box that the team made the postseason.

The team has made the postseason 10 times.  Any honest analysis would say their overall postseason success as a franchise is marginal.

It seems pretty healthy and honest to me to have sights set past just making the postseason in a random year where almost nobody thinks you have a chance.

Fun?  Sure.  But I still am totally unsatisfied with the roster and will stick by my expression of my priorities on 5/8 choosing to fix that over hoping for the 6% chance they could wiggle into the last wildcard spot to most lijely perpetuate the meh postseason legacy.

All that said, I hope they win it all, DUH!

 

[Angel Oracle]

What this shows most is that while Scioscia does seemingly make some mind numbing decisions, it's his building a solid team oriented environment where he best shines.

Even if it may be time to the Halos to move on after 2018, this part of his job is usually performed at a solid level. 

[Troll Daddy]

3 hours ago, Angel Oracle said:

What this shows most is that while Scioscia does seemingly make some mind numbing decisions, it's his building a solid team oriented environment where he best shines.

Even if it may be time to the Halos to move on after 2018, this part of his job is usually performed at a solid level. 

Let's get real AO and stop with the BS ... tell me what manager in baseball doesn't make 'mind numbing' decisions?

please

[Troll Daddy]

19 minutes ago, hangin n wangin said:

Who's weenie tastes better? Sciosica's or Escobar's?

I would tell you but you probably couldn't hear me with your head up your arse.