Troutstanding

I remember there being plenty of people who supported the trade on the forum. Plenty didn't, also. I hated it at first, loved it on second thought, and still love the trade.

What happened to Mike Morin? His 2014 season was very promising with his fantastic array of changes ups. It seems to me he still has his stuff... What happened?

Sorry, not sure if this is an okay spot for this.

What happened to the Angelswin Softball meet up? I had a lot of fun at last year's...

I do recall at some point the Angels missing Felix.

Confirmation bias tells us we always get matched against him. 

27 minutes ago, DMVol said:

2 hits and handled 4 chances w/out a problem....

That's good. I'm glad to see him in the line up. Trying him in LF makes perfect sense to me. Maybe he can replace Salas in the pen, too?

Going to the game tonight and get to witness Petit in Left Field... Good, good. 

Edit: Looks like he was there last night and I just didn't notice.

Any reason it has to be a Saturday (as opposed to a Sunday when I don't have to work...)?

I'm definitely interested.

Defense is valuable for the entire game, not just the last inning.

34 minutes ago, Chuckster70 said:

I wouldn't classify his fastball being average as it sits 91-93 MPH and touches 95 mph. For a starting pitcher that's above average I believe. 

I believe you are massively overstating the importance of velocity. 

8 minutes ago, Angel Oracle said:

I really only have an issue with the contact play, if there are 0 outs.  

There, it makes no sense because you still have one more out to make to bring a run in.

That's fair.

Situation:

Runner on third, one out.

Infield in, hard ground ball to short stop. 

Short throws home, catcher tags out the runner.

Now here's where every goes crazy saying the contact play is the stupidest thing in the world.

However,

Had the runner not gone on contact:

Short throws to first base, batter-runner out at first. 

Runner on third, two outs. 

Questions:

How much worse is it really to have a runner on third vs first with already two outs?

With the infield in, how many more ground balls split the gaps, thus scoring the runner AND allowing the batter-runner to reach base? 

How often does the runner at third base go on contact, realize he will likely be tagged out, get caught in a rundown, and allow the batter-runner to get to second or third, anyway?

How often does the play go to home, only for the runner from third to be safe, allowing also the batter-runner to be safe, too?

Is there some sort of intangible value in putting pressure on the infield defenders to make the play, perhaps on rare occasion causing them to make a mistake?

The numbers show that the contact play works well for the Angels. It seems to me we are more likely to remember the contact play backfiring than when it works. This Jeff Fletcher article from 3/27/16 sums it better:

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/play-709926-contact-angels.html

In a heartbeat.

1 hour ago, ScottT said:

Seems relevant. Many wanted Calhoun released so Arte could afford Heyward. 

Calhoun... um... released?? Did anyone really want... that?

Good call to move Trout and Pujols up to their more logical batting order positions.

32 minutes ago, Chuck Richter said:

Honestly, as much as Simmons has done or hasn't done for the Angels thus far.. it's not a huge loss. Minor at best.

 

Only a minor loss because the Angel's chances of competing for a title are slim to none, you mean? I don't see how losing Simmons is only a minor loss at best otherwise. 

As the fourth outfielder: Ortega > gentry 

So I'm the only one that thought it looked like Ortega was bunting for a hit? I thought it was a drag type of bunt, not the type of bunt where the batter leaves the bat in the zone longer to make sure he puts the ball in play.

I actually don't know, I didn't see the play.

I have bet the over every time Weaver and Shoemaker have pitched this year.  It doesn't take a

Rocket Scientist to make these bets.  Yesterday's game was a perfect example why I consider Scioscia the dumbest manager in baseball. In the first inning Scioscia plays for one run. With Weaver on the mound, one run is not going to win the game. Then the Angels are down two to one he plays the infield in to cut off a run. This leads to a big inning. DFScioscia has Weaver walk Braun with two outs. Stupid again. Weaver is getting lit-up DFScioscia leaves Weaver in to give up three more runs in the 6th inning. Then he pinch hit's Choi in the ninth with a .077 batting average. Yes, DFScioscia has been the dumbest manager in baseball for over a decade.

It's not that I agree with all of Scioscia's decisions (such as having Ortega bunt in the first inning) but it's another thing entirely to be an arm chair manager when the game is over. Hindsight sure does make one a brilliant strategist.

Just curious, who would you have had pinch hit in the ninth? Carlos Perez would have been the only other option. Thing is, Carlos Perez is here to stay. Choi has to show if he can do it or not. MLB is a long season, fact is it takes time to determine who should stick around and who shouldn't. Choi had an opportunity to show he belongs. Gathering information is part of the job.

You are nuts. From 2008 to now Weaver has had one bad season, 2014. Other than that he was been a really reliable starter that has provided 200 + inning with a sub 4.00 ERA every season since 2008. 

2015 was Weaver's only ineffective season since he began his MLB career in 2006. 

Just get the TJ surgery already

I think an ideal lineup at this point would be

1. Escobar

2. Trout

3. Calhoun

4. Pujols

5. Cron

6. Simmons

7. Perez

8. Gia/Pennington

9. Ortega/Gentry

But it wont happen because MS refuses to separate Trout and Pujols

Trout should bat 2nd.

I voted Erstad/Salmon. Erstad played the harder than most players. Trout just makes it look easy because of his talent. As good of a player Vlad was his over powered arm would sometimes cloud his judgment on throws. Salmon was steady, not awesome. FWIW I didn't take offense into account, just the play in the field

I'd say it's worth quite a bit

Perfectly good? You know we played Oakland, right? In an afternoon game where most troll fans are still sleeping or haven't been bailed out of jail yet. Zero pressure on our hitters.

Should've crushed this team.

We scored five times as many runs as them. Good enough for me.