Jeff Williams

Among the Angels 2018 Leadoff Options to Consider:

(Revere is likely out of the fold but, they missed him without leading off down the stretch after Upton arrived).

Sign Revere, make him a Chone Figgins for OF, MI or CI utility, and put him at leadoff.

(I bet Scioscia might be asking that himself).  

"Altuve is out there if the Astros don't pick up his 6mil option but that's a [big] fat chance!" someone mentioned.

He'll probably hang it up this offseason.  Did picking up Upton indicate for that?  Might end up signing a lucrative deal for a STL final tour next season.   

Carew protege, GA

...end the season on Saturday, play the best out of 3 at the WC1 venue Mon.-Wed., and be done with it by NFL Thurs.  

Yet, those numbnuts haven't figured it out.  +, it puts the wild card team under the fatigue factor which it should be going into the division series .

Richards encouraging toward their drive to the post season, still a lot of games left!

Damn it momentum off the base!

Giles without a save situation over the last several games I like the Angels here

They battled in Texas, Oak, had the day off, and have hit a lull in Sea. for the RT tail end.  Heaney coming out early dampened last night's game particularly.  Hopefully, they win today making it a .500 road trip.  Bridwell needs to fare better

Do the best to win tomorrow, come home, enjoy the day off, regroup, fired it up on Tuesday.

Sosh, Nagy:

Go out there and tell Swaggy to SWAGGAR UP by the support behind him!!!

I guess Sosh is Rasputin to them or something.  Do Exec's know any better than our propagandist national news these days?!

I pasted Roto-World, now it deleted it with Fletcher as their source.  Which is it, Jeff, Meyer is possible to return or are we looking at 2018 at this point?

Geez, I feel stoned!

...Yes, the Angels are among the lowest ranked OPS teams as the pundits, including Down-Under, have said.  But, part of that is while Trout was out (as they nicely held fort during) and what has it been since Trout returned, with Cron and Calhoun rebounding, to Simmons before Upton has arrived?  Can anyone tell me that?? 

2 hours ago, Ace-Of-Diamonds said:

Fletcher said Meyer would be able to pitch the final week of the season. His 60 day DL is retroactive to when he last pitched.

All hinged upon hope that he simply regains for into the post season.  I just love the different-look mix they're throwing at their opponents each game, it's beautiful!!  

Ricky gets into trouble, Sosh can go to the pen.

Ricky gives innings, the pen is spared.

Ricky throws deep into the game, the pen is even more spared and better rested.  

That applies to any in the rotation regardless with who is the weakest.  Cofidence for everyone in the clubhouse to win THAT game is quite a winning intangible.

With the September expanded 40-man rosters, suppose the Angels starting rotation develops as Bridwell, Skaggs, Heaney, Richards, Nolasco, Ramirez, Meyer all with the mindset of needing to pitch 5-6 innings confident behind such a lineup assembled and the pitchers to win THAT game behind them that includes some within themselves. 

Houston picked up Verlander to relieve Keuchel of the pressure for the NEXT game behind him, right?

For the Angels, forget about the NEXT game, they might end up assembled to win THAT game in September to go to into the post season with!

Pretty damn special I would say!

Astros vs Angels:

Sick Rotation + Correa returning on the horizon - bullpen vs Sick Lineup + Richards returning on the horizon + bullpen.

Added, Astros have won 20 since after the AS break; the Angels with 24, 18 of which for August.   

What the pundits question: the Angels relative weaker starting rotation. 

What they Overlook:

39 COMEBACK WINS HELD BY A SICK BULLPEN WITH CHAVEZ AS THE ADDED ROCK TO IT.  

Before Phillips, I assumed with:

Simmons, Trout, Upton, Pujols, Cron, Calhoun, Valbuena, Maldonado, Cowart

With the Phillips surprise:

Facing LHP (beginning with Hammels tonight),

Simmons, Trout, Upton, Pujols, Cron, Phillips, Calhoun, Valbuena, Maldonado

(Stack all righties against him with Phillips in the back for tonight to get AL acclimated).  Don't take Trout out of the 2!  Upton should bat ahead of Pujols for his higher Ops and speed.

Facing RHP (beginning with AJ Griffin tomorrow),

Simmons, Trout, Upton, Pujols, Calhoun, Cron, Phillips, Valbuena, Maldonado

Unselfish no matter what, it is stacked against either lefties or righties.  

As for Revere, I'd really like to put him in the leadoff spot against righties, somehow, but he's been relegated to the pine now!

IMPACT, only concern is who bat's leadoff with Revere on the bench.  Would love to find a way to have Revere leadoff but can't.  I assume this will be the lineup:

Simmons, Trout, Justin, Albert, Cron, Calhoun, Valbuena/Escobar, Maldonado, Cowart.  To have 2 MVP type players up top then Justin, Albert, and Cron is a pitchers nightmare before his next start.  

AMEN!!

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2017/08/heymans-latest-britton-tigers-tanaka-cc-darvish-holland-moore.html

Key points to consider:

Willing go to a contender

Has proven to pitch well in the post season

Bad season but has been putting things together of late.

Nagy has been outstanding to the rotation.

Has already passed through waivers

I could see them maybe doing this upon the 11th hour, depending upon the Giants return asking price.

Realistically, I don't see Verlander going anywhere by tomorrow.  JC's situation added to Richards, Meyer upon the return horizon and that winning ballgames assembled bullpen...maybe they add something to the rotation by the deadline...but they're going to roll with the nice depth forming as it is. 

3 minutes ago, wopphil said:

Another thing to consider is that the prospects lost in a Verlander trade could probably be recouped in an off-season or spring training trade of one of our superfluous arms. And we'd have the starting pitching depth to in fact move someone if we acquired Verlander. 

Money is obviously a concern, but a ton of money is coming off the books and there are probably few holes that need or can realistically be filled this offseason. If you acquired Verlander, the off-season wish list would probably include only a second baseman and a left fielder.

I had pointed it out earlier to evaluate upon:. Would you rather have 2-3 to seasons of Verlander at that contract $ or the longer term at  > $ for another SP in the off-season.  

Since it's Verlander, the Tigers have that have that trade leverage, at least.

By the same token, it's wishful thinking.  The Tigers might be trying to shift their big contracts off onto another team to make this happen.  Kind of like the Dodgers-Marlins Sheffield deal.

You can have Verlander.. but you'd have too take Cabrera and Kinsler along with it.  Good luck for anybody at that.  

For shits and giggles to what they might take if the Angels bit on that: Cron, Meyer, Cowart, Thiess

That's like pouring acid into water at this stage  for the Angels, though.

6 minutes ago, Chuckster70 said:

Arte doesn't like long big money contracts, so two years plus a month to get an ace type pitcher in your rotation to help get the wild card and if secured, do something in the playoffs with a guy with frontline starter experience. 

Art and Epp can make this happen though.