vladdy#27

11 minutes ago, Diaz15 said:

So very awesome! Excited to know that my 1-month old son will grow up seeing Mike in an Angels uniform for the rest of his career. 

I told my wife the same thing. We have a 4 month old and I was like he will be 12 when Trout is finishing his contract

4 minutes ago, bped1981 said:

Is this in addition to his 2 years left on current contract or does it replace it?

Either this contract takes him to 40 or 42?

Pretty sure the 12 years includes the remaining 2.

So 10 years 362M in addition to the 2 years 68M

If pitchers are required to pitch to three batters and you are only allowed to make 5 mound visits does it really matter how many pitchers you carry on your roster?

Those rules are already preventing pitching changes from happening. It seems redundant and unnecessary to force how teams assemble their rosters.

7 hours ago, Stradling said:

Here’s my solution for free agency.  Unless you’ve already signed an extension everyone is a free agent after their age 26 season, regardless of service time.  My thought would be they become a free agent entering their prime.   If you are a phenom you aren’t getting dicked around playing the service time game.  

Now I’m sure there are logic flaws in this or unforeseen unintended consequences, but to me it helps a bit.  If a team has a 19 year old stud they could have 8 years of club control.  They could still keep the arb process after year three so guys like Trout, Harper, Soto and Acuna would still get paid a ton pre free agency if they continue to perform.  

The other thing I would add is a roster spot for a player you signed after a certain age, say 34 years old.  His contract would be free of luxury tax implications.   

Lastly no more draft pick forfeiture for signing any free agents   

 

Something I've always thought of for this is depending on how much the player signs for determines what draft picks are lost by the signing team. Player signs for 75M+ signing team loses a 2nd round pick, Player signs for 125M+ signing team loses 1st round pick, Player signs for 200M+ signing team loses 1st and 3rd. Or something along those lines. You will probably see players signing for 74,999,999, 124,999,999, etc but in the case for someone like Keuchel/Kimbrel they could still sign a 1 year deal and not cost the signing team a draft pick. And if it were changed to this method teams would still lose draft picks for signing players that were traded during the season. Machado for example, the Padres would still lose a pick or picks but the Dodgers wouldn't receive compensation. While the Nationals and Diamondbacks would be compensated for losing Harper/Corbin

Another rule that could be implemented is similar to the NBA's amnesty clause. If a player is released a team can amnesty that players contract from costing against the luxury tax. So hypothetically if the Angels released Pujols tomorrow his 3 remaining years would not count against the luxury tax threshold, but they could not amnesty another contract until the end of Albert's contract.

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The number of position players pitching could see a significant decrease as well. Under the agreement, players will be designated as position players or pitchers -- with the exception of those who throw 20-plus innings and start 20 games in the field or at DH, who will be two-way players. Position players will be allowed to pitch only in extra innings or when their team is ahead or behind by more than seven runs.

http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/26259301/sources-mlb-deal-includes-1m-hr-derby-bonus

Wonder if this will affect Cowart/Walsh

On 12/6/2018 at 8:59 AM, True Grich said:

Imagine being a D-Backs fan and in the course of a couple days you see Patrick Corbin sign with the Nationals and Paul Goldschmidt traded to the Cardinals.  And... You know AJ Pollock is about to leave too.

Tough time to be a Diamondbacks fan.  I can't imagine.

Angel fans have been lucky because we've never seen such a devastating change in personnel like this.  The D-Backs basically lost the iconic face of their franchise and a top of the rotation starter in one swoop.

Some speculate this all came about because they failed to keep JD Martinez.  The impact was felt when they failed to make the post-season last year and now this...

 

2008-2009 kind of felt this way. We lost Guerrero, Lackey, Figgins, K-Rod, and Teixeira.

Obviously a little different and over a longer period of time. But those guys were with the Angels for a long time  Teixeira wasn’t an Angel for long but losing him still stung.  

Correct me if I'm wrong, but assuming he has a good season we would have him under contract for the 2020 season as a 3rd year Arb

If we can get some combination of 2015-2017 that would be great.

.272/.354/.498 HR 21 OPS+ 129

The last time the Angels got this type of offensive production from first base was in Albert's first year here. 

1 hour ago, totdprods said:

Matt Davidson will be non-tendered. He’d be a great bench option, hits lefties very well and get work as an RP too 

Seems like he would be a good fit for the bench. He has some pop, can play 1B/3B, and be the 8th man in the pen. 

And if things worked out he’d be under club control for 3 years following 2019

8 minutes ago, Blarg said:

Hoyer said La Stella's absence will make the Cubs look for left-handed hitting elsewhere. He said when La Stella returns, it won't be with the Cubs.

That was two seasons ago. I guess Hoyer was a little slow pulling the trigger.

Hoyer also said

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"There's no doubt he's going to have to get at-bats and play in Triple-A before he can help the major league team," Hoyer said. "He's going to get at-bats in Iowa, for sure."

I think he meant that when he returned it wouldn't be to the major league team. He will return to the minors first

On 11/17/2018 at 8:28 AM, Second Base said:

Also, incoming rumor, the Angels discussed Christian Villanueva with the Padres. They agreed to a basic framework (prospects) but the Padres tabled it because they were looking to solve their outfield situation and acquire a starting 3B first. The deal coul still come together later Jin the offseason. 

5 hours ago, Second Base said:

I don't get to watch very much TV, and we have NetFlix, Pure Flix and Prime already.  Having said that, Dad in law has it, so as you can guess, I'm a frequent visitor. 

I just switched from SlingTV to YoutubeTV because they have MLBNet. You can watch on TV, smart phone, computer, etc. Only $40 a month. You get about 50+ other channels as well. 

1 minute ago, Second Base said:

That's Jordan Walden. Seriously. Big frame, big velocity, jump in his delivery.

That's exactly what I saw as well

2 hours ago, Hubs said:

How about Andrew McCutchen who killed in his Yankees month, but was serviceable at a minimum in his season with the Giants?

His biggest declining stat is batting average, but otherwise has been pretty consistent. (His OBP has also dropped, but stayed consistently .80-.100 points above the average for his entire career.) His BABIP has dropped to around .305 as opposed to the .350+ BABIP that he had in his MVP years. That's a pretty straight detail, which suggests he is hitting them at people, which is probably shift related, or a drop in Power. It's something a little less playing time and a little work with a good hitting coach can solve, as evidenced by the small Yankees sample.

I'm not seeing a big contract for this guy, maybe AAV of 8 or 9? He certainly wouldn't block Adell going forward, and I would think they would try to get him on a 1 or 2 year deal, if possible.

I like McCutchen, he would benefit in having Trout hitting behind him, and Trout would have somebody that can get on base in front of him. Obviously it would require trading Calhoun. A 2 year deal would be ideal because that will be around the time Adell will be ready for regular playing time, but he can likely get a 3-4 year deal for 15M/yr. With Upton and Ohtani also in the mix I don't think that would work, unless someone learns to play first base

11 hours ago, Scotty@AW said:

I know I'm in the minority here, but I still think the offense is going to end up being the bigger problem in the future than the pitching.  I'm not questioning we need pitching, but I think the problem is more related to upside, not depth.  The Angels seem to be targeting guys toward the front of the rotation more than anything I think. 

But the offense?  We're currently below average at catcher, first base, second base, third base and right field.  And that problem doesn't figure to solve itself for at least another two years at minimum.  More like three or four years.  And if Mike Trout leaves after 2020?  Suddenly, this becomes a very permanent problem. 

So yeah, maybe spend 15 million a year on Eovaldi.  That sounds good to me because you put him in a rotation with Ohtani, Canning, Heaney and Skaggs in 2020 and we're looking golden.  

But with that other 15 million, I'd be spending offensive upgrades. 

I agree with this as well.

I don't have much faith in Cozart. 2017 was clearly an outlier for him. His numbers in an injury shortened 2018 were pretty close to his career numbers (taking away his 2017 season) from 2011-2016. In 2018 he had a .296 OBP (.289), .362 SLG (.385), 82 OPS+ (82). Obviously his value is going to come from his glove, but you can only have so many players like that on one team. 
Fletcher is another great defender, but not someone we can rely on offensively. Outside of playing in Utah he has only posted an OPS over .700 twice in the minor leagues, 135 PA back in 2015 in Single-A (.717 OPS) and in 83 PA back in 2016 in Double-A (.700 OPS). Once again there's value in the glove, but expecting an OPS close to .700 is asking a lot and not likely to happen.
Pujols is not good and has done nothing but hurt this team for the last 2-3 years. Expecting anything else is just foolish. As long as he has a starting spot it's hard to believe the Angels are serious about winning. This is probably the easiest and cheapest upgrade we could make that would have a big impact.
I feel the most optimistic about Calhoun. He was terrible to start the year. He was grounding out a lot more than he normally does and he stopped hitting as many line drives and pop flies. He corrected whatever issue he had and finished his last 350 PA better than his career averages. On a good team with playoff aspirations Calhoun shouldn't be your 4th or 5th best hitter. He should be more in the range of 6th or 7th, pair that with his good defense and he is a great player to have.
Catcher is a position that is no doubt going to be addressed. There's no way we head into 2019 with a Briceno/Arcia duo. 

We need to sign/trade for a stop gap for 2019 that can play 2B or 3B and one of Cozart/Fletcher will be the utility infielder.
Sign/trade for someone that takes AB away from Pujols
Sign/trade for a starting catcher
1. SS Simmons 2. CF Trout 3. DH Ohtani 4. LF Upton 5. 1B FA/Trade 6. 2B/3B FA/Trade 7. RF Calhoun 8. C FA/Trade 9. Cozart/Fletcher
Sign/Trade for a starting pitcher
And I'd probably leave the bullpen alone for now. Eppler seems to do a good job of finding pieces. If we're in the race come trade deadline you can think about making a move to upgrade here. I don't think we're at a point where spending resources on a bullpen is a priority. 

9 minutes ago, Sully151 said:

Were Ausmus and Hunter in Detroit at the same time?

In 2014

7 minutes ago, Tank said:

without taking a look at any of his stats, if the indians were interested in making that deal, i'd have to seriously consider it. but on it's face it seems greatly tilted in the angels favor and probably would get laughed at by the cleveland GM.

 

Last season

Kipnis .230/.315/.389 HR 18 WAR 1.6 OPS+ 89
Calhoun .208/.283/.369 HR 19 WAR 0.7 OPS+ 80

Last 2 seasons

Kipnis .231/.306/.398 HR 30 WAR 2.0 OPS+ 86
Calhoun .227/.310/.381 HR 38 WAR 2.8 OPS+ 89

Kipnis was a little better in 2018, but he was injured and Calhoun performed better in 2017. Kipnis is also 5.5M more expensive than Calhoun (if both options are not exercised) so if they are giving up more value, they are basically getting back financial compensation as well

I was reading this and it got me thinking of a Calhoun for Kipnis swap

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In a look at what the Indians’ lineup could look like in 2019, Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes that “serious consideration” is being given to the idea of deploying Yandy Diaz as a regular third baseman.  With Diaz at the hot corner, All-Star Jose Ramirez would move back to second base while Jason Kipnis shifted into a left field role.

Calhoun gives them a better defensive outfielder and similar offensive production, Calhoun is also a little bit cheaper.
Kipnis gives us versatility as he can play 2B, or make a start here or there in the OF. Have Kipnis start the season as the starting 2B. One of Cozart/Fletcher as the starting 3B and the other as the utility infielder. Then sign Jay or someone similar that we could put in the leadoff spot. 

Contracts are nearly identical. Kipnis 1 year/14.6M (16.5M Team Option 2.5M Buyout). Calhoun 1 year/10.5M (14M Team Option 1M Buyout) 

Another former Dodgers catcher

Until we have someone that can field the position better? They didn't have a problem moving him to LF for Bourjos, if we have a better CF then they will slide him to one of the corners.

Hunter stayed in CF until halfway through his age 34 season, so I would guess Trout stays there until 32ish years old. If a 37 year old Manny Ramirez can start 100+ games in LF I don't think we will ever see Trout at 1B

Would what Chatwood got last offseason (3 years/38M) be a good estimate for Eovaldi?

Similarish career numbers 
Eovaldi IP 850 H/9 9.4 K/9 6.8 BB/9 2.7 WHIP 1.35 ERA 4.16 FIP 3.82 ERA+ 96
Chatwood IP 647 H/9 9.2 K/9 6.1 BB/9 4.2 WHIP 1.49 ERA 4.31 FIP 4.58 ERA+ 106

Chatwood was a year younger and had 2 seasons post TJ's, while Eovaldi is 1 season removed from TJ's but having a better walk year

Gray will cost 9M and prospect(s)

8 hours ago, Lou said:

thanks.

do you have a link for those stats? I couldn't find them in my albeit limited search. 

https://www.fangraphs.com/leaderssplits.aspx?splitArr=42&strgroup=season&statgroup=1&startDate=2018-07-19&endDate=2018-11-01&filter=&position=P&statType=team&autoPt=false&players=&pg=0&pageItems=30&sort=2,1