GalericX

Nothing worse than the Debbie Downers that think everyone and the team will suck. Props on the thread, I hope it comes through.

Pretty much every team in baseball would have done the same thing in that situation. It wasn't like they did it because they wanted to ruin his shot at the cycle. They did it because they would have rather faced Calhoun in that situation than Trout.

The more he pitches like he did today, the higher his price tag will be. He's been consistently solid all season. I think someone will offer 5yr/$65M
We should extend him a qualifying offer. The first round pick we receive will be far more valuable than a prospect we get back in a trade.

They are waiting for his next bad outing.

This is a non issue. Haven't you ever had disagreements at work, where for a moment things got out of hand? Now factor in that all of your mistakes are shown in the public eye over and over again. These are two opinionated guys that let the frustration of a season get the best of them. I'm willing to bet this happens in every club house over the course of a losing season (sorry no link). If it doesn't I'd almost have to question their competitive nature.

Aybar is not too expensive to move. His contract is quite club-friendly. It was a good signing by Dipoto

You made your thread back when Weaver had a bad 3 starts. Then he went on a tear for 10 starts and conveniently you shut your trap. Now that he's had a bad 2 starts, he's no longer an ace again. Despite the fact his past 2 seasons have been tops of his career. Yet you're calling ME the delusional one.

Lifetime.

Yes because reflection and reassessment are always terrible ways to run your life.

Mike Trout.  Anyone suspicious?
 
I hate that we now are in a situation in which anyone putting up great numbers is questioned.

Sorry, but Dipoto isn't to blame for most of the shittiness the Angels have displayed on the field and you're right. We ALL were STOKED on Dipoto last offseason and this offseason. Injuries and some players not working out are not on him at all. 
 
Dipoto will not be fired BTW. 

Exactly.
As far as dipoto, no one here can say exactly how much influence arte had in the big ticket signings.
Everyone wants a scapegoat. The chatwood deal looks bad now, that's probably the worst one. That said, burnett got hurt...that's no ones fault. Aybar was hurt the first month. Weaver broke his arm. Vargas has a blood clot. Bourjos...etc etc. Thats not a bad gm.
As far as saying 'sosh can only play what he's got', it works both ways. Dipoto inherited a team with holes, and a very weak farm system. We already had little to trade when he got here.
Blanton was horrible. No defending that. santana is horrible now in retrospect. I wanted to keep him, but most here (and I'm sure on the team) thought he was a headcase that was done.
I was against hamilton, I wanted anibal sanchez. But nobody saw this coming. And again, I'd say moreno was a lot more behind that (and pujols) than dipoto.

He better have some concrete evidence because at this point slandering a guys reputation with a steroid accusation is going to end up in court.

Dipoto needs to put all his efforts into rebuilding the pen, pitching depth, and firing Scioscia.

Your post is a bit disingenuous. It has been years since MLB was ignoring the problem and they have been making efforts for several years to continue to ramp up the discovery and discipline measures. Arod and the other players knew that and chose to try to circumvent the rules. 
 
Why shouldn't MLB make a big deal out of this? It is a big deal. Arod is one of the most iconic players in contemporary baseball, he cheated, he recruited others to cheat, and he tried to cover up his infractions. He should be paraded out there and given a stiff punishment. 

Bullpen:
 
Sign Edward Mujica Sign a guy like Tim Stauffer Promote Mike Morin Rotation:
Offer Jason Vargas comp.  (13.4M) If he accepts - Deal ONE of Kendrick/Trumbo/Bourjos for a starter If he declines - Deal TWO of Kendrick/Trumbo/Bourjos for TWO starters  
Mujica, Frieri, Morin, Stauffer, Kohn, Maronde,
 
Weaver, Wilson, Vargas, SP #1, Richards
 
OR
 
Mujica, Frieri, Richards, Morin, Stauffer, Kohn, Maronde
 
Weaver, Wilson, Vargas, SP #1, SP #2

Mike could succeed elsewhere after a year or two off.  The dude is just burned out, has no energy, and isn't clicking with this team.

It has been widely reported that Hamilton and Pujols were Arte's decisions.
 
Dipoto traded for Skaggs, he didn't trade him.  I think you mean Chatwood?  Chatwood was beyond horrible with the Angels.  Maybe you should blame the pitching coach.
 
Dipoto was expected to know that Vargas would get a freak blood clot and that Hanson's brother would die?
 
Again, who would you propose they could have made the team better with?  Relievers weren't out there.

There seems to be a lot of extremes on this board regarding Scioscia - either "he sucks, has sucked for a long time, and has to go!" or "he's only the manager, the players have to perform, what is he supposed to do?" - but I think that there are a lot of us in the middle ground with you.  I just think it's time for a change.  No, I don't have anybody specific in mind but that doesn't mean there isn't somebody out there. 

I can't speak for all of them, obviously.  But here is a thread on the STL board on the same topic:
http://interact.stltoday.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=966320&sid=3ba435df83c1fd927a4ba515e7cc5462
 
I think there was also a 10 year deal after the 5 year deal was rejected..  I think 210 million was the number.
 
There's a lot who are still bitter over the whole thing, but its died down a lot.    In the long run, he will always beloved in St. Louis, by most of us.  And he still does so much good and positive things for the community. 
 
I come around and follow the Angels so I can keep up with him, and wish him the best.    When he was a Cardinal, he was the best player of our generation.    I hope you guys get to see some of that too.  
 
He had a spectacular 11 years in STL, no denying it.   The Cards did dodge a bullet by not overpaying for his later years.   I think most Cards fans see that now.    
 
The Cards build their organization in the farm system, first and foremost.    They get a piece here and there from outside when there is a need (Matt Holliday, Carlos Beltran).    They keep core players who came up when its reasonable and benefical (Molina, Wainwright).      They are a mid-market team, so keeping Albert for 10 years at his price would not have worked to our advantage.    The FO gets a lot of respect from the fans, because they (usually) make good moves.     They look like geniuses to the fanbase right now by letting Albert walk, but how would they have looked if he accepted it?   Who knows.

I, for one, would love to see a Dodgers vs. Red Sox WS.
 
The number of stabbings would be incredible.

The schedule is tough right out of the ASB.  I expect the team will be back to 10 games under .500 after the first week in August. 

I expect exactly what I saw in the first half. A team with tons of talent and little desire.

It will be extrememly disappointing if they come out and stink it up tonight. I really want them to send Lackey to the dugout crying and throwing the water cooler around.

living near kc we had a chance to go to the all star game last season.  I bought my son a trout all star jersey and he became his favorite player. we went to the Angels royals series last September. before the infamous meltdown we waited for an hour and a half for an autograph. I was hoping someone would sign but little did I know my son was sure he was getting trouts signature. he passed on bobby Wilson and I was worried he would end up empty handed. that's when mike trout made his move. just minutes before the first pitch trout comes in and pretends to ignore everyone. seconds later he reappears and signals for my son and one other kid to throw him a ball. he grabs both balls disappears and returns the balls before first pitch.  my son almost fainted. I actually was worried about him because he was gasping for air. I have heard similar stories of trout doing similar things. if he or his family reads this sight I just want to say thank you and it is great to see a star remember the kids.