CAAngelsLifer

Ya, but he still missed significant time, lost velocity on his fastball, and had to shy away from his slider. He essentially had to relearn how to pitch with a less than full strength elbow.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Tanaka successfully rehabbed and UCL strain last year and didn't need TJ surgery. While it's probably inevitable that Heaney needs surgery (because, Buttercup), maybe we should hope he's able to avoid it instead of sports sciencing from our couches. 
eh... nevermind. IT'S THE END. 

Right, Nolan Ryan is a perfect example of a typical pitcher.

Not every pitcher who throws hard has to get the surgery. Nolan Ryan pitched for nearly 25 years in the majors with zero Tommy John surgeries.

Everyone seems pretty hellbent on forcing Heaney to have a major surgery with a year+ of rehab time. 

I'm thinking at this point the kids in the minors are feeling sort of like this.

Did at first you think all that was needed was a little water in the radiator and then the mechanic said you had a broken crankshaft? Because that's the equivalent of this news.

Welcome Mark Buehrle and Tim Lincecum 

Not a big Scioscia fan but this is where he shines. He will keep this group together. It's not like we were winning the games Richards started anyway

We should be selling anything that isn't bolted down in hopes of being somewhat competitive in 2018. This season and next are lost causes. Restock the farm, free up money, and try to field a competitive team for the stretch run of Trout's contract.

Come on guys we knew the deal coming into this, our platoon is half injured and half sucking, Heaney is hurt, bullpen has sucked, Pujols sucks, Trout is slumping, Richards isn't stepping up to be the ace, etc., etc...
I know it's frustrating but we knew going in this was going to be a .500 team unless everybody played above career norms. It sucks facing reality. There was a completely different vibe to this team during spring training, you could feel it in the air at the games.

I can't judge Nava right now.  He's on the DL and has only 14 at-bats this season.

i'm going to make myself very unpopular here and assert that Pujols isn't going to hit .153 all season. 
I am a negative nancy but even I will draw a line somewhere. 
He'll warm up. I don't expect him to hit .300 at any point but i'd be very surprised if he batted below .240 for the whole season (unless he's injured).

This thread today:
"Let's go Shoemaker!"
"Shoemaker sucks, 4-0 in the 1st, this offense can't score 4 runs in 1 game."
"I miss CJ Wilson." (?????!)
"Simmons is awful, everyone talks about his defense but he sucks."
HUGE picture of  Blanton's pube beard.
"We hate Albert."
"We LOVE ALBERT!"
"We like Simmons now but we hate Escobar."
"Rasmus needs more innings and more chances at meaningful outings."
"WE LOVE ESCOBAR."
"We hate Rasmus."
"Trout is going to leave us."
"Season over."
 
Did I miss anything?

Meh. Bullpen isn't very good but that's being magnified right now by the lack of offense. Most bullpens are going to look shitty when a team struggles to score 2-3 runs per game.

I always laugh when a future HOF manager is called an idiot by a person who at best will be HOFr on Playstation

Wait, they quit?

This thread today:
"Let's go Shoemaker!"
"Shoemaker sucks, 4-0 in the 1st, this offense can't score 4 runs in 1 game."
"I miss CJ Wilson." (?????!)
"Simmons is awful, everyone talks about his defense but he sucks."
HUGE picture of  Blanton's pube beard.
"We hate Albert."
"We LOVE ALBERT!"
"We like Simmons now but we hate Escobar."
"Rasmus needs more innings and more chances at meaningful outings."
"WE LOVE ESCOBAR."
"We hate Rasmus."
"Trout is going to leave us."
"Season over."
 
Did I miss anything?

The Angels could trade Trout for five of the top prospects in the history of baseball, and none of them would pan out.

I can't imagine a situation where I'd ever "gladly" eat shit.
 
To be serious, though, here's the problem with the "Trout for a million prospects" fantasy. Trout is the best player in baseball. Even if Harper has equaled and surpassed him, and Machado is catching up, he's still a superstar, the best player the Angels have ever had and the best player they'll likely have in decades or more. A package that would actually be worth it would be something like three grade A prospects and two grade B prospects. Not many teams have that kind of wealth, and even that hoard is borderline. There isn't a team, or many teams, who could field a package that would be worth it. Not only do you have to find a team that has the talent, but also a team that can afford him.
 
Actually, I hate to say it but the one team that comes to mind that is a pretty good match is the Dodgers. They have two great prospects in Corey Seager and Julio Urias. You start there. Then you add in Jose DeLeon, which gives you three of the top 14 prospects in baseball according to John Sickels. Then you throw in maybe Alex Verdugo and Yusniel Diaz, two young OF prospects. So for Trout, you get a potential star SS/3B (could slot over to 3B), a future staff ace in Urias, a guy who is almost ready to be a starter now in DeLeon, and two future good+ outfielders.
Would the Dodgers do it? Maybe, maybe not. If you offer Trout now, they probably couldn't refuse.
 
But here's the bigger question to consider: What would trading Trout do to the attendance and the fan-base, regardless of how many prospects the Angels get in return? Can you imagine the shitstorm? We'd all miss Trout, but knowledgeable fans might warm up to such a hoard of prospects. But the average beer-swiller? Not so much. I'm not sure Arte wants to weather that storm, and the potential loss in millions.
 
Trout is not only a great player, but a franchise player - a big name like the Angels have never really had. This is why, when it comes down to it, Arte (or whoever owns the Angels in the future) will never trade him as long as he's performing, and will do everything possible to keep him around (and paid).
 
Now let's say its June of 2020, Trout hasn't signed an extension and the Angels are sucking. Then you consider trading him. But now, with almost five years left on his contract? It won't happen.

I'm interested in seeing what you consider a "once in a generation" player if you have doubts about Trout being one.

They'd be wise to trade their generational talent away for a nice prospect haul. It worked splendidly for the Marlins with Miguel Cabrera.

This kind of question shouldn't seriously be discussed until 2018 IMO. You don't look to move Trout when you still have 5 more seasons of his services. If by 2018 the team still hasn't made the playoffs/still stinks, it's something you have to then seriously and unfortunately consider

I have no idea when we will be good again, but I've waited my entire life to have a generational hall of fame player to come up from our minors.

How unwatchable would this team be without Trout?