DCAngelsFan

From mlbtraderumors: Surprised he didn't ask for Ohtani ...

I have to think we'd have the inside track if we decided to pursue him - having Ohtani on the team, and his endorsement, being on the West Coast, in a good weather city - the question is, who do you trade, then - Marsh or Adell? I think Marsh is pretty hard to trade given our future needs - he's our CF of the future - but has Adell recovered enough perceived value to make part of a package for a top-line pitcher like Castillo or Alcantara?

That's my expectation - maybe I'm being overly optimistic - but this doesn't make a heck of a lot of sense if you don't plan to build a team to make a run *this* season - 1 season of Snydergaard - no matter how good he might be - isn't gonna move the needle enough. I'm hoping Stroman now - and while I'd love to get Iglesias back, I don't know that we'll be able to afford him. Then wait out the market for the other gaps. (I guess a small case could be made that if Snydergaard has a good year, you offer him a QO next year and get a comp pick "back") The cautionary thing here is money to extend Ohtani - where will that come from? Which makes me wonder if NS really *is* a stopgap, a 1-year thing, with the hope that some other cost-controlled guys are ready to contribute in 2023 so we can then have the funds to extend Ohtani.

Signing him, then trading one of Adell or Marsh would be one thing - though it dings us financially. Trading one of them, then hoping we sign him would be hard to take - unless there's some spectacular return - I really don't want to see Upton do much more than shag bp fly balls in LF ...

Eating at Taco Bell is scary enough - but to use one of their bathrooms?

This is a little far-fetched, but I always wondered why he wasn't traded at the deadline - and the only reasons that made sense were that no one offered anything useful for him - that seems pretty unlikely - what a huge add for a stretch/playoff run - or there was a kind of "gentleman's agreement" that both sides were committed to signing him - and that would seem to require some kind of deal framework. Neither reason seems very likely - yet ... So wondering if you'd caught wind of any explanation for why he wasn't moved? IMO, he may not fit financially - which would be a shame, he seems to really want to be here.

Some of those NL West parks will help him, and maybe they have a plan for him - he needs another pitch - 2.5 pitches doesn't cut it in a starter.

Removing Kay and Mead from the lawsuit seems absurd - if they have no culpability, how the eff can "The Angels?" The lawsuit relies on the ESPN article where Kay's mom and wife said that Mead knew - https://www.espn.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/27828247/los-angeles-angels-employee-details-team-knowledge-tyler-skaggs-drug-use-federal-dea-investigators-espn I wonder if their depositions fell apart?

This is a "soft landing", most likely - rather than let him go, or pay him severance, they pay him while he finds another job - I used to think of it as putting them in the "bullpen" now more like the parking lot. Lets him salvage a little dignity. We often do that for higher-level execs whose time has come (equally often, it's the guillotine whilst being pelted with missed forecasts ...)

Is this old news? Probably - but too lazy to check - too busy trying to fill out that McDonalds application ... Anyone know of a pen that'll write on my monitor?? https://thecardinalnation.com/cardinals-lose-top-player-development-assistant/

I've been banging that drum for years - under Arte, there's been symptoms that baseball operations/player development are badly under-resourced compared to the class-leaders. We can't know for certain, but on the other hand, teams that prioritize those things like the Dodgers, Rays, Cardinals, baseball people talk about them as model organizations - no one as *ever* said anything like that about the Angels - ever. And the results speak for themselves. If we hadn't drafted Trout, this team would be the, uh, I dunno, what team is even more mediocre than the Angels the last 10 years, especially when it comes to developing talent? Sadly, if Arte got religion *today* and began building an organization centered around "baseball", not marketing and advertising, and the finest scouting and development organization in baseball, Trout will be retired before we see the result. Going back to the Autry years, we learned you can't build a team on expensive free-agents - the team core has to be built from within. The frustrating thing to me is that during the McCourt years, we could've raided the Dodgers for their operations and development system talent. We might've had the chance to sign Friedman (guess we'll never know what happened there.) We didn't do a thing. Most serious Angels fans wanted an owner who invested in an organization that could field a team that would compete for titles every season. Instead we got slightly cheaper beer, a laughingstock of a name change and an endless parade of historically expensive and under-producing contracts. And post-seasons spent watching other teams in the playoffs.

Should do the Ludovico treatment on Arte, and make him watch this repeatedly until he cries ...

Ohtani? Perhaps I misunderstood the question? Before that - Skaggs, Adenhart, Weaver - Santana, I suppose Jeezus, we suck at drafting pitchers - this thread makes me sad ...

"KA-BOUM!"? Is that an explosion in French?

Saw the little Ohtani "tribute" video after the game last night, and it kind of made me a little melancholy - I have to wait 6 months to see him play again? While we didn't "waste" his season, like @WicketMaiden said above (among others), this is the time for Arte to go all-in - there will never be a time when Trout, Ohtani, and Rendon are any better than they'll be next season - and while I wish we didn't have quite as many holes to fill, it's within reach to build a team that can contend for the playoffs, and the World Series (we all know luck plays a huge role once in the post-season - but first you've got to get there.) If Arte can't bring himself to dip into his cash flows to fund it, I'm sure there's a line of billionaires who'd *love* to buy some equity in the team (or the entire team) to be part of the Ohtani phenomenon - he's the single most marketable face in baseball right now. Larry Ellison, Tiger Woods, Mark Cuban come to mind ... (if he's to do it - would also be a great time to go all-in on out scouting and development system - as we lose picks and international pool money for signing FA"s and going over thresholds.)

You realize you just jinxed him, and he'd need TJ, a hip replacement and a kidney transplant by the end of Spring training ...

fwiw

Every year, I find myself checking the standings in August, not for our magic number, but to see what our draft position might be next year ... Something wrong when the only thing you have to look forward to is the hot stove league and next year's draft before Labor Day ...

My #1 is Scherzer - he's the best, and brings some toughness to the rotation. And he comes without the loss of a draft pick That's without considering financial considerations - but if he were to come here, it shouldn't be because we offer him the most money, it's because he sees an opportunity with a team of Trout/Ohtani/Rendon, some good-upside youngsters, and the makings of a good rotation. But Stroman and Gausman might be more realistic - I get the idea Stroman might want to come here, but I think I prefer Gausman - he misses bats I'd like to consider Snydergaard - but don't see it working - wouldn't give up a draft pick and intl bonus pool money for him if the Mets extend a QO - he's a risk, and not gonna give him a long-term deal

I hadn't turned on the tv that morning - I was giving my wife a ride when I turned on the news radio and almost instantly heard the announcer in a choked up voice saying a 2nd plane had just hit the World Trade Center. It was a lot to process all at once - but it was obvious we were under attack. A little later, I was at home, and heard and spotted F-16's flying north at high throttle - these were probably those searching for flight 93. Later, I saw F-15's patrolling overhead, carving turns in the sky. I didn't really know anyone directly - I'd known someone at DCSPER in the Pentagon - but very distantly - and the father of a girl who played soccer with my daughter was on flight 77. I was concerned about a co-worker who I knew was scheduled for a meeting at WTC that afternoon, but quickly heard he was fine. (the next day, we had a meeting at Citigroup down the street to help them get their trader desks back on-line, and the guys who went told how they were escorted past/through the still burning ground zero - I was bummed Amtrak was down, otherwise I'd have been there - 'cause of course, you wanted to help in any way you could.) Another co-worker had flown to CA the previous day, and with the grounding, wound up renting a car and driving back to VA. Regarding the flag - my wife is buried at Arlington, and I put a flag up on Memorial Day in her honor, and never really feel right taking it down, so leave it up until after Veteran's Day, then pack it away for the winter. If you're offended by my flag, well, I'm ok with you staying out of my neighborhood.

That was pretty great - that crowd was lit up, Snell had been dealing (but seemed to lose his feel for the slider earlier that inning - maybe against Mayfield?) At any rate, certainly a situation to be intimidated and to fold, but Adell delivered in a high-pressure situation - not bad! (pretty funny how Mayfield stole 2nd and then scored without anyone noticing) And what's the deal with Herget? A career-minor leaguer, looking pretty good (so far, knock wood, etc)

That's probably an expression you can put away and not use again until, say, "never"

He doesn't look like he's having nearly as much fun as before - I think the intense scrutiny and high expectations, however well-intentioned, puts an unreasonable amount of pressure on him, and I wouldn't be surprised if it's all stressing him out. Some physical and mental rest might do him some good

You're right - and I don't even want to set myself up for the notion that if there were ever a time for Arte to go "all in", to be willing to breach the "cap", this off-season would be it - that is, assuming we have a healthy Trout and that guy who plays 3rd base? Whatever his name is - they're not getting any younger or healthier and if this team doesn't step forward, when the time comes, Ohtani might decide he needs a World Series ring, and walk when he has a chance. So, the time is right for Arte to go "all in" - to make a run before the clock runs out on this guys. But so what? Arte won't be suddenly breaching the salary "cap", and so when it comes to acquisitions, next year will be Groundhog day, yet again. We do have some young talent that will make the team worth watching - but it sure would be nice to play a meaningful baseball game in September ...