Hubs

you'd be adding at least 80 if not 90m in payroll.  

I think they won't improve much and will likely regress. They were surprisingly good the second Half and a lot was luck, but they have some really good players, and Safeco is awesome viewing experience. I went to the final game where we knocked them out of the playoffs -- the fans were excited and engaged. Seeing Kyle Seager's farewell was cool too. They also took down the obnoxious 116 win flag or moved it. It used to be in CF and stood out garishly, but not anymore. The concessions were a mess though. I don't think we realize at Anaheim Stadium how good we've got it with concessions and walkways and such. Petco was good this year too.
Also, the Angels scrubs and Ohtani dominated that lineup in a must-win game, so they need pitching and pitching and more pitching. I can't see them involved in the SS market, but I can see them try to add multiple pitchers and maybe a veteran hitter or three. They have only $22M committed next season.
They do have several arbitration guys and that will increase their payroll somewhat, as Haniger, Crawford, and others are arbitration eligible.
They could use another 3B, it didn't look as if they will bring Seager back. Ty France may move across the diamond, I see he's been at 3B. But Seager despite his low average was a productive batter, hitting 35 HR and 29 2B. So that will have to get fixed. I could see them adding here, and also at 2B and DH. 
So they're a team to watch. I won't punt a baby if they win 90, but if they only win 75 next year I wouldn't be surprised.
 
 

If the Mariners come anywhere near 90 wins next year I'll punt a baby. They got through this year on luck and BS. 

Ausmus was the worst manager I’ve ever seen

You who seriously consider using Eeyore as your avatar 

Ausmus was the worst manager I’ve ever seen

Stassi is the starter and he doesn't even make $5M.
A backup will make around what Suzuki got this year or less. I am fine with Thaiss as the backup if he really can do it and even throwing Ward back there once in a while. These guys caught most of their life, so if they can do it defensively incl. framing, then they can be a backup for 60 games.
If they need to bring in a Briceño or a Bemboom or someone after two months with Thaiss as the backup then they can. Not an area of concern.

Maddon is an absolute fuckface. I'd take Ausmus over him.

In 04, they won the division  and got knocked out of the playoffs, cuz they lost one of their best pitchers and one of their best hitters decided to be a jerk and got cut. Also, Glaus underperformed.
The investment before the 2004 season though is roughly what I am looking for in 2022. They added two starters, one TOR and one guy who was promising, and added two hitters, one HOF worthy and one on the upswing.
Now they really need three pitchers and one hitter (a SS), but this is the year to go for this.

I can't tell if this poster is 12 or if he is 80.
 

Stassi is the starter and he doesn't even make $5M.
A backup will make around what Suzuki got this year or less. I am fine with Thaiss as the backup if he really can do it and even throwing Ward back there once in a while. These guys caught most of their life, so if they can do it defensively incl. framing, then they can be a backup for 60 games.
If they need to bring in a Briceño or a Bemboom or someone after two months with Thaiss as the backup then they can. Not an area of concern.

In 04, they won the division  and got knocked out of the playoffs, cuz they lost one of their best pitchers and one of their best hitters decided to be a jerk and got cut. Also, Glaus underperformed.
The investment before the 2004 season though is roughly what I am looking for in 2022. They added two starters, one TOR and one guy who was promising, and added two hitters, one HOF worthy and one on the upswing.
Now they really need three pitchers and one hitter (a SS), but this is the year to go for this.

Stew, yes, I mean Correa. He's probably the most talented of the bunch, but I think all of the players that cheated on the 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2021 Astros should be banned from the game.
I hated the Ian Kinsler signing, because he was a thorn in our sides for so many years, and a bit of an asshole. but I can't abide by people who knowingly cheated in the way the Astros did in 2017 and 2018, and have been continuing to do to in 2019 and 2021.
People question Story's home and road splits, but I don't think Correa or Altuve or Bregman or any of the cheating Astros will be the same player somewhere else without the legal scouting reports and the illegal buzzers or cameras or whatever they heck they're doing.
They're all cheaters and should be thrown out. If they can ban John Coppolella (SP) for international signings that skirted the rules, they can certainly ban players who knowingly cheated, then were caught and struggled, and then magically, they're all hitting again?
BUZZERS are better than Trash Cans after all.

Jeebus. You have the worst opinions on the site. You are a borderline troll. Why do you post so much if you know that literally all of your suggestions and ideas get ridiculed? GO SOMEWHERE ELSE.
It makes zero sense to trade Trout without trading Ohtani as well, and I think fans would riot. Arte knows how marketable these players are. They tried to get a marquee player in 2011 offseason, and while they got one, it wasn't the guy they threw 240 million at. Since then, they've consistently spent on big time position players and tried to sign pitchers with limited payroll.
A lot of money is freed up and so they'll sign some free agents. And make trades. But none of those trades will include Ohtani or Trout.

Will I get an opt out in year 2?

no we're not.  We could really really use a TOR starter.  But we actually have depth.  
Tampa won their division running away.  They had 0.1 more starter WAR than the Angels.  
Yet they had about 3 more wins from their pen.  Which is actually pretty significant but not insane.  What is insane is their pen depth.  We got -0.4 WAR from four guys who had the 4th through 8th number of innings for us.  So there's a couple ways to skin this cat.  Go out and spend 30m per on one guy or create way better depth in your pen.  Or both.  
The other way that tampa won this year?  They had no holes in their lineup.  1-9 was above average.  The main difference between the rays and the Angels this year was offense.  Not pitching.  And they had an average to slightly above defense.  
My point is that we can improve this team tremendously via SS and 2b.  I know we're not gonna at 2b as I'm sure Fletcher will get another crack, but the dude had 0.2 WAR for year in almost 700 PA.  Even Griffin canning did that in his 60 innings and with a 5.42 FIP.  
Let's say a starter is of equivalent overall value to a position player.  If Dylan Bundy was allowed to pitch 170 innings, he would have had about 0.2 WAR.  Jose Quintana even accumulated 0.3 WAR in 35 innings over 10 starts.  3.5 innings per start!  And yet we're cool with Fletch and people want to bring back Jose Iglesias who had 0.4 WAR?  Where is the desperation to improve those spots?
Why does it matter is someone is a pitcher or hitter?  A black hole is a black hole.  Run production and run prevention count the same.  

I think winning teams have been built before that were top heavy. Dodgers or Yankees can have this kind of top heavy roster and no one bats an eye, and we're in the same market.
I say blow past the tax in the next two years and make this team a WS contender.
 

I think winning teams have been built before that were top heavy. Dodgers or Yankees can have this kind of top heavy roster and no one bats an eye, and we're in the same market.
I say blow past the tax in the next two years and make this team a WS contender.
 

Philly looking to add bats pur around Harper. Trout big Eagles fan. Adell, Marsh and Ward in OF. Halos have youth moving forward. Ohtani value never will be higher maybe get big haul for him. This would be splash Angels need not a big name starter.

This was always the plan. He was under contract in 2021 with ESPN, which is why he couldn't take on a much larger role. I'd say he'd likely to broadcast 120 games next season, and they'll bring someone in to do the other 42.

As another Angels season comes to an end, I was just thinking about issues with the game itself. I went to the final game of the season, in Seattle, and the atmosphere was great. Lots of scoreboard watching.
I want the shift to be limited.
I want the IBB rule to be pulled, throw the 4 pitches.
I want the extra innings thing to be moved to the 12th inning, play two extra innings with no one on base, then the second base thing starts.
They need to add two more teams. I want 16 in each league and I want inter-league to only exist for the same games at the same time. I'm fine with interleague week once a month, or whatever.
They need to limit division play. By cutting to 4 divisions of four teams, this limits it from 76 games to 57, but I would go further and cut it 54 or 48 or even 42. Play three other divisions in same league 6 times each is 72 games. Play one whole other league division home and away, and your rival division home and home (4 games), and your rival 6 games. This is 42 interleague games but, I'm okay with that. Alternately, you can cut 12 of these, and play 30, and increase division play to 84.
42+48+72 = 162 games. Or 30+48+84. Or 36+42+84. Less games against division opponents is the key.
Finally, I want the pitching clock (30 seconds even), but more importantly, hitters have to be in the box if the pitcher is on the mound. No step out and time called more than once per AB.
 
 
 

I'd absolutely start discussions with Ohtani this offseason, but by no means do they have to do anything. He'd probably have been in the range of a $15-18M payday in Arb, and he's gonna be paid $5.5. And he has an arb season at $20 ish in 2023 before FA. And you can slap the qualifying offer on him.
I would give Iglesias the QO. Especially if you can't sign him before the QO deadline.
I'd sign two starters and maybe trade for one too.
I'd sign a SS.
They have 111.188 M in multi-year deals, for five guys, which translates to AAV Payroll around 100.
Their arb class is small, with only three guys likely coming back which may total 7-8M. I do not believe Rengifo, Canning, or Barria will be arbitration eligible but may have if they had been full time guys in 2021.
They have at least a lot of guys under club control, of which I can see a realistic path to the opening day roster for 16 of them, or as few as 9, but that would be Walsh, Adell, Marsh, Sandoval, Suarez, C-Rod, Rengifo, Quijada and Warren. Barria, Naughton, Canning, are also options for the rotation, Selman, Wantz, Hoyt, Herget, Bard, all options for the pen, and Mayfield, Ward, Thaiss, are options for the position player side.
 
 

This was always the plan. He was under contract in 2021 with ESPN, which is why he couldn't take on a much larger role. I'd say he'd likely to broadcast 120 games next season, and they'll bring someone in to do the other 42.

As another Angels season comes to an end, I was just thinking about issues with the game itself. I went to the final game of the season, in Seattle, and the atmosphere was great. Lots of scoreboard watching.
I want the shift to be limited.
I want the IBB rule to be pulled, throw the 4 pitches.
I want the extra innings thing to be moved to the 12th inning, play two extra innings with no one on base, then the second base thing starts.
They need to add two more teams. I want 16 in each league and I want inter-league to only exist for the same games at the same time. I'm fine with interleague week once a month, or whatever.
They need to limit division play. By cutting to 4 divisions of four teams, this limits it from 76 games to 57, but I would go further and cut it 54 or 48 or even 42. Play three other divisions in same league 6 times each is 72 games. Play one whole other league division home and away, and your rival division home and home (4 games), and your rival 6 games. This is 42 interleague games but, I'm okay with that. Alternately, you can cut 12 of these, and play 30, and increase division play to 84.
42+48+72 = 162 games. Or 30+48+84. Or 36+42+84. Less games against division opponents is the key.
Finally, I want the pitching clock (30 seconds even), but more importantly, hitters have to be in the box if the pitcher is on the mound. No step out and time called more than once per AB.
 
 
 

You’re probably set at all three OF positions, one MINF position, 1B, 3B, DH,  and C. 

I’d bring up Stefanic to see if he can hit like this in the majors 
If he can and he can defend, he could be part of a homegrown middle infield.
There are also a lot of SS on the free agent market in all budget ranges.
They have a lot of young exciting pitching in the pen, but you need veteran leadership in the rotation. Heaney is gone, Bundy has been much more like Baltimore Bundy than 2020 Bundy. Quintana is terrible. Cobb has been ok but hurt. So new veteran leadership needed. Stroman or Scherzer would be my picks and maybe a guy in the Cobb or Jon Gray or Danny Duffy mold. You also need veteran leadership in the pen and you have that if you resign Iglesias. I’d also grab one more veteran arm.