goldenGlove

Luke Walton as next manager? Pretty outside the box...I like it!

Luke Walton as next manager? Pretty outside the box...I like it!

Luke Walton as next manager? Pretty outside the box...I like it!

Luke Walton as next manager? Pretty outside the box...I like it!

Luke Walton as next manager? Pretty outside the box...I like it!

Good discussion.  
by and large, the success of a baseball team centers around that team's ability to sign, draft, and develop talent through minor league system.  Baseball has done a solid job through recent CBA's of creating equality in terms of what talent is available to develop.   Before, not only did big market teams have the advantage with free agents, but also in the draft where they weren't restricted as to what they could pay a player regardless of slot or on he international side where they could pay ungodly amounts for unproven talent.  The draft was fixed but only in the last couple of years did the international pool get fixed which is where certain teams were able to take significant advantage.  
big market teams still have an advantage on the FA side and in the ability to keep their own players, but the true emphasis is on the farm and all teams now essentially have equal opportunity.  So now the in vogue thing is tanking and for a couple of reasons.  One, getting to choose one of the top 3-5 players in the draft is huge.  Generally, those spots come with much greater odds of success than even a few slots down.  Two, the second wild card has created additional avenues for teams that are out of the running to sell off their players.  What is going to be interesting is whether tanking will continue to play out.  As an example, the Rangers had 95 losses and will end up with the 8 pick overall.  That's not a ton of draft stock relative to how bad that team is so ultimately, teams will have to ask themselves whether it's worth tanking if only to get the 8th pick.  
So the next question becomes, if you're gonna end up in the 8-20 range in terms of picks (which generally have similar odds of success) why not try to win more games and get fans in the seats to generate at least a little interest and some dough.  Where if things go right, you might be able to grab that second wild card while 'rebuilding'.  
So what is a failure in terms of a rebuild?  Because not all rebuilds are created equal.   To rebuild, you stockpile prospects/talent and wait for a window to make your move.  The CWS are a good example of a failed rebuild.  The talent they accumulated, which was supposed to be substantial, hasn't worked out and they just had one of their worst seasons in franchise history.   
What many seem to be asking, is should the Angels have gone into full tank mode after 2010?  The answer is absolutely not.  They hadn't even made the lion's share of their horrible decisions that were to come.  They still had a good team with a decent farm system with Trout on his way.  What happened was that Dipoto took over and the team went away from the hallmark of creating successful teams which is the farm.  Now with Eppler, we are back to that, but people are getting impatient because they think we're in limbo.  We're not.  This was on purpose.  Not the three losing seasons in a row, but the stealthy rebuild.  
If you're a baseball owner, and you could put a decent product on the field so 3 million fans show up while you are trying to rebuild your farm, why wouldn't you do that instead of throwing in the towel and telling the fans you're not trying to win so that 2mil show up?  How much money is that out of your pocket when you still have commitments to Albert and Trout you're going to have to pay anyway?  Maybe doing it the way they are cost them a year or so, but think about how much more money has come in and what they means in terms of signing and developing players.  Think about the additional behind the scenes resources created with that revenue.  
I'd rather be exactly where we are than coming off consecutive 95 loss seasons.  We are on a proper trajectory whereas many of the other teams we've seen go into a rebuild still haven't come close to finding their way.  

This is the biggest thing the "haters" forget about him. He's literally just entering his prime and he's already a Hall of Famer. 
So yeah, Betts is amazing. So is Judge. Trout is a God.

It's hard to believe that he's played just over 7 MLB seasons already, and yet is still only 27.   No Halos prospect previous has ever done anything anywhere nears what he has done already, and knock on wood with many more seasons to go.
Congrats, Mike!  

Remember...he PERSONALLY scouted Baldo, his own eyes told him he was making the right call.

Luke Walton as next manager? Pretty outside the box...I like it!

He probably would have signed with the Angels for less but Diputo made sure that was impossible. How could a GM be so stupidly short sighted and not think, Vlad Jr is a legacy player you have to keep the door open for?

That's why I've floated a semi-radical idea of dealing him for a good young hitter, and perhaps even as a catalyst to shed Calhoun's salary, and using some of the money saved to then pursue a little more durable replacement arm like Corbin and Keuchel.
I say this as a believer in Skaggs, and someone who was never all that interested in Corbin or Keuchel. I've often cited how his numbers were actually better than Finley, Langston, and Washburn through the same stage in their careers, but another year in which injuries cost him basically two months is concerning. We only have two more year of control at this point, and his arb. salary will start to negate his value. It's one thing when you have upside and you're making 15-20 GS for $500k or $2.5m, but another when it starts escalating to $6-10m.
A couple offaeasons ago, I pitched dealing Calhoun and Richards as they were at a theoretical pinnacle of their trade value, and it seemed a good time to cash in on that, despite the inherent risk. Skaggs is in that window now. 
Combine Skaggs arb. and Calhoun's salary and you're close to a Corbin/Keuchel AAV, and I bet a competitive team out there with some young hitter depth would be willing to roll the dice on those two, maybe with LAA throwing a prospect in or also eating some nominal salary back. Pederson? Franco or Hernandez? Segura? Travis Shaw? Jake Lamb? Camargo?
Also, I wouldn't say Cam's been healthy. Seems like he has a couple things every year that cause his to struggle, or at least that's his excuse.

Shut up

it doesn't matter for what happens the next ten.  
The astros went 51-111 in 2013.  It was their fifth losing season in a row and their third in a row where they lost 100 games.  But they had a strong farm system.  The next year they lost 92 games but everyone knew they were coming because they had a lot of good young players and a solid core.  
If Trout staying for 10+ years is contingent on the Halos winning in 2019 then he's short-sighted and getting the wrong advice.  
We went from the worst farm system ever (not hyperbole) at the end of 2015 to one that is now in the top ten.  We have a solid core.  Regardless of what happens in 2019, Eppler is taking the team in the right direction.  Yes, results matter, but patience is important.  They'll show some promise in 2019 whether they make the playoffs or not.  If you try to force the issue then you end up with a similar aftermath that Dipoto left.  
 

It’s 100% about TV revenue.  How people still don’t understand this is beyond me.  The Angels have a fat tv contract because of the name change.  It’s the tool they used to negotiate a claim to a larger market.  Fans definitely don’t want the Angels to lose any of that money because of “Anaheim.”  That TV contract is what underwrites the big payroll.  Anaheim was a stupid shitty way to preface the Angels anyway.  
California is what they should be.  It’s what they are to most of us fans who are older then 25.   LA is better then Anaheim.  It’s how the team was founded.  Honestly, if you live in Orange or Irvine or Yorba Linda or  Fullerton, or Riverside,  or any number of so cal cities that are not Anaheim why on earth would you give a shit about the Anaheim name ?

no question about it - Red Sox

I only really root for teams to lose.
I want the Dodgers to lose more than anybody because it pleasures me to see them choke year after year and see their fans so disheartened.
After that, I go Yankees because it pleasures me to see my friend's favorite team lose. 
Then the Red Sox cause they are bitches.
Then the Astros.

I think that's the million dollar question.....if Shohei will be ready in February for Spring Training, and ready for the regular season or if this is something we'll be waiting for until the all-star break next year and seeing him try to hit without any ST.
Just my guess, Gleyber Torres was back in six months with minimal restrictions, and I think that's what we'll see with Shohei.  My guess is he'll miss the first 3-4 weeks of the season in 2019, and then after that we'll see a little bit of a warming up period because he wasn't able to go full "gorilla" in February/March.  But by June next year he'll be his normal self again at the plate.  
But that's a pessimistic view really.  Optimistically speaking he'll be getting back into the swing of things in February, but a part time participant in Spring Training until the final week or two where he'll be a full participant, and then be ready to go in April.
So I guess if Optimistic is April, pessimistic is June, May seems like a fair middle ground I guess. 

Eppler has been doing what the Astros did, he's just not losing 100+ games three seasons in a row to do it.  The Angels aren't taking the coward's way out and claiming they are poor and not doing anything to help the big club.  The Angels are rebuilding AND spending money, of which they have, trying to be competitive while they are doing it.  That's why their trades haven't involved top prospects, that's why they haven't signed anyone costing them a draft pick, it's why they have combed the waiver wire for talent, it's why they traded aging talent on the verge of free agency for Patrick Sandoval and Ty Buttrey, that's why they spent money on Ohtani, Maitan, Soto, etc on the international market.  None of that puts them back, it only pushes them forward.  Building up the minor leagues from the bottom with draft picks and international talent while filling AA and AAA with cheap depth with options all while not compromising their future.
The rebuilding is happening right in front of you and you are not even seeing it.  

What a great game for the guys to go out on. Ward had a really rough road to the majors, losing his catchers job and learning 3rd base. 
Scioscia is on the big screen with his last post game interview. 

F u ck the Dodgers

Thanks for the reply man, I stand corrected

I agree.
the pain my dodger fan buddies felt last year was a thousand times worse than the pain I felt about our season. 

Thank you for your reply even if you don’t like what I did or said. All the banter with my friends of course came after fully acknowledging they have a great team better than mine right now, guess I should have clarified that. Maybe they did only blow it once in the actual 9th but there were many back and forth lead changes in the series and they didn’t close it which I guess is what I meant when I said “loved when it happened.”
i am a pompous stupid guy