disarcina

I think the A's will do well in Vegas - but - even if they are not as successful as the Raiders and/or the VGK hockey team in terms of attendance and support -- the bar from the Bay Area / Oakland experience of the past decade plus is so low, if the A's draw 17,500 average per game - it beats their numbers in Oakland. The move to Vegas is a no lose situation for the A's. The only way they could lose, if they delayed further - giving Oakland /Oakland Coliseum Commission even more time to disappoint with their 'efforts' towards building a new ballpark - that would then cause the Las Vegas venue to be lost to the A's and instead given to a potential MLB expansion team. The big winners in this "A's move to Las Vegas" announcement are - the A's, Las Vegas and also Nashville and Portland. Nashville and Portland win. because if MLB expands (which I don't think they should but it seems inevitable that MLB is moving towards expansion) - one of the top venues to snag the expansion franchise - Las Vegas - is now off the table. In the expansion battle, I think Nashville is ranked first and then Portland, second. I Also have significant doubts whether a Portland based franchise will succeed which is why MLB was looking at Las Vegas and Nashville.

that just makes so much sense. and as long as the Aviators are not 'evicted' that would be great. A's need to get out of Oakland like next week if they could. MLB Commissioner's office , the Oakland Coliseum Commission, the City of Oakland have all placed the Oakland A's in an impossible situation going on at least two decades now. This needs to happen -- I think the A's will do quite well in Las Vegas. Las Vegas has proven to be a great sports town -- but then everyone knew that. Foley - owner of the Vegas Golden Knights deserves credit for 'breaking the ice' (pun indented) for major league sports in Vegas. VGK has proven that Vegas provide tremendous support for their teams - the year around Vegas residents as well as the thousands from all over that come to Vegas. and decide to catch a game of their hometown team while in town. Last year (not this year, though) NHL did some great scheduling -- having Calgary Flames play the VGK during National Finals Rodeo -- a lot of Calgary fans in the stands for the. VGK game as NFR is huge with the Calgary Stampede crowd. No one should ever doubt Vegas as a pro sport venue. ever. again.

this is good news - that new ballpark in Summerlin is a very nice venue. will they remain an A's triple - A team? That would be interesting and make player movements a lot easier logistically.

This is all good news for the Oakland A's. This move is about 15 years (at least) over due. Nice to see the MLB Commissioner FINALLY showing some support for the A's. This commissioner and past commissioner (Selig) have made the A's a less than small market franchise (and one in distress) by refusing to support them over the years. All of this wasted time and weak A's franchise for two decades could have been avoided if Bud Selig would have over-ruled the SF Giants and allowed the A's to move to San Jose - years ago -- Meanwhile - the Oakland Coliseum is 'governed' (using the word loosely) by the Oakland Coliseum Commission which not only is dysfunctional itself but has a governing board with representatives from dysfunctional government entities (City of Oakland, Alameda County, I think the Transit District rep has a seat) -- anyway - it's a board perfectly designed to create bureaucratic in-fighhting and inertia - which it has done for two decades plus. Let's check their track record -- losing the A's give the Oakland Coliseum Commission a trifecta (hat track) -- they've lost the Raiders, Warriors and now the A's. And the Mayor of Oakland blames the A's !! That's pretty laughable. I feel for the small cadre of longtime loyal A's fans. Anyone who has gone to a game there has encountered them. Not a lot of them - but they are very knowledgeable baseball fans, have great seats (because the park is fairly empty) and in my experience have always been nice to opposing fans there to root for their visiting team. The Oakland venue may also be the 'best day game walk up ticket venue' in MLB. You can walk up and still get decent seats. Not too many places you can do that any more. If you're a Red Sox or Yankees (insert team) fan - you can see your team in Oakland from a great seat view you're never going to get at Fenway or Yankee Stadium without really over paying for your seats from brokers. I wish the A's well. MLB Administration has treated them poorly for at least 20 years now. PS -- as one who saw games at the Oakland Coliseum way back before 'Davis Mountain' was constructed (the wall of nose bleed seats all around the park) - it was once a beautiful venue for baseball with the Oakland Hills in view behind centerfield -- Davis Mountain built for the Raiders destroyed the ambiance and baseball was never quite the same there again,.

The SF Giants made sure the A's had literally NO NorCal rights. Had the SF Giants not objected to the A's moving to San Jose - this day might not be happening. Also - the A's had the original AAA Sacramento River Cats at Riley Field as their AAA affiliate. The River Cats - as an A's affiliate - often would out draw the Oakland A's when they had games on the same night. The SF Giants who had a long operating agreement with Fresno for their AAA Fresno Giants team (and the SF Giants were beloved in Fresno and had a huge following from the Valley as Fresno baseball fans had seen all the Giants players come through Fresno Triple A team ) Fresno (city) even pumped a lot of money into the stadium for renovations / upgrade. Pretty nice venue. The SF Giants, concerned about the A's possibly moving to Sacramento - ended their long standing Fresno agreement and moved their AAA affiliate to Sacramento - I am convinced that was to block a potential A's move. Fresno baseball fans were very upset -- the new affiliate ( I think it was year to year - Toronto was there at one point) never drew the fans/ support/ attendance the Giants had. So the SF Giants have pretty much made sure A's NorCal rights, if any, are limited. Not much to give up. A's will do well in Vegas - can't do worse. In fact, I think they should move ASAP -not wait until 2027 or whenever - and play in the relatively new (and very nice) AAA ballpark in Summerlin, NV ( a suburb of Las Vegas) which has limited seating capacity but IMO the A"s would still draw more per game there than in Oakland.

it's just great to hear Victor Rojas' voice again talking baseball !!!

how did he not win the AL MVP award in 2022? The guy is unbelievably amazing. he's doubling his stock every game out there and every game he pitches. it's MLB but he's making it look like he's that Little League kid who's the best player in the area in hitting and pitching and plays every game -- and he's doing that at the MLB level. He may be the best player - EVER. His stats (hitting and pitching combo) in 2021 and 2022 have never been done before in MLB - certainly not in the live ball era. The bidding war for him its going to be something else. The team who lands him may have to give him partial team ownership.

this is great news. please let us know how to sign up to listen. also, I think a lot of Angelswin.com fans would be interested in what Victor Rojas is doing these days (other than this podcast). Also - kind of late to this - but welcome back to David Saltzer -- good to him back feeling well enough to continue his excellent coverage and commentary on Angels baseball.

not necessarily a big fan of Nevin's -- but I agree with his philosophy on closers here. Mike Sciosca was purely a 'formula' manager -- you (including any opponent ) could predict his moves for all 162 games of the season; this guy comes in as the set up guy in the 7th, maybe the 8th, then this guy and then the closer is always this guy. I have NEVER agreed with this approach - I know sometimes players like it because 'they know their role' but it makes little sense to me to have set roles for every game which only lets the opponent know how to structure their line up and utilize their bench depth guys and pinch hitters in the late innings. I like Nevin's way here -- which keeps the other side guessing and throws them off-stride rather than being the same old, same old personnel coming into the game the same way, the same time in virtually every game that's close.

OR NOT -- strike three. What a finish !!

I think Ohtani's minimal chances of staying with the Angels went to zero and none when Arte Moreno decided not to sell the team. Arte simply. cannot compete as a sole independent owner with the conglomerate owners. Ohtani's contact will be the richest - perhaps in all sports history. He's a world wide phenomenon that goes well beyond baseball. If he does wind up in Dodger. Blue, they're probably going to have to offer him a percentage stake in team ownership. Perhaps Arte could offer that as well.

And YES - the Angels did have two 'done deals' with the City -- that became undone because of a variety of reasons -- none of that needs to be re-hashed here. Arte can sit back and wait for the City to come to him with an acceptable offer regarding the development of the parking lot area around the ballpark. There's been a lot of talk about the potential of the Platinum Triangle and I guess, finally, some of that is getting started across the street with the area surrounding the Ducks arena.

as today's LA Times article pointed out - Arte has some leverage with the Halos lease situation. Despite all the nonsense going on with the Anaheim City Council in recent years regarding the Stadium negotiations -- Arte wound up in the position where he can sit back and entertain offers from the City without any pressure, The lease extension(s) are at Arte's option through about 2038. So if the City offers something that Arte does not think is good enough, he can continue on with the existing lease --- the downside of that is -- not sure if any capital improvements to the ballpark will get completed (funded) during that time -- Arte and the Angels may be responsible for ordinary maintenance as any tenant would be-- but neither the City nor the Angels would have any incentive for any major upgrades. I think Arte will work with the City and come to a long term agreement at some point. The real question is -- what is Arte's succession plan? Does he have family willing to take over? Partners? It was estate planning (and tax avoidance issues) that led to the O'Malley family selling the Dodgers.

I think the Halos lost Ohtani when Moreno decided not to sell the franchise. I think the die is set. My prediction - Ohtani. dons a Los Angeles Dodgers uni in 2024

actually -- I've gotta sort of agree with Lou - despite Ryan's Halos stats. But YES, he definitely dissed the Halos with that Texas contract getting an extra bonus to go into the HOF as a Texas Ranger. The. HOF changed its rules after that .

Good choices - can't argue with them - but, obviously, "Mt. Rushmore/Halo-land" can't be too crowded so we need to find room for: JIM FREGOSI (the first face of the franchise), DEAN CHANCE (the first Cy Young Award winner and first 20 game winner) and the number ONE guy to be chiseled in stone -- The Cowboy, MR. GENE AUTRY.

Chuckster - thanks. pal - just joking about the post total stuff - you know me - I don't care about that stuff. Just thought it was kinda funny that I'm considered a 'rookie' on the site -- and then I went posted something that made me sound like a 'rookie' LOL !! I'm kinda somewhat ambivalent about the Arte 'pulls Angels off the market' story --always liked Arte, unlike others here, I never held the "Los Angeles" name change issue against him -- thought it made better marketing sense and more specifically just restored the name of the franchise asset that Gene Autry got awarded years ago by MLB - specifically - "The Second Los Angeles franchise" for which Autry paid O'Malley dearly for during the early years of the Halos' existence (after the season/ early games at Wrigley Field downtown) for use of Dodger Stadium getting ONLY the game ticket revenue - no concessions, no parking fees etc. But the last few years it has become apparent that sole proprietor Arte with maybe a few limited partners - just can't compete with the corporate conglomerates that own MLB teams -- and it's tough to be competitive with a refusal to extend the payroll beyond the luxury tax thresh-hold. So I just see more of the same with Arte. Ohtani is as good as gone. The. Angels will continue to draw 2.5 million fans (with an also ran team) to 3 million fans (with a playoff contender team) a year and despite the lease fiasco with Anaheim Stadium, it's still a family friendly venue for fans and their families and a nice place to watch a ballgame -- if the Angels win, great. If not, well - it's a nice stadium and fun family time. I think Arte has been stuck on this mindset treadmill the past five seasons or so -- Angels draw well, the team breaks even or better, things are OK -- no playoffs - oh well. No long term stadium deal either (but Arte has tried and it's not his fault Anaheim city government seems to be dysfunctional). The bottom line - I just see more of the same. Hopefully Trout can be healthy and play a full season - and Halos can enjoy the phenomenon that is Ohtani while he's still in an Angels uni. I still find it somewhat incredible that Judge with his 62 plus HRs (and an incredible season for sure) beat out Ohtani for MVP when all Ohtani did was have what is - no doubt - the most incredible statistical season of any MLB player in the history of the game -- with only two players' past seasons coming even close -- Babe Ruth best pitching season with Boston and Ohtani's 2021 season. In almost any other venue other than Anaheim there would have been a full court press media and otherwise push promoting Ohtani for MVP and a lot of disgust when/ if he wasn't properly awarded the MVP award. At a minimum, it was a co-MVP with Judge. Oh well. In recent years after Arte bought the club and while McCourt was busy destroying one of the game's most stable and successful franchises -- the Angels had their best opportunity to finally, fully compete in the greater Southern California market with the Dodgers -- it was a very short/ brief window of time and marketing guy Arte couldn't convert the opportunity into Halo success in the greater Los Angeles / S. California area -- today, the Halos are just as far away from that happening as the team that played in Dodger Stadium all those years ago ceding all the concessions and parking revenue to O'Malley's Dodgers. That's why the potential sale by Arte to a better capitalized/ willing to spend owner looked like the best way forward.

GEEZ -- stupid 'rookie mistake' - perhaps more like the aging veteran hanging around a season too long. Oh well, time for the Angelswin.com PENALTY BOX for me.

lightening strike twice -- probably not.

LOL !! some 25. years on the site and I call it Haloswin.com. Blast away. I deserve all the smack talk coming to me.

Yep - I deserved that !!

Haloswin.com Administrators -- I See that I am classified as a Rookie poster? that's OK, been away with limited posts since the pandemic stuff -- but GEEZ, I go back to the ESPN days. Oh well.

my take on Arte's change of mind re sale of Angels. - he was not getting the potential purchase price number he was seeking. - the uncertainty over the stadium situation with the City of Anaheim has devalued the franchise's value - - there are two other MLB teams up for potential sale right now allowing potential owners willing to buy a team other options WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR THE HALOS FRANCHISE AND FANS? - my take? more of the same. - Ohtani is as good as gone. (did he have a no trade clause ins one year deal?) If Halos can trade him before deadline, they may likely do so - for team that wants an expensive stretch run rental OR to a team that may be able to reach a long term extension deal with him. With Arte and the current financial situation not changing in terms of capitalization of the franchise, I just do not see the financial wherewithal and commitment to do what it takes to sign Ohtani long term. Might as well fit him for Dodger Blue now. - Trout needs a full season with no DL time to determine if he is going to live up to all the career potential numbers hype that has accompanied his significant career numbers to date. But for Trout now what - 8 seasons in - no longer the 'young guy' but a veteran player hopefully in the midst of his productive years and not a guy with injuries cutting his playing time over the rest of his career - 2023 is SHOW ME time. He needs to return to All Star performance numbers with no Injured List (used to be DL) time. Hopefully that will happen. -- Halos need starting pitching (always) but will be and remain (under Arte). unwilling to pay for a top quality rotation guy and will continue with strategy of 1 year. contract guys. (some who perform well, but then move on once they show they can have a decent injury free season). -- Houston wins division by. ten games again, Seattle and Texas battle it for second and expand playoff spot(s). Angels play .450 ball, finish 15 -20 games out and fight Oakland to stay out of last place. -- Angels do draw 2.5 million - not the 3 million that's the preferred number -- but decent enough for the Angels franchise that does not have a long term stadium deal. -- sorry to be pessimistic - or - should I say 'realistic' -- 'realistic' is Arte's decision to sell partly motivated by fact that sole proprietor with some maybe limited partners can't compete financially with the large conglomerate corporations that own MLB teams (Guggenheim) -- that assessment has. not changed -- only thing to change is Arte's willingness to sell (and perhaps an estimate of the tax bite from the state (Taxifornia) and the feds may have had played a role in the decision.

Drury a good bench depth guy -- and he can start at virtually every infield position. he can also DH -- I like this signing - its not the end all but its having a good MIF utility depth guy. He's played well at each of his MLB stops.

The hope is that all the vetting will be completed and that Arte and MLB can get this done. If not before the start of the season then the next target date might be before May 1.