ettin

As a confidence builder I'm glad to see him putting up spectacular numbers. The clear obvious warning sign is that .476 BABIP which is clearly inflating his numbers. But at a more normal BABIP (.300) what does he look like? I suspect it's still good, perhaps something like .280/.370/.500???? Glad to see he's making an impact though for sure. I hope this bodes well for next year. It would certainly be nice to see him blossom even if it is to eventually be traded due to the logjam on the big league roster.

Actually I think we can get more than that for Kendrick and Iannetta. If we don't ask for Sanchez (who is in A ball anyway and won't help the big league club for probably 2 years) I imagine we could pry Marcus Stroman (AA) and Sean Nolin (AAA/Majors) along with Casey Janssen and maybe even a 4th prospect. If we sent Kevin Jepsen (cheaper reliever with probably two more "value" years of control) too I don't see why we couldn't acquire another reliever type like John Stilson (I'm not a big fan of Jepsen and think he needs a change of scenery but this last part is more personal opinion). Stroman and Nolin would give us two starting pitchers. Nolin, a back-end-of-the-rotation type, could even be inserted in the rotation next season if a Vargas re-signing proves difficult for some reason. Stroman could continue to develop in the minors (and serve out his banned substance suspension) and has the ceiling of a #2/#3 type. A trade like this would allow us to move Trumbo for another starting pitcher to give us even more depth. This would allow us to focus more of our actual dollars on one decent SP whether it is Tanaka, Vargas, or someone else.

C.J. Cron, Solar Sox: 34 PA's, .414/.471/.759/1.230, .476 BABIP Discuss!

As I mentioned in a previous article, prior to the trade deadline, the idea of a S-C-I-O-S-C-I-A trade to the Dodgers wasn't that far fetched. However, it seems all but dead now that Mattingly's option vested and the Angels officially announced Mike's return for 2014 so talking about it further seems moot.

Agreed. Iannetta does have value based on his reasonable contract although I'm not sure it is enough for a young starter but you never know what kind of sales job Dipoto pulls (or alternatively Anthro pulls).

So it would be really extraordinary if it happened! You like correcting me don't you? This is what happens when I rapidly check the message board from work, sigh. I sometimes grab the FanGraphs Top 15 Prospect Lists and forget that players have been traded in the interim since those lists were created. Oops.

There are a lot of low budget catchers who can hit LHP and could act as a backup? Not sure what you are referring to in particular regarding Conger's history but he is young, athletic and could play the position for 90+ games and the remainder to the backup?

I'd be pretty happy if we could acquire Noah Syndergaard (Edit: Forgot Noah was traded, make this Aaron Sanchez) and another pitcher whether it was Casey Janssen, as a closer, or one of their other pitching prospects such as Aaron Sanchez (unlikely), Sean Nolin, or perhaps Marcus Stroman for Howie Kendrick and Chris Iannetta. A 2 for 2 swap as long as we are getting elite-type prospects/established MLB closer, etc.

Circle there is absolutely no reason the Angels couldn't simply sign a low-budget catcher to replace Iannetta. Conger can take the lion's share (approximately 90-100 games) of the catching duties and we sign a right handed hitting catcher who can hit LHP pitching well. We don't have to settle for Hester.

On the serious side Iannetta for Casey Janssen would be a fantastic idea. Casey has a $4 million dollar option that the Jays will pick up but they have room to move a reliever. Janssen is a closer and would be an instant, serious upgrade to our bullpen.

Well frankly the advanced stats loved him and he had a really good K/9 rate in the 12-13 range so I'd really like to see him back with the team.

Also in a few years the Dodgers will be so broke with all of their contracts they won't have a fountain to piss in.

Well Coello chose to go to free agency. We can't stop him from doing that and he will get interest from a lot of teams. I really can't blame him for doing so but I do hope we make an attempt to resign him.

Saw this posted on MLBTradeRumors a little while ago. I didn't realize he was eligible to elect FA but apparently under Article XX(D), he did. I hope we get him back!

Interesting!

AO, It really wouldn't surprise me if the FO decides at some point in time between now and the start of the 2014 season to try and sneak Carson down as depth. There is nothing wrong with this strategy and frankly he could be a Scott Downs type of LOOGY specialist based on his 2012-2013 Minor League splits. He is only 23. Be patient my friend.

Also the following: 1) He has a good, solid pitching frame that scouts like/love. 2) He is a left-handed pitcher which has a bit more value. 3) He is only 23 years old 4) His 2012-2013 Minor League career numbers show a decent platoon split vs. left-handed hitters, making him a possible LOOGY specialist. 5) We have plenty of room on the 40-man at the moment so there is no reason to not give him a look. 6) The front office may be looking to outright him down at an appropriate time to provide depth for the Major League club. 7) Moves like this are usually about depth not finding our next starting 3B or closer. He is a potential Scott Downs type replacement.

When they do they can celebrate, together, in a champagne bubble bath. It would be especially enjoyable if they won a difficult away game, that way Napoli can say Lackey was road hard and put away wet.

I would prefer to have been a fly on the FSW Girls.

I hear his brother Bruce is a pitcher with a high leg kick.

Your timing is as 'E'mpeccable as always.....

Claude I would encourage you to stay and continue to post. I've found myself, at times, wanting to fold it up myself, particularly after I write an article for the site or make a post and it gets lambasted..... sometimes for good reasons, sometimes for bad reasons. Sometimes it's hard to not take it personally especially in a medium (essentially posted e-mail) that doesn't easily convey emotions between the two parties speaking (use your emoticons dammit people!). A message board has a lot of people with different personalities and not everyone is going to agree with your point of view on any particular issue. I'd love for everyone to agree with me (and they should! ) but that is not the case. I really hope you reconsider Claude as we need passionate Angels fans with varying points of view who believe in the team. It is what helps to make AW.com an enjoyable place to visit in good times and a place to help drown your sorrows in bad times. AO is holding up the C and I will hold up the L

Yes it is way to young.... RIP

I have to agree with Tank here. Jered is as good as any pitcher in the game in his ability to mix pitches and keep batters guessing. Sure his stuff has slowed down a bit but when you can throw a 90 mph fastball and then throw a 69 mph curve out of the same arm slot and with the same look coming out of your hand Jered can be like Cartman and say, "Whatever! I do what I want!". Weaver has the heart of a competitor and the skills to back it up. There are others who throw harder and some that have elite velocity but there aren't as many pitchers out there that are as intelligent on the mound, come in with a game plan, and attack each hitter.

On top of that he was injured. I still don't understand dropping Vlad for Matsui, it goes down as a big blunder by the front office, imho. Couldn't ask for a more humble player in your dugout.