ettin

My first thought was that was Brandon Marsh, lol. EDIT: Clearly I wasn't the only one, from the above, ha!

Sloppy second's only, Doc.

Yeah, saying something like that is not an inspiring confidence booster. He should keep that type of thought to himself, probably. It's one thing to take responsibility, but you don't have to voice every single thing out loud.

Totally agree with the optics and perception part, here. I have to think the sudden decline in velocity played into this decision, though. Perhaps the Angels had serious reason to believe Iglesias was a red flag type of player, after the signing, that was making him a lot more riskier to carry on the roster.

Why would Noah not be back next year? He is a free agent and the Angels will probably still need pitching, it is still a possibility.

Doesn't this help free up payroll to extend Ohtani?

Moving Marsh took me by surprise, that's all. If that Dodger catcher had been Keibert Ruiz, I would have done cartwheels!

MLBTR is quite often not the source of a lot of their posts, they typically reference the beat writers in their posts, so what is the issue? I simply relayed their own title, word for word.

So, typically, I am not a fan of acquiring catching prospects. The position requires a lot of repetitions to learn and it seems, more often than not, that the learning curve takes years. That being said, it sounds like O'Hoppe is a hard worker and if Minasian really is trying to upgrade clubhouse chemistry, it sounds like this guy could help with that in addition to the potential he brings on both offense and defense. Surprised the Angels cut loose on Marsh, I thought he brought some good energy to the clubhouse, but clearly Ward has established himself as an everyday player in one of the corner OF spots and if the front office wants to keep Trout in CF or move him to LF, Adell has the tools and range to play CF. Surprising move, nevertheless, wasn't quite expecting Marsh to get moved.

Oh wow.

I am not opposed to the thought of trying to extend Syndergaard, but finances, particularly if the Angels are serious about an Ohtani extension, could stand in the way. And Syndergaard has had a value-added season with a 3.83 ERA, so Minasian should be asking for a solid return and rightfully so. It should bring us back one good prospect plus 1-2 additional guys, I think.

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2022/08/blue-jays-interested-in-raisel-iglesias.html Blue Jays have also been attached to Noah Syndergaard, as well. What do you think the Angels could acquire if they moved both players?

2019 Angelswin.com Primer Series: Second Base "Certainly the Angels could elect to have Zack play 3B again and acquire another 2B or give someone like Fletcher (elite defense), Jones (very athletic with high ceiling), or Rengifo (good defense with potentially better offense) a shot but that is placing a big burden on those players who have had minimal (David) or no (Jahmai and Luis) experience at the Major League level."

Someone may have mentioned this already, but I wonder if, what may have looked, initially, like a career-ending type of injury to Mike Trout, led to shopping Ohtani around in the first place? One may have nothing to do with the other. Personally, I still think the Angels should do everything in their power to extend Ohtani, but that is a big commitment of money and if they thought their other elite blue-chip player might be out of the remainder of his career, it could have led to a discussion of a reboot versus going further all-in on 2023 and beyond.

I am going to go out on a limb, here. @Lou will hold me to account. The Angels would be idiots to trade Ohtani, unless he refuses to sign an extension. They have an opportunity to lock in an ace-level starting pitcher, who can also hit pretty damn well for essentially the remainder of his career. There have been no obvious red flags that Shohei does not like it here in Anaheim. The Angels will do everything in their power to lock him up this off-season and put this nonsense to rest. Every big contract has risk built in and as long as Perry and his staff are doing their job and can reach an extension deal that pays Shohei and mitigates some of the risk, then this is a no-brainer of a move. Currently, Trout is running a 167 wRC+ in 2022, despite all of the bullshit of this season. Ohtani is running a pristine, ace-level ERA of 2.80 and a superb 131 wRC+ on the batting side. This is a pair of elite-level baseball stars and you already have one locked up, the Angels would be fools, in my humble opinion, to not lock the other one up, too, particularly because they NEED good pitchers. I am a glass half-full kind of person and despite the train wreck this season has turned into, I am still a glass half-full person about the Angels 2023 season and beyond. They have a lot of interesting names, players, and prospects that could help fill out those squads. I've probably said this same thing a lot in the last handful of years, but I am doubling down again. This team is just not THAT bad talent-wise and if they extend Ohtani there is a bright future in front of them, I think. If Ohtani refuses to sign an extension, then so be it, trade him for the best package you can get, but I think he knows that Anaheim offers him a lot with teammates that want to win and my impression is that he would not mind staying. All that being said the dysfunction of Arte Moreno in baseball business ("The Big Splash" guy) has been consistently troubling over his entire tenure and has resulted in cash outlays that have heavily burdened this franchise, despite whatever amount was offset by "putting butts in the seats", but I believe Ohtani is a positive exception to this approach. Keeping fan interest is certainly a key in his marketing strategy and let us not forget that Moreno has consistently funded a high payroll for this team since he took over, despite the positives and negatives of how that money was used and applied. His ability to churn through General Manager's has also not been a highlight for him as an owner and I can only hope that Perry Minasian can pull out some of that magic (our recent draft?) and start finding better diamonds in the rough out there that can add and supplement the core players of next year's squad. Our Minor League farm system investments feel like a joke overall, although I certainly have little insight into the expenditures there, but it feels like we have eliminated scouts in favor of technology (not necessarily a bad thing but you do lose insight into the "intangibles" of a player/prospect), we don't focus on creating the best "product" through programs that provide proper nutrition, diet, social acclimation skills (language, social skills), and all of the other "peripheral" skills that allow a prospect to focus primarily and best on baseball activities. This is an investment in a human being that you hope to have parading around your ballpark one day raising a championship banner and you can't make a modest investment in them to help pull out the best that they have to give on a baseball field? It has to be a fraction of the price you spend at the Major League level, so why is this such a difficulty? I find myself digressing, but Ohtani needs to stay in an Angels uniform. From a marketing perspective, this is gold for Moreno, and finding an appropriate number for Shohei to sign should not be too big of an obstacle, unless something has soured him so bad that he doesn't want to stay or his demand is just so outrageously high that it busts all of the contract models.

AJ, @tdawg87 wants to immolate you when he grows up.... so you don't need to worry.

We said the same things about Weaver and Trout, so really just be patient, ffs. If he has not signed by Opening Day 2023, that is when the worry should set in, the Angels have enough free payroll to make this happen and I think Arte would be a fool to not pursue this, presuming Ohtani feels the same way.

@tdawg87likes any player with the word "Tuck" in their name.

I really like this pick, particularly in the 3rd round, this has a lot of risk, but a lot of upside, particularly if he can start.

It would not be shocking to see Scott Boras whispering in Soto's ear, "Just wait until you hit free agency, just think you could crest $500M with the Yankees.... wait... wait... WAIT!"

The Angels should certainly inquire, but we would have to empty part of our Major League roster and our farm to even have a chance. Names like Adell, Sandoval, Detmers, Marsh, Paris, Bachman, Guzman, et al. would all have to be in the conversation and even then I think we fall woefully short in the quality over quantity conversation.

So I do believe this, when it comes to Trout, but this was also a similar argument that was made prior to extending Albert Pujols (which I think was, in hindsight, a mistake for a 1B/DH type of player).

Frankly, we need to see how the team plays through the rest of July. If they go on a winning streak and improve from their current 5% chance of a Wild Card slot, it would not be unsurprising to see them turn around and become buyers, possibly. Really just depends on where they are at in 3 weeks. Beyond that you don't tear it all down. You don't move Iglesias whom you just signed to a multi-year deal, that is counter-productive in all likelihood. You just don't blow it up, you continue to build forward, which this team needs and can accomplish. If we end up as sellers, you simply move the short-term assets only. Then in the off-season if you have an opportunity to upgrade, then you might move one or more longer-term assets for an established, productive player. Extend Ohtani and do the other things that will make the Angels contenders in 2023 and beyond. Personally, Ward has shown great bat production and hasn't overly hurt in the outfield. Adell would be fantastic depth so do you move one of them or do you keep both? Are there other ways to upgrade pitching for example? Lots of permutations and I am not sure we need to make drastic changes to achieve our goals. Everyone likes the fun thought process of making a big trade, but I think the Angels need to be really shrewd and careful about what they move and why.

(References last year's Angelswin.com prospect ranking list).... So you're saying there's a chance! YESSSSS!!!!