beatlesrule

I have stated this before but I just don't understand this way of thinking. Ohtani is not going to be able to sustain 2 positions at an elite level for the next 8 years or whatever. I'll be surprised if he's still an All Star 2 way player in 3 years. He is not worth 50 million a year for 8 years.

Has your mind changed? Here's the latest billionaire to inquire on the Angels

Has your mind changed? Here's the latest billionaire to inquire on the Angels

Eric 6:37 Does the sale of the Angles occur before Ohtani hits free agency? If so, does the potential of Joe Lacob buying the team bode well for the Angels retaining Ohtani since Lacob has shown that money is no object in building a roster. He could become the "Uncle Steve" of the West Coast.   Mark P 6:38 It seems like the Angels will have the sale finalized well before the end of the season, barring something very unexpected.  

And while I can understand why LAA fans would be excited about Lacob, his strategy with the Warriors and his strategy with the Angels might differ greatly, just based on the differing financial factors that go into the two sports.   Angels Front Office 6:42 Are we giving serious thought to Wacha?   Mark P 6:43 Nothing linking the two sides thus far.  The Angels have enough rotation options already that I'm not sure Wacha would be a big need for them, since he isn't necessarily a substantial upgrade over their current pitchers   Shohei Othani 8:11 Where will I be the best player ever to play the game next year?   Mark P 8:12 At this very moment, my guess is that the Dodgers sign Ohtani to a record contract.  Obviously a ton can happen between now and next offseason, chief among them the Angels getting a new owner who likely wouldn't want to see Ohtani walk out the door in their first season with the team

Let's look position by position. Fangraphs Projected WAR in Parentheses.
SP) Rangers (15.6), Angels (12.8), Astros (12.4), Mariners (11.5), A's (6.3). 
RP) Mariners (4.2), Astros (3.5), Rangers (2.0), A's (1.8), (Angels (0.7).
C) Mariners (4.3), Rangers (4.1), A's (3.5), Angels (3.3), Astros (1.8). 
1B) Rangers (3.1), Mariners (2.9), Astros (2.6), A's (1.5), Angels (1.4).
2B) Astros (4.5), Rangers (3.9), Mariners (3.0), A's (2.8), Angels (2.2).
SS) Rangers (5.0), Mariners (3.3), Astros (2.8),  Angels (2.5), A's (2.3).
3B) Astros (5.2), Angels (3.7), Mariners (2.7), A's (2.4), Rangers (2.1).
LF) Astros (4.6), Angels (2.6), A's (2.2), Mariners (1.8), Rangers (1.1). 
CF) Mariners (5.8), Angels (5.5), A's (2.7), Astros (2.2), Rangers (2.1). 
RF) Astros (5.5), A's (2.6), Mariners (2.4), Angels (2.3), Rangers (1.6). 
DH) Angels (3.3), Astros (3.1), Mariners (1.4), A's (1.1), Rangers (0.7).
 
A couple of things jump out. 1) With a Healthy Mike Trout, the Angels will get 2-3 more WAR out of the position than the Mariners get out of Julio Rodriguez. Rodriguez is a good CF defensively, but they're actually projecting a relatively healthy Trout with 634 PA, and he's only getting 5.5 WAR? Um...no. 2) Ward is gonna be better than projected in LF. 3) Walsh if healthy pushes the Angels up near the top two at that position too. 4) Wow is the Angels pen bad. 5) Rangers rotation is great, if healthy. 

The division is gonna be much closer than in years past. I wouldn't be surprised to see 4 teams above 84 wins, and 3 of them could be at 90. 
 
 
 
 

Has your mind changed? Here's the latest billionaire to inquire on the Angels

All trades are rooted in financial considerations. They only differ based on the individual teams go to business strategies.
Billy Beane is the ultimate buy low, sell high guy. It's what he does. He even makes it his message in his corporate speaking appearances. The A's traded Murphy because they have options at catcher that cost less. 
Anthopoulos traded for Murphy and did what he does - he locked up Murphy for his age 28-33 seasons, 6 years for an AAV of $12M.
Both teams saved money working within their corporate strategies.
The same principles were in play in the Renfroe trade. The Brewers could obviously afford him but they will have Tyrone Taylor (4 years of control) and Garrett Mitchell (6 years of control), two local guys, in their OF this year.

And his accuser is a flat out liar.

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/01/phillies-tigers-agree-to-trade-for-gregory-soto.html
Salary dump? How about the trades that have happened between the last post I made and this post? See, talent exchanging trades are alive and well. To say they never happen in the offseason is just wrong.

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/01/mlbtr-poll-american-league-west-favorite.html
Los Angeles Angels – 2022 record: 73-89, projected 2023 fWAR: 40.4
The Angels have continued to disappoint despite having two of the best players on the planet on their roster. That was the case again in 2022, as Mike Trout was limited by injury to just 119 games but still produced 6.0 fWAR while Shohei Ohtani produced 3.8 fWAR at the plate and 5.6 on the mound. Still, the club fell out of contention in the summer and never really made it back.
Despite years of falling short of expectations, there are reasons to think 2023 could actually be the year they deliver. They didn’t lose any key contributors to free agency, with players like Michael Lorenzen and Matt Duffy marking some of the most notable departures. They’ve also patched some of the holes that have caused their ship to sink in past years, as a lack of adequate depth has continually wasted the star performances at the top of the roster.
Starting pitching has long been a struggle for the club but the rotation seems like it could be in the best shape in years. 2022 saw encouraging developments from Patrick Sandoval, Reid Detmers and José Suarez, all of whom are slated to return to the club this year. The Halos also supplemented that group by signing Tyler Anderson away from the Dodgers. That gives them a solid front five with Tucker Davidson, Griffin Canning and Chase Silseth on hand as depth options. On the position player side, they’ve added Hunter Renfroe, Brandon Drury and Gio Urshela. Those aren’t stars, but the Angels already had stars. They needed adequate role players to supplement their stars and seem to have added some solid options.

According the Fa graphs depth chart and ZIPS projections, here's a brief history for the Angels
2016 Projected 79 wins, actual 74 wins

2017 Projected 79 wins, actual 80 wins

2018 Projected 84 wins actual 80 wins

2019 Projected 81 wins, actual 72 wins

2020 Projected 30 wins, actual 26 wins

2021 Projected 84 wins, actual 77 wins

2022 Projected 81 wins, actual 73 wins.
If we could all take off our Homer glasses for just one second, we could see that the Angels underperform their projection, pretty much every single season. If FG projects 85 wins, it's more likely going to be 80. If they project 90, it's more like 85. 
You can call me a pessimist all you want, but me saying 85 wins sounds about right, is even too optimistic given recent history.
The Angels have some bright spots right now, and I like what Perry is trying in his effort to build a winner, retain Ohtani and keep his job.... But realistically, there's nothing that sets this team apart as a surefire playoff team. There isn't, and that's just the truth. 
Can they make the playoffs with this roster? Yes. Will they? Maybe. I'd say it's a toss up. But all these posters predicted 90 wins or whatever else. It's just nonsense. 

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/01/how-al-teams-have-addressed-their-weakest-positions-of-2022.html
Angels (First Base, -1.0 bWAR😞 The top-heavy Angels are known for superstars Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout, but the club also had sub-replacement production at a whopping five positions.  First base was the lowest of the bunch, as Jared Walsh struggled through a rough season that was cut short by thoracic outlet syndrome surgery.  While Walsh is expected to be ready for Spring Training, the Halos picked up some depth and insurance by acquiring Gio Urshela from the Twins and signing Brandon Drury, either of whom could see action at first base when not playing elsewhere around the diamond.

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/01/how-al-teams-have-addressed-their-weakest-positions-of-2022.html
Angels (First Base, -1.0 bWAR😞 The top-heavy Angels are known for superstars Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout, but the club also had sub-replacement production at a whopping five positions.  First base was the lowest of the bunch, as Jared Walsh struggled through a rough season that was cut short by thoracic outlet syndrome surgery.  While Walsh is expected to be ready for Spring Training, the Halos picked up some depth and insurance by acquiring Gio Urshela from the Twins and signing Brandon Drury, either of whom could see action at first base when not playing elsewhere around the diamond.

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/01/how-al-teams-have-addressed-their-weakest-positions-of-2022.html
Angels (First Base, -1.0 bWAR😞 The top-heavy Angels are known for superstars Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout, but the club also had sub-replacement production at a whopping five positions.  First base was the lowest of the bunch, as Jared Walsh struggled through a rough season that was cut short by thoracic outlet syndrome surgery.  While Walsh is expected to be ready for Spring Training, the Halos picked up some depth and insurance by acquiring Gio Urshela from the Twins and signing Brandon Drury, either of whom could see action at first base when not playing elsewhere around the diamond.

Angels1961 4:12 Who will be closer for Angels next season?   Anthony Franco 4:12 Probably Carlos Estévez   David 4:12 What else will it take for the Angels to overtake enough of the AL West and at a minimum secure a wild card spot?   Anthony Franco 4:13 Division is pretty strong, especially with Texas making such a good push. On paper I don't think they're that far from Wild Card range right now though   4:14 Could use another back-end starter in the Wacha mold, maybe another middle innings type with some upside. Obviously a lot with the Angels is going to be contingent on the health of their stars in any year, but this is the best I've felt about their roster in quite some time. They've done a lot to address the lack of position player depth that hurt them the past few seasons  

Angels1961 4:12 Who will be closer for Angels next season?   Anthony Franco 4:12 Probably Carlos Estévez   David 4:12 What else will it take for the Angels to overtake enough of the AL West and at a minimum secure a wild card spot?   Anthony Franco 4:13 Division is pretty strong, especially with Texas making such a good push. On paper I don't think they're that far from Wild Card range right now though   4:14 Could use another back-end starter in the Wacha mold, maybe another middle innings type with some upside. Obviously a lot with the Angels is going to be contingent on the health of their stars in any year, but this is the best I've felt about their roster in quite some time. They've done a lot to address the lack of position player depth that hurt them the past few seasons  

Angels1961 4:12 Who will be closer for Angels next season?   Anthony Franco 4:12 Probably Carlos Estévez   David 4:12 What else will it take for the Angels to overtake enough of the AL West and at a minimum secure a wild card spot?   Anthony Franco 4:13 Division is pretty strong, especially with Texas making such a good push. On paper I don't think they're that far from Wild Card range right now though   4:14 Could use another back-end starter in the Wacha mold, maybe another middle innings type with some upside. Obviously a lot with the Angels is going to be contingent on the health of their stars in any year, but this is the best I've felt about their roster in quite some time. They've done a lot to address the lack of position player depth that hurt them the past few seasons