Jeremiah

3 hours ago, Jason said:

That’s because Trout was a great ball player and is a great dude. They have always hated the fact he was with the Angels since day one. 

National writers don’t hate (team name here). It’s always been about how Trout has never been able to play far into the playoffs against the best teams in MLB in the spotlight of a World Series. Name the sport, and you’ll find HOFers who never were able to win the big prize: Marino, Barkley, Stockton/Malone, Ted Willliams, Junior Griffey, and more. I think we as fans, as well as national media, want to see the best face off against the best. The sports leagues want that too. When teams can’t build winners around generational talent, it’s seen as an organizational failure, fairly or not. At least Ted Williams played in one WS. Trout will likely be the greatest MLB player never to play for a championship.

48 minutes ago, Angel Oracle said:

Too much power for the umps union?

That’s part of it, certainly, but the CBA will call for the umps to individually meet certain accuracy thresholds according to StatCast in order to stay off probation. If Hernandez is meeting those, then he can’t be demoted, unfortunately. Another factor is that he has shown himself to generally be a PITA, previously losing a discrimination lawsuit against MLB. Yeah, he lost, but he’s perfectly willing to sue MLB, and baseball probably doesn’t want that headache.

2 minutes ago, T.G. said:

My biggest issue with the umpires is that the bad ones aren’t held accountable. If they would weed out the Angel Hernandez’s of the world, there wouldn’t be as big an outcry for robo umps.

This I would agree with. He and CB Buckner need to go. Generally, if we know the names of the officials, it’s likely they messed up pretty badly.

1 hour ago, Angel Oracle said:

It’s time for robo ball/strike calling, the calls are seemingly the worst they’ve been.

The ball moves too much too quickly nowadays with the spinning.

Also, it was the second time this season both teams are off Thursday, yet it was a day game.   Did something change with the new players union agreement?

I know I’m increasingly in the minority here, but I disagree on robo-umps. The Ump Show gets a lot of play on SportsCenter and social media (some of that is deserved), but the fact is that calling balls and strikes has steadily improved over the past 15 years. In 2022 they were right 92.8% of the time. Last year it was 92.4%. This year, so far, it’s 92.4%, and will likely get better if it follows the trend. I like the human element of calling a game. I don’t think that’s a necessary change.

Wow, they just completely failed on special teams, which had been a strength all season. They seemed very overmatched here, and that’s more coaching and preparation than personnel. I will always think of Blakey as a Kings legend, but I think it’s time for he and Hiller to step aside. Re-sign Q, get a couple of blue liners who can hit, and FFS, can the team get a goalie?

Perhaps a promo where the fans pick the lineup.

10 minutes ago, Chuck said:

 

It works for some guys. Al Hrabosky, Kevin Brown, Kenny Rogers, Todd Stottlemeyre, Robb Dibble, all pitched angrily and pretty successfully.

10 hours ago, BTH said:

Perry spent $34.4M on this group, and they still suck.

Stephenson: $11M

Moore: $9M

Estevez: $6.75M

Garcia: $4.25M

Cisnero: $1.75M

Cimber: $1.65M

Except for Stephenson, there’s still time to improve. That said, it definitely doesn’t look promising right now. I know BPs can be volatile, but this was specified as an area where the team felt they had really improved.

2 hours ago, Jay said:

Damn Minasian needs to spend some time on a treadmill or something.

Same. He probably also works really rough hours, so I get it.

9 hours ago, Blarg said:

Does this make you happy? Because you've spent a lot of time ranting about the same things for the last 3 weeks. 

If you have ideas for more interesting threads, post those.

1 hour ago, Blarg said:

This team was never going to be a pennant winner, probably not even a wild card contender. That's okay by me because what they are is a younger nucleus that, if Moreno doesn't upset it all for quick fixes, will develop into a division winner. But if you are looking for wins this year you may want to change allegiance to another team because this is going to be a rough year.

That’s how I see it as well, as do a number of other posters here. The issue I have is the messaging from the team. Don’t tell me before ST that you’re going to “Run the AL West down,” then later say, “We may not have the best personnel,” and that you hope the fans have patience. It makes it seem like there is miscommunication somewhere along the line. Be clear on what the mission is. Say you’re rebuilding. Sell us on the development of these exciting players.

59 minutes ago, Blarg said:

They are building a roster, not a TrackMan. It doesn't require a physicist to read the data. 

Actually, they’re probably building something similar, and constantly updating it with whatever their proprietary database has collected. Smart teams are doing that anyway, and they guard those databases fiercely. The Cardinals got into trouble a few years ago for hacking into HOU’s database. It sounds like you think it’s all a joke, but science is more and more involved in player development and roster construction every year. People bring up the Phillies as an example of a good organization. Dave Dombrowski may not be a physicist, but his assistant GM has two science degrees, and heads their actual R&D department. The Phillies call their proprietary database “Rocky,” btw. You can bet other orgs have similar FO structures. You can yell at the clouds all you want, but teams need to have a good working knowledge of how to collect, interpret, and communicate this data for the long-term success of their team. Having people on staff with a good grasp of physics is pretty essential now.

It seems like a trade that worked out well for the players involved and both teams. That’s actually kind of a rarity.

22 minutes ago, Blarg said:

We are building rosters, not nuclear warheads.

Physicists have stiudied baseball since, oh, the 1940’s or earlier. TrackMan, Pitch F/X, StatCast, all of these ways of tracking pitching data were developed using physics. It would make sense for baseball teams to employ people who not only understand and use that data, but can also develop their own proprietary ways of measuring pitcher and batter data. Teams employ baseball scientists. They also consult with actual astrophysicists. The sweet spot on a bat, the way a type of pitch moves, all of that is physics. When the AL and NL were separate entities, the each employed a league physicist in the 90’s. I wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss the necessity for a knowledge of physics in baseball.

1 hour ago, Dtwncbad said:

I don’t want any projects.  I would prefer proven performers.  If Moreno being the owner prevents the Angels from hiring someone with a real proven record (or the correct pedigree of front office experience), then I don’t really want to be distracted with the idea of hiring a past player that everybody likes as a consolation prize.

I agree with this. I think it’s long past time to bring in a GM or a PBO who knows how to build a baseball ops department from the foundation up. They also need someone who can work with Arte, and tell him when to just let the baseball people do the baseball things, while Arte and Carpino do the business things. 
 

As for Hunter, I’m glad he’s back in the organization. I think he’s best utilized as a voice and mentor in the clubhouse. I think he has a lot wisdom to offer the team’s young core.

31 minutes ago, Blarg said:

So what kind of fine would be appropriate for making a stupid premise thread? Make your check payable to Chuck Richter. 

Perhaps the best “fine” would be not posting in it, which makes it more visible. Ignoring it allows it to be buried under threads you find more interesting.

I would imagine that the Angels still have a kangaroo court where players are fined for various in-game offenses, such as lead off walks, or being thrown out on the base paths. The fines often go to funding team activities on the road, the batboys/clubhouse staff, or local charities. Teams already have ways of dealing with things like that by making it more of a teachable moment than something so punitive.

1 hour ago, Angels 1961 said:

This team is really bad. I wonder where do they go from here. Who do u trade maybe Ward maybe Detmers. Other value on team a few BP pieces but they are just rentals. Feel bad Washington at his age with a team this bad. Nothing in minors to bring up and help and poor Trout stuck with this team for another what 6 or 7 years. 

I agree that it’s time to rebuild. As IP said in another thread, they’re “rebuilding-ish,” right now. That said, young, cost-controlled SP is essential. I think Detmers is a guy the team should build around. Trading Ward and Anderson should definitely be explored when the deadline comes around, as those are most likely going to be their best trading chips.

1 hour ago, T.G. said:

Trout continuing to lead off is not a good thing, IMO. 

Who would you put in that spot?

2 hours ago, T.G. said:

You've already been warned. Don't even.

What did he say that was wrong? I’m always curious as to where the lines are drawn.

25 minutes ago, Jason said:

Is it even possible that Minasian has had a lot of restraints placed in him by Arte? 

I think that’s very likely given that Arte hires inexperienced FO executives. We’ll never know for certain, but I would think the decision to keep Ohtani was Arte, as was a directive to add at the last trade deadline. Arte is a marketing and advertising guy. He wants eyeballs on the screen and people in the seats. That can sometimes be at odds with the necessary growing pains of building a sustainable farm system to feed the MLB team. I think Arte’s sudden about face on selling the team hampered Perry’s managerial search, which lead to the lame-duck Nevin season. It looks like this season is finally one where Perry was more or less in the driver’s seat. It’s probably the first real one fans can grade him on. None of this is to defend Perry, per se. His signings were probably his choices, and what he brought to ownership. I just doubt he’s had much free reign.

9 minutes ago, Angel Oracle said:

From what I saw on the internet about this injury, plus my stay at a Holiday Inn Express, it seems like he would be out for 2-3 months?

Healing from a tear of any kind can be hard to predict. It definitely could be some time before he’s in game shape again.

That sucks. His bat was starting to come around. This team really needs more infield depth.

46 minutes ago, Angelsfan1984 said:

I think he really believes that somehow talking about it relentlessly will create a form of credibility…when in reality he’s just a troll on the interwebs with absolutely nothing better to do. @Stradling can we have this as a pinned topic…on the 14th page?

There’s nothing requiring anyone to engage with this post. He presented a topic. Discussing it is not required of anyone who doesn’t like said topic.