dimitrig

That'll do, pig. That'll do.

very true, and that was preferable to the front office as well. That said, from all accounts the dodgers were gonna match us and anyone else tit for tat to land him. Doubt we were going to be able to outspend them. Grienke is solid as hell, would easily be our number 1, but he wouldve gotten kershaw money if we outspent them. Still better than hamilton obviously, but wed still be square 1 right now...grienke couldnt help freese/joyce/iannetta with their problems at the plate this season.

(If you wouldve said anibal sanchez id agree with you more)

Angels traded for Greinke, though, which is why I bring him up. We gave up assets for the chance to sign him and still couldn't.

The term "impact bat" doesn't hold nearly the same meaning as it once did. Offensive firepower just isn't as abundant anymore, imo. And with all the brilliant minds in baseball, you're lucky to find anyone "undervalued" anymore.

Undervalued just means a guy that his current team doesn't think of as highly as you do. It could be because of crowding at a position or because of financial reasons. The Angels seem bad-to-average at evaluating talent. It's why when guys get here they don't "perform as expected." They probably perform exactly like their old teams expected, just not what the Angels expected. That's the definition of a mediocre front office. The Angels win some trades here and there but their roster (and payroll) are also cluttered with fail - especially when it comes to their track record with free agents. For example, I know pitching isn't our biggest problem but it sure would be nice to have Greinke right now instead of Hamilton's contract.

F'in Stoneman!

The GM generally signs and trades for guys with the assumption they will perform as expected. Unfortunately it seems most have a hard time when they come to Anaheim. I'm sure Dipoto and Scioscia are extremely frustrated by it as well.

The best GMs signs and trades for guys that are undervalued. We haven't had enough of that.

The Hamilton threads will be here until he dives into first base or home plate and tears up a shoulder/thumb/knee, and is gone for three months.

 

You know it's coming at some point. Either that or another relapse.

Good call. Who do you have in the Belmont?

Fat trout

Cal Bears win the Rose Bowl!

Go Bears!

Yes, it was a fluke. Most of us follow the team pretty religiously and I am not sure anyone predicted 98 wins from that group - especially not with Hamilton out of action most of the year and Richards getting hurt. The team performed well above expectations. I mean, Shoemaker? Come on!

That said, they did win all of those games fair and square. Too bad they coughed up a hairball in the playoffs.

Giants won how many titles with pitching and no offense? We're building the team the right way.

here's another thing that baffles me about catchers and how they hit: they look at pitching from the best angle constantly. they know how the ball is going to move, and they should have a huge advantage on what pitch is coming next. why are so many of them such crappy hitters? they have advantages that other players don't have, yet do so little with those advantages. why is that?

Because their catching skills are valued more than their hitting skills. Guys who can't hit can still make it into the majors if they can catch.

Think we can lure Bob Boone out of the front office?

I will always remember that home run! Be well, Kirk!

Are we talking about Trout's first offense? Are you seriously trying to compare Josh's situation to any other player on this club?!

Is it zero tolerance or isn't it?

So if Mike Trout is busted with an ounce of cocaine next week the Angels are going to have a "zero tolerance policy" for this "illegal drug use?"

Bullshit.

I find nothing despicable about it. Hamilton failed to keep himself in playing shape by using street drugs, the possession of which is a felony in every jurisdiction I know of. In short, he committed a crime punishable by imprisonment. For that the Angels are supposed to back him and tell him that it's OK?

 

If players don't sign here because the club has no tolerance for illegal drug use, are those the kind of players we want anyway?

Do you really think no other MLB players (Angels, even) do illegal drugs?

The guy wasn't busted by the cops. He admitted to it.

I wonder how forgiving the author would be if an "admitted addict" he hired to paint his house had a relapse after painting half of one wall and then quit, but expected full payment.

Hamilton hasn't quit MLB AFAIK. At least not yet he hasn't.

A better analogy is that you saw what a poor job the painter had done on the first half so you tell him not to finish the second half but you will only give him half of his pay. You might be justified in doing so but that is the sort of thing that ends up in court for a judge to decide. That is where this thing was headed and so the Angels decided to offer him his salary and send him on his way.

Except that after he got "thrown under the bus" he still got his huge payday. I'd love to be thrown under that bus.

And yes, if he'd been a model player who was actually contributing of course the Angels would be working with him. Why is it bad that they want to rid themselves of somebody who isn't anywhere close to living up to his contact? That makes perfect sense.

He happened to get his payday, but the Angels were trying their best to void the entire thing.

Vernon Wells was an albatross as well, but the Angels did not have an "out" so he was in the lineup sucking every game. 

Maybe they should have hooked him up with some coke.

The reality is that if Hamilton was raking the Angels wouldn't have "zero tolerance" about the relapse, they would be trying to get him help, and they would have been praying MLB did not suspend him. However, because his play has been poor they threw him under the bus and looked for any excuse to rid themselves of him. That's the reality and it is incredibly mercenary even for professional sports.

The Angels made it clear they did not want Hamilton and were trying to void his contract. They pulled no punches. It was pretty despicable the way they went about it. Of course Hamilton had a poor attitude by that point. I worry that it has damaged the organization's reputation in the eyes of players. Maybe the trade to Texas is an attempt to salvage that by giving Hamilton "what he wants."

Low risk deal for Texas. Not sure why the Angels bothered. Almost better to keep him under contract if you are going to pay him $20M/year anyway. Not that he will return to form, but he might... for a divison rival.

Dislike Hamilton, but think the Angels look pretty low class in all of this.

Who appreciates soccer?

 

Other than non-Americans and people who live in the Pacific Northwest?

Are you agreeing with me?

I think baseball is headed toward the same demographic.

You can do well with one pitch in MLB. Ask Mariano Rivera.

Not so much as a starter...

Baseball: Too many games which take too long and are sometimes boring

I say this as a fan. It is a sport that takes some time to appreciate, like soccer.