OT: Los Angeles Angels Talk

[Hockey Duckie]

Best thing about this is he won't be as adverse to trading Eppler prospects since he didn't acquire them and won't be as attached. I was so sick of Eppler never playing to win because he was too scared to take any type of risk, ever. Wouldn't trade any prospects because he didn't think it was worth the risk. Wouldn't give any free agent what they wanted because he didn't think it was worth the risk. It became obvious to me over 2 years ago that we would never go anywhere with him leading the organization because he simply wasn't capable of pulling off the moves the team needed to make to make progress. I imagine Minasian won't be nearly as apprehensive, which I'm looking forward to.

Eppler did trade prospects, a lot of them. Usually its pitching prospects for positional prospects. That's how we landed a few of our players such as Simba and Upton. Eppler also used 2019 first rounder to help shed salary. Eppler's priority in the draft wasn't pitching as he drafted only one pitcher in five drafts in the first round, which happened last year. The consistent thing with Eppler was neglecting pitching, talented pitching.

1st round selections under Eppler

2016: C Matt Thaiss
2017: OF Jo Adell (I actually watched this on the MLB network live! They were raving about Adell like crazy!)
2018: OF Jordyn Adams
2019: SS Will wilson
2020: LHP Reid Detmers​

Eppler traded away 2014's first round selection of LHP Sean Newcomb to land SS Simba. Eppler failed to replace that pitching talent in the system in 2016 by selecting Matt Thaiss' hitting (was never going to be an MLB catcher) in the 1st round and then OF Brandon Walsh in the 2nd round. P Justin Dunn could have been drafted in the first round instead of Matt Thaiss in 2016. In 2018, instead of OF Adams, Eppler could have drafted P Brady Singer. In 2019, instead of SS Wilson, the Angels could have picked up pitching prospects Rutledge, Priester, Thompson, or Kirby.

Eppler's great at collecting big names, but dumpster dived on pitching while trading away pitching. Simba, Upton, Ohtani, and Rendon added to Trout would make one believe the Angels should be in playoff contention.

This team needed pitching instead of hitting. In 2020, we chose 3B Rendon over a starting pitcher. I was having flashbacks of choosing OF Hamilton over P Greinke again. Also, Eppler didn't step up to Arte to shut his mouth so that he could have completed a trade to get P Stripling, OF Pederson, and prospect OF Pages. We could have used Stripling and Pederson this season! Heck, we could have traded Pederson for talent!

Eppler did go "after it", but it was only after positional players or DH (Ohtani). The problem with Eppler's team is his team would give up a ton of runs allowed. The concept of bringing that stat lower was oblivious to him, but also, it might have been under owner Moreno's wheel house of thought too.

As for trading prospects, we don't have much in our system save Jo Adell. To be honest, we're gonna need his cheap salary and high talent because we can't afford much... unless it's for a young, cost controlled pitcher. ::: raising shoulders ::: Recalling Arte thwarting the Stripling, Pederson, and Pages trade just makes me not care much about who our GM is because Arte is our owner, who didn't think walking away from that trade wasn't a mistake. The new guy sounds good, but we still got 'ol Arte.

 

[jiggsawpuzzle35]

Welcome to our new play by play guy.

 

[ReptilianQuack]

I feel like ive been here long enough to admit this now.
Im a die hard Houston Astros fan.

Ducks since 95
Astros since 97

 

[duxfan1101]

I feel like ive been here long enough to admit this now.
Im a die hard Houston Astros fan.

Ducks since 95
Astros since 97

What is your honest opinion of the 2017 Astros team?

(I don't want to start an argument or anything, just genuinely curious)

 

[Hockey Duckie]

I hope Ohtani stays healthy. He had a good outing in his recent pitching stint. Also read his hit over 100 mph. Let's hope so!

 

[ReptilianQuack]

What is your honest opinion of the 2017 Astros team?

No worries Dux.
What we did was wrong.
I still think keeping the Ring is ok.
I feel that we could have lost another 3-1st Round Picks as Punishment. If you wanted punishment for players, you needed them to turn on one another. MLB needed Cooperation and offered immunity.

The Red Sox and Yankees had just been caught cheating in other methods too. So you know many other teams were trying stuff. Hell, the Camera in the outfield/Dugout was available for every team. We werent the only ones using it in some form. No one can be that Naive.

Its best for Baseball we were caught. It probably stopped a lot of bad stuff from going on. But onwards and upwards. MLB is trying their best to keep the Redsox and Yankees stuff quiet in hopes the Black Cloud on Baseball goes Poof. Covid may have helped that.

 

[TheGoodShepard1]

I hope Ohtani stays healthy. He had a good outing in his recent pitching stint. Also read his hit over 100 mph. Let's hope so!

He better. I’m aware that it’s just spring training and they’re probably just working on stuff, but Heaney and Canning look terrible.

Do like the Quintana signing as a nice value bet, surprised he couldn’t get more than an one-year deal, even in this market.

 

[TheGoodShepard1]

Welcome to our new play by play guy.
View attachment 406247

Man, I wish this franchise was as good at evaluating baseball players as they are at finding broadcasters. Big Vasgergian fan, him and Gubicza should have good chemistry from the jump.

 

[jiggsawpuzzle35]

Man, I wish this franchise was as good at evaluating baseball players as they are at finding broadcasters. Big Vasgergian fan, him and Gubicza should have good chemistry from the jump.

Wish the Ducks would replace John Ahlers. No disrespect to him but I’m not a fan. Would rather have our old guy Chris Madsen back.

 

[TheGoodShepard1]

Wish the Ducks would replace John Ahlers. No disrespect to him but I’m not a fan. Would rather have our old guy Chris Madsen back.

Before ESPN landed the NHL again, I actually joked that since Baltimore let him go and the Angels never make the playoffs, Gary Thorne should do baseball from April to September and then just hop on across the street to call Ducks games in his offseason.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

He better. I’m aware that it’s just spring training and they’re probably just working on stuff, but Heaney and Canning look terrible.

Do like the Quintana signing as a nice value bet, surprised he couldn’t get more than an one-year deal, even in this market.

ha. It's only spring training. Ohtani may not be able to pitch well for six innings. I'm still gun shy about Ohtani from last year, but I'm trying to be optimistic. We haven't address our pitching staff well enough on the back end of five consecutive losing seasons of not addressing the pitching staff well enough. We have the top CF and 3B, but we have holes in the outfield, dunno if Upton will be better than last year. We're hoping that Bundy retains his good pitching he discovered last year to be our #1. ::: sighs :::

I gave Eppler a couple of seasons when he first was hired. I'll give Platypus Perry a couple of seasons as well. With a six-man rotation, maybe we can hide our starters deficiencies to get to our improved bullpen. P Detmers is probably two seasons away. We get $30 mil available after this season when Pujols' contract ends. (Arte made out on that deal. $330 mil for a decade of Pujols for $3 bil for a 20-year fox sports west tv contract.)

huh... according to sportrac, the Angels have $20 mil cap space. We won't use it because we would have used it on pitching. LoL Arte... oh Arte.

 

[Big Z Man 1990]

Currently, each of the two leagues in MLB has 15 teams spread from coast to coast. There are two problems with that:

1. Interleague play has to be year-round
2. Because MLB teams have far fewer off days than those in the NBA or NHL, they bear the most brunt from traveling across multiple time zones.

Fortuitously, MLB is looking at expanding to 32 teams, with Montreal and Nashville as front-runners. Another user has proposed a four-league realignment based on baseball history. I took that and tweaked it a little, so here is my version:

American League: Baltimore, Boston, Chicago Sox, Cleveland, Detroit, Kansas City, NY Yankees, Washington
National League: Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati, Miami. Milwaukee, NY Mets, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, St. Louis
Continental League: Atlanta, Houston, Minnesota, Montreal, Nashville, Tampa Bay, Texas, Toronto
Pacific Coast League: Arizona, Colorado, LA Angels, LA Dodgers, Oakland, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle

The AL and NL would now have all their teams in the same cities they had teams in during the 1957 season, the last season MLB was just in the Northeast and Midwest, with one exception: Miami replaces Brooklyn because NYC can't have any more teams. All the AL and NL teams under this alignment are located in the Eastern and Central Time Zones.

The CL and PCL take the 16 remaining teams located in markets that first gained MLB after 1957, the CL (named for the proposed "third major league" of the mid-20th century) having the teams in the Eastern/Central Time Zones and the PCL (named for the now-defunct minor league that once had major league aspirations) has the teams in the Mountain/Pacific Time Zones.

The schedule format I have come up with limits the amount of travel made across the Central/Mountain Time Zone boundary.

Teams in the AL/CL/NL play 126 intraleague games (18 against each opponent), and 36 interleague games (all in 6-game home-and-homes, 30 against teams in ET/CT, 6 against a team in the PCL, 20 matchups of geographic significance would be on the schedule every year).

Teams in the PCL would play 144 intraleague games (21 against 4 opponents, 20 against 3 opponents), and 18 interleague games (one rotating 6-game home-and-home against a team from each of the other three leagues).

Overall, this would heavily increase the amount of games between two teams from California, like the Angels. There would be at least 200 games between California teams on the MLB schedule every year.

 

[KelVarnsen]

Good win to start the year.

Iglesias was pretty filthy closing out the game.

 

[Static]

First opening day win in seven years, yikes.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

I have the MLB tv app, it comes free with the phone. I don't have FSW (Bally's something, something), but I was hoping I could bypass it. Nope. I can only listen to the game live. I can watch it archived, though.

The Angels with a good comeback and we finally have a closer! Raisel's change up is at 89 mph! what?! He made that 9th inning happen quick.

 

[Quack Shot]

Before ESPN landed the NHL again, I actually joked that since Baltimore let him go and the Angels never make the playoffs, Gary Thorne should do baseball from April to September and then just hop on across the street to call Ducks games in his offseason.

Believe Seattle Kraken actually snatched him up

 

[duxfan1101]

Believe Seattle Kraken actually snatched him up

No, the Kraken got John Forslund. Thorne is a free agent, but he did express interest in calling NHL games for ESPN next season.

 

[IDuck]

still early but like the look of the team, seem to be much more scrappy and the revamped bullpin "appears" to look pretty good....like the good mojo going to start the season

 

[Hockey Duckie]

still early but like the look of the team, seem to be much more scrappy and the revamped bullpin "appears" to look pretty good....like the good mojo going to start the season

I love the wins, but iirc we were lucky to have some obvious outs on offense become errors. Hey, I'll take it b/c we're above .500 again. Today, we had good starting pitching with Flexen. Yesterday, not so much from Heaney +. Day before that, Bundy did well. Still early.

 

[duxfan1101]

Ohtani is a freak. Hope he can stay under control on the mound.

 

[SoCal Dreaming]

I watched that HR over and over again. The person calling the game made it even better along with the sound of the bat hitting the ball out.
Pitching wise tho. He still needs some tuning. Too many walks.
Its been awhile since I've been excited to watch Angel's Baseball.

 

[Anaheim4ever]

Ohtani hurt already.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

Ohtani hurt already.

Surprised Maddon didn't pull him when he loaded the bases. I dunno why Maddon didn't. It lead to a wild pitch and then the collision. Maddon isn't thinking the season is 162 games long here.

 

[duxfan1101]

I watched that HR over and over again. The person calling the game made it even better along with the sound of the bat hitting the ball out.
Pitching wise tho. He still needs some tuning. Too many walks.
Its been awhile since I've been excited to watch Angel's Baseball.

Good news for you then. He is the new Angels play by play guy when he isn’t working for ESPN.

 

[IDuck]

well, unlike the ducks the angels found a way to win a game that they were the better team, yet errors kept the other team in and blow a lead in the top of the 9th only to win it in the bottom....wont say the token "sign of good team" just yet, but very good signs in the season opening series against one of the better teams in the AL....look forward to seeing the houston series.