Good morning Angels fans, how have you been? Enjoying Spring Training? Have some links!
Angels News
The Angels won yesterday, rocking the Rockies… like a hurricane. Let’s hope the team isn’t a one hit wonder.
No game today, it is an off day. Sigh…
Seems like the opening day roster is still uncertain. 2B is a multi way battle as Fletcher seems to be the SS now.
First base is getting crowded, as not only is Justin Upton looking to play there, but so is Taylor Ward? Um, Walsh is still the guy at 1B, right?
Thor won’t be on an innings limit. Really seems like Maddon is all caution thrown out the window, huh.
Around Baseball
So, True Blue LA Via SB Nation Via Vox fired Blake Harris, the guy who also ran Halos Heaven after we were all fired. Which means that SB Nation really botched this whole revamp thing huh?
Trevor Bauer is now suing the Athletic for Defamation. Right, yeah, that won’t end well. He is not coming back any time soon, if at all.
Wait what, Cleveland is actually keeping Jose Ramirez? Is this real life?
Apple officially gets 12 straight weeks of doubleheader baseball. Yet another service to subscribe to…
Mets Season Tickets are really something special. Anyone know how the Angels compare?
City Connect schedule is here. The Angels are on it.
Evan Longoria is getting hand surgery. Ow.
Anything I missed? Post below for upvotes!
Before Wrigley Field, the LA Angels of the PCL played at Washington Park
https://twitter.com/OldLAPhotos/status/1509186293175136258
today’s view
https://www.google.com/maps/place/S+Hill+St+%26+W+Washington+Blvd,+Los+Angeles,+CA+90015/@34.0319793,-118.2665264,3a,77.5y,326.34h,89.93t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sgOLoQ7vFT71XdTtstTgJgg!2e0!7i16384!8i8192!4m5!3m4!1s0x80c2c7c52fa0f4df:0x3c236baad4f71812!8m2!3d34.0320623!4d-118.2667044?hl=en-us
When we extend Joe or hire the next guy.
https://twitter.com/FarmToFame_/status/1508786449566642189?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1508786449566642189%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sbnation.com%2F2022%2F3%2F29%2F23001699%2Fjapanese-baseball-manager-big-boss-hovercraft-video
Ha ha ha. This is awesome.
Shinjo was on the 2002 SFG team that we beat in the World Series.
Yes, I believe he was the second to last out before we clinched. Percy struck him out.
Yes, he was. I remember that it was a deep shot to the outfield and I was worried it was going out.
I was in RF View Level standing up. I was incredibly nervous when Percy put base runners on… But when he struck out Shinjo to make it two outs I knew he would do it. After that strike out I jumped in the air with my arms raised and shouted.
That’s right. The shot I was worried about wound up going foul. Thank you.
The team is 0-5 since opening day and the haters are starting to go all over the place.
I actually have started rooting for this guy so that baseball can occasionally have this kind of fun.
My two boys who barely care about baseball, have asked to put baseball on TV for the first time to see Big Boss lol.
A reminder to everyone here, WordPress thinks Twitter links without any comments are spam, and as such will usually need to be approved.
So, please comment as well if you don’t like waiting for it to be approved.
https://twitter.com/jimcallisMLB/status/1509283851675344917?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1509283851675344917%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fbleacherreport.com%2Flos-angeles-angels
A move like this could turn his pitching career into Overdrive.
Just so long as he doesn’t take a Turner for the worst.
Definitely if he keeps taking care of business.
You thought he had a blazing fastball? If he gets a good change, you know you know you know you know you just ain’t seen n-n-n-nothin’ yet.
We definitely need him to be a starter, more than reliever
AND I’M TOTALLY WILLING TO WAIT IF THAT’S WHAT IT WILL TAKE!!!
Yes I’d rather have a 20 game winner more than a 50 game saver.
💪 💪 💪 💪 👈
amusing writeup about Albert today.
The headline: “Pujols singles in return to diamond with Cards”
The article: “In Pujols’ first at-bat against Nationals right-hander Aníbal Sánchez, the bases were loaded when Pujols grounded into a double play, though Dylan Carlson scored on the play to give St. Louis a 1-0 lead. An inning later, Pujols popped up to third baseman Maikel Franco with two runners on base.”
finally….”It was two innings later, with right-hander Austin Voth on the mound, when Pujols notched his first hit of the spring, singling to right field before being replaced by pinch-runner Mack Chambers”, for which he got a standing ovation.
in other news of interest, Seattle is supposedly looking to trade for Montas.
Same as it ever was.
This is not my beautiful house!
Where is that large automobile?
Letting Big Al’s contract go by, let the weight of his contract hold us down
Into the black again, after the money’s gone..
Same as it ever was, same as it ever was, same as it ever was, same as it ever was
had a very productive first 4 yrs with us.
The 75 yr old Oligarch was at fault to anoint him with a 10 yr deal so that he could continue his quest for 700 hrs even if he was 100 yrs old and .101.
The 10 best bullpens in baseball, ranked
https://www.mlb.com/news/best-mlb-bullpens-2022
#28 FARM SYSTEM IN MLB
The 75 yr old Oligarch/GM/POBO lives on!!!
😣 😢 😩 😡
Where’s V Stiviano when you need her?
💪 💪 💪 👈
Speaking of the Clippers, Why can’t Arte be more like the new Owner?
He’s supposed to throw chairs… but then I guess Bobby Knight had that gig wrapped up.
Perry was part of building a really strong bullpen in Atlanta. He seems to be doing the same here.
And with Luke Murphy and a couple other draftees from last year plus guys like Wantz and Buttrey, there could be a decent amount of depth developing.
Speaking of Buttrey….Update?
Not much news on him, haven’t seen him pitch.
We exchanged texts early in spring training. He was happy to be back.
I know the Angels have 30 days to add him to the 40 man or release him. That should be up in another week or two.
I’m rooting for him.
Bachman, Bush and Buttrey. Killer B’s.
And Nathan Burns too?
Just talking some Baseball here. I think that our basic line up is really one of the best in the League right now.
Ohtani
Fletcher
Trout
Rendon
Walsh
Adell
Duffy/Mayfield
Stassi
Marsh.
Power-speed-OBP = Winning Line-up….. Maybe I am more than a little biased.
Looking good line-ups are Tampa Bay, Boston, Toronto. White Sox, Twins, Seattle, Asstros.
NL, Dodgers, Braves, Phillies, Brewers, Cards, Giants, and Padres.
or?
Ohtani
Marsh
Trout
Rendon
Walsh
Adell
Stassi
Duffy/Mayfield
Fletcher.
I don’t like Ohtani leading off on days he pitches. Seems like it could be a bit taxing to walk from the mound to the batter’s box.
Agree. In fact, I am not crazy about Ohtani hitting on days he pitches in general. Anything that takes away his focus from the mound when he is pitching is not good.
No way you bat Marsh 2nd with our lineup. It is too important a spot and he is essentially unproven.
What! no game today! No game today! Those nice young men in their clean white coats are coming to take ME away! No game today! I buy your tickets and buy your Beer and this is how you pay me back for all my kind unselfish deeds?! No Game Today! NO GAME TODAY!!!!
Just a little crazy added to a day with no GAME TODAY!!! 😬 😡 👽
seeing Albert in a red uniform today with a bat in his hand is giving me an anxiety attack
https://twitter.com/jonheyman/status/1509221852434112513?s=21&t=ENs4_Y14ymFxOuDuIgk_EQ
I see him hit a slow roller to 3rd and it will upset me, until I remember he is doing it to kill the Cardinals.
There is a reason one of his records is “Hit into the most Double Plays” of all time.
But I to had some laughs because of Albert when he caught pitchers asleep at the wheel and stole a base on them, now that was some funny stuff.
And setting a major league record every time.
I rarely can say that I hate someone, but if I did it would definitely be Albert. Did he really set all his MLB records in the steroid era without using them? Does anybody know for sure his real age? Do you agree with him that St. Louis has the most knowledgeable fans? Do you think Artie brought him in because Albert just wanted the money? Did being Hispanic have anything to do with selling more tix?
Albert Fin-flamed the Angels in my honorable and honest opinion. Picked Arte’s pockets for 150 million of the 250 million of his contract.
Lying about your age is a * move, but Pujols is from a culture where that is common because it drastically improves your chances of being in the MLB and getting a high school education. It also doesn’t really hurt anyone other than the owners that sign players, and honestly, I think the Angels likely knew he was older when they signed him. I blame the MLB and MLBPA for letting players do this, not the players that do it.
I do blame players for taking steroids. The motivation is the same, but the consequences are far worse because it unfairly impacts those players who don’t cheat and will lead to college and high school players to taking drugs when it can impact their developing bodies in harmful ways. Since Pujols was from a culture that lies about their age and did so himself, there is definitely a chance that, being from a culture that takes drugs to get an edge ahead, he also did that. But, there is also a chance Pujols didn’t, and absent at least some evidence, I won’t assume the worst.
I do not blame or hate Pujols for taking the contract and sticking it out through the end. That is 100% on Arte.
The only thing I truly am disgruntled about is the fact that Pujols complained about being relegated to a limited role and then gladly stepped into such a role when the Dodgers came calling.
He’s a roid-er, no 2 ways about it.
Fat ass!
Rengifo is off the roster. I can sleep.
Not off the roster just starting the season at Salt Lake City. Which, in his case, still has to be better than Caracas 😁
Bad choice of words, major league roster.
Like a red rubber ball, he’ll be bouncing back again.
I knew from the gate that he would not work out. He could not field, he could not hit, and at any time he could be deported. All he has really was speed but was only so-so with SB. Should have traded him a long time ago, but now his potential is very low as trade value.
Apparently the Dodgers thought otherwise. We sure missed the boat on that one.
https://twitter.com/LAAngelsPR/status/1509220297848737792?s=20&t=s4WmILqAIkFRWepNVH6-Qw
no surprises here
I guess Spring cleaning includes getting rid of the Junk?
Funny Stuff.
We all gave you the opening for the easy joke, which you took.
I know you tend to always be gloomy, ML, but I’ve found that humor is the best therapy for being a fan of this team.
I don’t think of it as gloomy, I’ve been a fan since ‘61 and I’m tired of seeing the same mistakes repeated over and over again. The ownership should do so much better for Trout/Ohtani.
Also means that the Halos will stop showing us pictures of their Junk.
Wantz is still an arm to watch. He was green last year, still young. Will probably be up and down the last couple of years.
the next couple of years*
Totally agree. his K/9 & K/BB numbers were excellent last year in his limited action. Here’s his best performance from last season. https://www.mlb.com/angels/video/andrew-wantz-stellar-in-relief
With the 9 man pen, I’m convinced the Angels will only carry 2 pitchers with options remaining and one of those will be Austin Warren who has been lights out. That means that short of an injury or DFA, The Angels will probably cycle alot of guys from Salt lake City ( Buttrey,Wantz,Herget, Marte, Ortega) through the one bullpen spot.
Guys who were late inning/high leverage over the last two years now riding the Salt Lake shuttle.
Well done, Perry.
Sweeping out the barn, housekeeping day.
As streaky as hot pocket is and his bad defense, I would scarifies Walsh poor numbers against lefties just for his defense and not platoon him
On the question of Season Ticket packaging – not surprisingly Arte cheaped out again. It’s basically a cardboard box which has a 20th anniversary of 2002 emblem. Inside was a very paltry photo book with mostly pictures of Ohtani and 2021 highlights.
And, get this, I had to pay an extra $100 to get the tickets printed. Otherwise they would have only been available digitally. For $100 they sent me the tickets that looked like they were printed on a dot matrix printer – no pictures on the tickets – no prices on the tickets.
That Mets thing is cool but it’s pretty unnecessary. That said there is a lot the Angels Org could have done for its season ticket holders between the sparce package it provided (requiring an extra $100 for printed tickets) and the Mets fancy ticket package.
The Mets communicated ‘we appreciate you’, the Angels communicated ‘we are doing the minimum possible’.
When I purchased a suite last season for my 50th birthday if I wanted physical tickets I think it was going to be extra. They are clearly driving people to the MLB Ballpark app. Not ideal for all customers but I get it from a sustainability standpoint.
I bought a suite this May for my graduation party. Wasn’t even given the option of printed tix. They just showed up in the app one day.
Mets just raised the bar for ticket boxes that’s all…In past years I’ve seen people post pictures of their newly arrived season ticket box and they all looked the same. Had ours, seen the Doyers box, probably made by the same company…It’s like everything else, everyone will copy the Mets…….except Arte, he’s a cheap bastard.
Interesting. Yeah, the season tickets used to look really cool; large red and white ink on glossy thick paper stock with color pictures of a variety of players and poses. Really nice. Sorry to hear that Arte is screwing you like that.
Thanks Jack. I’ve already decided this is my last year of season tix.
Just clicked over to Halos Heaven out of curiosity. Under the Masthead link, they still have all the old bios of the pre-firing crew that’s over here. Looks like there are only two people writing and no game writeups. A tragic joke of a website.
Is there any grounds for CTPG staff to sue Vox for still having the bios on HH site? (I realize that several posters are lawyers). That just seems like at least irresponsible negligence that could lead to actual harm (since whatever that gets written there can be wrongly attributed).
That is not a case to take on contingency since the damages are not really clear and are not likely to be valuable.
I suppose it could be litigated hourly but would Jeff or Jessica want to spend say $5,000?
Best situation would be for the impacted CTPG staff to send a letter to Vox requesting their names be removed from the masthead.
Thanks.
Honestly I didn’t even know we were still listed until a couple of weeks ago. My agent contact at Ballengee asked if Jessica was still writing for HH because he hadn’t seen her byline in forever.
Maybe Arte knows a good lawyer.
Yep. Jessica and I have both been contacted about setting things related to HH.
can’t stand Molly Knight – hope she loses –
nice to see she’s not at The Athletic any longer too.
Great, so Trevor Bauer was impugned and lost his shot at a humanitarian award because it was misreported that he might have broke his sex partner/punching bag’s skull during their last encounter.
Poor guy. I feel so sorry for him.
both are the worst of LA and both bad examples of human beings
Funny how both are home alone and unemployed too.
Coincidence?
Do I feel sorrow for Trevor Bauer? The answer is yes I do. To be turned on by beating up a women just to get off seems to me to be an affliction of some sort. I am not even sure there is enough counseling to fix that. What a true nightmare to have to live with.
Molly is just yet another example of something I think parents maybe just don’t push much anymore. My parents (and I’m not THAT old) and probably a lot of our parents always emphasized that I should wait and see on any spicy issue and NEVER loudly proclaim some hot position on anything, even if I have initial strong feelings. It seemed like, back in my day… say 2004… there were far far fewer instances where people in general came out with instant “He’s just like a murdering rapist Nazi terrorist literbug and he needs to die!” positions.
Just in the last 3 years I can think of about 20 examples of something where I read/heard/saw something and had initial feelings about it and THEN, usually slowly as actual facts started seeping out, I realized my initial thoughts were a bit or even a lot off base. Thankfully I didn’t blabber a bunch of crap about the people involved and what should happen to them all over social media… or a major news publication… or cable news network. Even if I turn out to be 100% right, it’s better to just STFU and see how things develop than be the guy who wears out a soap box every month.
Bauer’s kink is sure not mine. I have known women who like to be hit while duvet wrestling. Hell, there are people out there online volunteering themselves to be killed and eaten by other people. As a concept I think all of that stuff’s a bit wrong. But it’s not my place to light up people for doing consensual stuff. Molly can think what she wants, maybe even publish some lame tweets, but she should have shown some restraint.
But hell, we live in a world where it seemed like 80% of people changed their social media icon to a Ukrainian flag overnight when 80% of those people couldn’t find it on a map much less explain what the conflict is over or the shared history of the two countries the day before. I doubt displays of outrage are going anywhere.
The Jussie Smollett’ing of todays modern world.
So you’re saying she should really change her name to Molly Hatchet-Job?
Then she’d really be flirting with disaster.
Vox still doesn’t get it. A new site CTPG started to fill a hole that they created with an unsuccessful business model. Having Harris cover 2 sites that are very different just couldn’t work out. We will not care to much what becomes of Vox, but they asked for whatever becomes of their 2 sites. GO CTPG’S 7 GO ANGELS!!!!
I don’t think VOX cares if those SBNation sites succeed. They were part of a larger acquisition. When the California freelance labor bill came into existence they just let some of the Cali sites die on the vine.
The mass email they sent firing us all seemed very sincere, though.
New Yorkers are known world wide for their sincerity.
I like the Walsh platoon. Improves the lineup against lefties and opens up outfield spots for Marsh or Adell those days.
I just recommend we get a someone who can play the position and with no on the job training. We saw how Puljos killed the infielders with his lack of digging out tough throws. Need someone who can pick it.
Has Walsh been bad defensively?
No, he has been great with the leather.
My comment was aimed at when Walsh not starting due to a left hander. We don’t have a right hand hitting true 1st baseman to platoon with. Joe Perry is experimenting with Upton and possibly Duffy to play out of position and take first.
In the outfield, you can kind of get away with a subpar defender but and some managers, think anyone can play first. Like the city softball fields where you put the big slow guy. LOL. Having a vacuum at first and short is paramount.
I’ll go on to note, in 2021, the Angels were 2nd to last in Team Defensive Efficiency and below average in Team Fielding Percentage.
A lot of guys plugging holes with all the injuries last year. Ward, Rojas, Goose, Rengifo and others playing out of position while already not being very good with the glove.
With that said, our defense should be solid if we ever stay healthy.
Except, who ever platoons with Walsh at first.
Let’s sure hope so. I’m of the, “prove it” mentality. Let’s revisit this next off-season. Health certainly should not be worse. With that leaky of a defense, we’ll finish outside the ‘expanded’ post season.
Playing out of position is a form of organizational malpractice.
I think he should start every day. Even if a lefty starts, a righty will probably finish, given 2 times through the order for almost every pitcher these days. Just move him down the lineup on those days. See Joe, it’s that easy.
I agree. It seems that Ward would be a better choice to try at first than Upton. Ward’s only played a few pro games at 1B, but he’s played a fair amount at 3B (albeit poorly) and at Catcher. Walsh’s numbers against lefties are really bad (.170/.208/.357 in 182AB last year) and some lefties never learn to hit LHP. I’d much rather have Walsh on the bench as a weapon against a right handed reliever than starting against a lefty.
I like it too. The platoon’s a good idea. If Upton hits it will be a REALLY good idea.