Good morning Angels fans! Have some links!
Angels News
Angels faced the White Sox again. This time they scored a bit more and by they I mean Shohei as he hit 2 home runs while pitching to a win. It is the first time that has happened since Greinke did it.
They did so without Escobar, who was in Florida becoming a US citizen. So, Jo Adell was in Anaheim to take his place for a few days.
And Mickey seems healthy for now, so that’s good. Rendon is also hitting off the tee.
Detmers has become the 3rd Angel pitcher to go 8k with at most 1ER in 4 straight starts! Nolan Ryan and Ohtani have also done so.
Want your own Kabuto? You can buy it! $5,700 for the helmet, $13,900 for the whole armor.
Just a reminder that yes, Arte Moreno turned down multiple offers of 2.5 Billion dollars for the Angels. Dude ain’t selling.
Around Baseball
Remember, All Star Voting stage 2 is now open. Here is how it is going so far.
And if you want to look forward, the Future’s Game has some interesting names as well. 2 Trash Pandas will be there!
It can always be worse. Just ask the Tigers, on year 8 of their rebuild and they have yet another pitching injury. Boyd to have Tommy John.
How have the playoff predictions changed since April? Well, Mets are doomed.
Attendance is on the rise, however, with some teams getting a big boost. Comparing 2022 and 2023 shows quite a few averages jump.
Nats have yet to sweep anyone in 90 straight series. That the longest in MLB history.
Anything I missed? Post below for upvotes!
More on my hating Seattle
We heard all about Kelenic and how he’s figured it out this season, after being so terrible previously. I like his stats.
Last 30 games, .189, .621 OPS
Last 15 games, .154, .528 OPS
Last 7 games, .125, .415 OPS
Struggling Trout’s last 7 games, .261 average, 1.110 OPS
Mariners lost to lowly Nationals, losing the series. They are now 3 games under 0.500. They are facing Tampa Bay next. They may become sellers after ASG.
https://twitter.com/JeffFletcherOCR/status/1674165074775408640?s=20
Wished Moniak would start as lead off.
Against Giolito,
Ward: 0.333/0.333/1.000 with 2HR and 2K with 9 AB.
Trout: 0.143/0.316/0.357 with 1HR, 7K, 3BB with 14 AB.
Ohtani: 0.304/0.304/0.826 with 3HR and 7K with 23 AB.
I anticipate another low scoring game with both Giolito and Barria keeping the game close. Angels need good defense with a couple of super plays, utilize small ball strategy when appropriate, and effective bullpen to squeeze out a win.
About as good of a lineup as possible.
Perhaps subbing Renfroe for Moose at first and letting Moniak play on the grass is an upgrade, but not much else.
They are really starting to notice…rather stay under the radar…trAditions.
https://twitter.com/Ken_Rosenthal/status/1674115933592342528?s=20
I had no idea Ippei graduated from Diamond Bar HS and UC Riverside. A local boy!
I am sure Jeff Fletcher included Ippei in his book on Shohei (I have never read it, still waiting for libraries near me to acquire the book. Yes, I am stingy.). What goes around comes around. He is originally from Hokkaido, where Nippon Ham Fighters play, and as you know, that’s where Shohei played as two way before he came to Anaheim. They met because Ippei was previously hired to interpret for Chris Martin, who is now pitching for Red Sox.
I attribute second half of (all of MLB years) Shohei’s success to Ippei. First half belongs to Mr. Kuriyama, then manager for Fighters , who convinced Shohei to remain in Japan to develop as two way player.
The fWAR AL West All-Stars would be:
C Jonah Heim TEX (11 HRs / .332 OBP)
1B Nathaniel Lowe TEX (8 HRs / .374 OBP)
2B Marcus Semien TEX (11 HR / .343 OBP)
3B Josh Jung TEX (15 HR / .325 OBP)
SS Corey Seager TEX (10 HR / .409 OBP)
LF Yordan Alvarez HOU (17 HR / .388 OBP)
CF Mike Trout LAA (17 HR / .363 OBP)
RF Adolis Garcia TEX (19 HR / .331 OBP)
DH Shohei Ohtani LAA (28 HR / .386 OBP)
SP Framber Valdez HOU (2.49 ERA and 9.43 K/9)
SP Nathan Eovaldi TEX (2.82 ERA and 8.63 K/9)
SP Shohei Ohtani LAA (3.02 ERA and 11.99 K/9)
RP Josh Sborz TEX (0.81 WHIP and 12.15 K/9)
RP Will Smith TEX (0.84 WHIP and 10.01 K/9)
RP Paul Sewald SEA (0.98 WHIP and 11.94 K/9)
I thought every team needs to be represented in All Star Game? 😆
Then let’s replace Nathaniel Lowe with Ryan Noda OAK at first base. Noda has 8 HRs and a .387 OBP.
Lowe has 70 more plate appearances this year, so his fWAR is 0.5 points higher than Noda’s. Perhaps his defense is better as well, IDK.
I was just giving you a light hard time, my evil twin brother. I really like your choice of Jonah Heim, my favorite punching face. Ever since he hit a grand slam off Shohei’s splitter, I am in both anger and awe. If it weren’t for awesome Adley, he would have been the AL All Star catcher.
Can we hire the hitting coach from the Rangers please???
While we’re at it, lets get their Manager and Pitching Coach too
I would exclude the pitching coach for their fecal smelly bullpen.
What about their owner?
Can we get him too?
i have been there since the day he appeared 2-14-18 in Tempe but here i am STILL having my mind blown by Shohei. A nugget in that espin site notes how close Shohei is to BOTH the Hitting Triple Crown AND Pitching Triple Crown.
Hitting – HR/RBI – 1st, AVG – 5th
Pitching – W, K, ERA
“The pitching part is an even longer shot, but if he gets really hot, you never know. His seven wins put him in a tie for ninth in the league, but he’s only four behind league leader Shane McClanahan. Meanwhile, Ohtani is ninth in ERA and second in strikeouts”
For sure, its not likely, but the fact that it is reasonably plausible is still difficult to understand. Even achieving one of them (Pitching or Hitting Triple Crown) is very rare.
I would be blown away if Shohei finished the season as the league leader in HR as a batter and the league leader in strikeouts as a pitcher. Rooting hard for it.
Because of the 6 man rotation it will be really hard to get the K’s lead …
Shohei is currently second in the league with 127 strikeouts. First place right now is Kevin Gausman TOR with 139 strikeouts.
Sure if Gausman gets injured he could pass him easily … It seems that if Gausman gets even two extra starts it would be pretty hard to pass him…
I believe Shohei has consciously put more emphasis on Angels win than individual accolades. He can care less about AL MVP, Triple Crown, or Cy Young. It is more of Japanese (and less so American) media who are making a huge deal of his possible postseason awards and records.
But, I have heard Nevin discussing that Shohei is aiming for a total of 200 innings (95.1 so far). I noticed last night White Sox players fouling off many of his pitches yesterday which accumulated his pitch count quickly and forced him to come out earlier than he desired. Thankfully good splitters yesterday caused many swing and misses, but I also thought the splitters are the reason why he ended up cracking his middle fingernail further. Also noted was a sweeper that was in the zone for Benintendi to hit sharply with 100.7MPH. Shohei was fortunate that the ball did not go over the fence. Baseball is a game of inches.
Another question is as we look forward, Shohei does have an opportunity to pitch against the Dodgers, the last game before ASG. For that to happen, he will need to pitch with 4 day rest, which he has not done this season. He did so last season a couple of times successfully. Should he do it assuming that the cracked fingernail heal in time?
I would say “yes” since by doing so our chances of beating a very good Dodgers team go way up. I could care less if he pitches in the All-Star game, in fact I hope he doesn’t.
Like alot of the fans Jeff Fletcher referenced who don’t want him to partake in the HR Derby, I also don’t want him to. I’d rather he get as much rest as possible over the break… I’d be okay if he got one AB in the game and was then pulled lol… If he plays of course I’d like to see him do well, but I don’t care about him winning the Derby (though I DO think that this time around after having the initial experience last year he could actually win it…)
I don’t think we have to worry about Shohei participating in HRD. Two year ago, he did go into slump after hitting 33 homeruns before ASG only to hit 13 in second half.
There will be pressure for him to start as pitcher for an inning, but hopefully he declines. My anticipation is that he will get 2 at bats, and that’s it.
Hope you’re right. I don’t want him starting since that takes him out of the very important Houston series starting the 2nd half …
I just checked Mariners rotation. With ASG being held in Seattle, it makes sense that Castillo to start the game. So, Shohei, if he pitches, will only do so for only one inning.
The other thing is that the ASG is only a couple of innings for a starter, so it might almost be treated like a BP session between starts.
I so want Shohei to stay healthy that I don’t want him to take any risk of being injured. I am aware that he can get injured anytime playing this game of baseball. I will correct my stance to I don’t want him to take any ‘unnecessary’ risk of injury. After all, he did play in all 7 games of WBC without getting hurt.
Shohei at post game Q&A last night, he mentioned that his batting is near being perfect. The fact he did NOT mention his pitching implies that there is a room for improvement in his pitching, and that is what he is going to work on as soon as his pitching arm and shoulder’s lactic acid dissipates. I believe that he will be an even better pitcher in the second half, so winning W,K,ERA is not totally out of question, and eventually Cy Young.
Shohei is no Ichiro, always trying to hit for extra bases. So, I am going to predict less than 5% chance of winning BA in AL. I also think that batting has lot more ups and downs than pitching. Therefore, I anticipate his bat will certainly decline in the second half to our dismay. Hopefully, someone else like Trout picks up the slack.
The Foundation Building Materials’ keystone of the game for the Angels tonight against Lucas Giolito and the White Sox is Testament’s wicked cover of the Queen song “Dragon Attack.”
The Angels are riding high and laying waste. After the Halos have their way with the ChiSox, they will rampage through the NL West, tearing up the D-Backs, Padres, and Dodgers. We are officially on a roll.
It’s Showtime, and we’ve got a dragon on our backs.
https://youtu.be/m7PhIwfOPdE
voted for Trout. One day left, he looks safely on the All-Star team.
Now let’s see him hit like an all-star!
Don’t mean to be Debbie Downer, but Trout probably would rather spend time with Beckham over the break, but he will fulfill his obligation as popular MLB player like his two-way teammate. I am happy that it is held in Seattle, not east coast.
I sincerely hope that both Trout and Ohtani decline Home Run Derby. At postgame Q&A, Shohei, being polite as ever, did not say yes or no, when asked about the event. I wish that Shohei declines to be the starting pitcher because he has just pitched against Dodgers few days prior (of course, this time he has triumphed and avenged the earlier loss.). This is what I envision; he just bats as DH a few times, a weakly hit grounder and an upside down K, saving all of his energy for the latter half. He also wins the best dresser award on the red carpet with his sponsor (Shiseido or Kose) agreeing to an increase of another $5 MM per year endorsement immediately after.
I am relieved to hear your opinion on HRD, Jeff.
https://twitter.com/JeffFletcherOCR/status/1673945533520674816
needs to get a nail appointment
https://twitter.com/JeffFletcherOCR/status/1673920716545343489?s=20
I feel much more comfortable talking about oblique strain, knee contusion, or even pelvic fracture, but I do not have the slightest idea when it comes to nail. Ever since a shower sliding door fell on my big toe, and it took more than 6 months to have a new toenail to grow in place, I just feel leery of anything to do with appendage nails.
Claws can be tricky and painful.
Selfishly, I wish they would decline All-Star festivities entirely. Rest up for the 2nd half run.
Totally agreed, brother! I am certain that Shohei would rather sharpen his computer game skills than walking on the red carpet.
I sent in 100 votes AGAINST trout. He needs a break.
He will be booed by the uncouthe latte-filled masses
I forgot it’s in Seattle. I hate Seattle. I hate the Mariners, I hate the Seahawks, I hate most of the people who live there
Except for Opiejeanne.
I think I’m turning Japanese, I think I’m turning Japanese, I really think so.
Angels baseball is fun again….!
It”s nice to be in the hunt.
Sure, I’ve watched so many Angels games as a fan over the years when the team was far out of playoff contention, still enjoying the experience.
But, it’s a different experience when the team is playing for something, a playoff spot, with some swagger.
And, while watching the Sho come through at the highest levels is special, seeing some of other team pieces outperform expectations, Moniak, Theiss, Wallach, Neto, Soriano, Estevez, etc, is the icing on the cake…..
Go Halos….
My thoughts exactly….
Love being in the race ! Every game matters
It’s a blast…!
Kenny notices us this morning in his daily blurb in TA:
It’s time to flip the conversation on the Angels. Rather than lament the possibility that Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout again will miss the playoffs, consider this question: How dangerous might the Angels be if they get in?
Pretty dangerous, is the answer.
He expounds on it some but to me, the key is Detmers/Sandoval – if all three are on, we will be tough in a playoff series.
Halfway through, on page to win 88. Probably need 5 more than that.
The rotation looks good, bullpen is holds up and should get better when Moore comes back, Neto should be back, and Rendon will play another dozen games or so.
Mike Trout has yet to look like Mike Trout. Even just a hot month would be nice.
I like adding Escobar and Moose.
O’Hoppe too will be huge for the entire pitching staff
The Moose is loose….!
I had quite a bit of chuckles when someone followed my post of same sentiment.
The addition of Moose to platoon with Drury (and Renfroe?) at 1B is a clear indicator that Walsh does not figure into the team’s plans for 2023.
Escobar is simply wise insurance for Rendon.
Both pick-ups make sense in that context.
I can’t really blame them. As much as I want Walsh to succeed his .119/.244/.244 slash line makes Fletcher and Rengifo look like elite bats.
Hope he can turn it around, if not this season then next.
Yeah, agree. I was really rooting for him … We all wanted him to succeed… Maybe it is too soon… It sounds like what he went through physically and neurologically was pretty tough … I don’t know if there is any precedent for a timeline to come back …
Perhaps spending a few months in AAA and then with next Spring Training he can be ready to contribute in 2024. Let’s hope so.
And we need insurance for Rendon.
If Fletcher is back to being Fletcher that should keep Rengifo off the field when Rendon and/or Neto return.
Escobar serves as Rendon insurance.
all this WC talk should be banned – only thing that matters in life in the Summer of 2023 is the AL West Division Title.
Five games back with half a season to play; the plan is to be the #2 Seed in the AL, not worry about an October road trip to some rabid east coast venue with the team running on fumes from ekeing out a spot in September.
Ignore the WC standings – they are just a pacifier for the feint of heart in June and July and August.
It is the AL West and #2 seed we are aiming to achieve.
Totally concur.
Houston finally looks a bit vulnerable after a decade of dominance and let’s see how Texas handled the dog days of Summer with the heat & pressure of a pennant race.
I like our chances.
Agreed. Texas is coming back to Earth a bit after an insane month and Houston hasn’t gotten it going.
I feel like Houston is more likely to get hot and take over the division but until/unless they do it is open.
Houston is having a tough time with Yordan out for w good legnth of time. We have a shot this year.
Alvarez has been out the last couple of weeks as they have struggled a bit ..Prior to going out he was putting up MVP type numbers if we take Ohtani out of the discussion .. That is he could have been MVP in an AL sans Ohtani.
I agree that they will go on a run. It will probably happen when Yordan Alvarez returns … Just hope it is AFTER we play them in that 3 game series to open the 2nd half…
It looks like Houston is aiming Alvarez return for the first series against Angels right out of ASG break. An excerpt from Houston Chronicle,
During Houston’s series with the Los Angeles Dodgers this weekend, Alvarez ran and threw on the field and also hit in the cages. Baker said he “felt pretty good” after the light workout. This is great news for Astros fans, and hopefully Alvarez is ready to play shortly after the All-Star break.
Hoping that Houston medical staff are as bad as Angels counterpart.
If the Angels are to win, I want them to beat the other team at the other team’s best.
This is an intriguing book on the subject. Disclaimer: I do not receive $ from Racquel Gates.
That is sort of a romantic ideal that rarely plays out in reality …
I mean, we are not at our best and I doubt the fans of the cheaters will say they want Zach Neto to play so they can “beat us at our best.”
The main thing is to win, and if the opposition is missing a key piece or two they so be it… “That’s the breaks” as they say …
Disagree…we need to take advantage of every break we can get!!
Nobody is at their absolute best right now. You just get to the best you can be at the moment and see what happens.
I’ll gladly beat them without Alvarez just like they’d gladly beat us without Ohtani.
Let’s hope he has a slow start in the first series back.
It’s certainly possible. The Astros and Rangers have 13 games to play against each other. That’s a lot of potential for shakeup in the title race.
The Rangers’ last 10 games is 3 against the Angels and 7 vs the Mariners, who I’m sure would love to play spoiler and might be good enough to do it.
The Angels have to face the Twins (who might be fighting to clinch), the Rangers (control your own destiny) and then the As, who won’t be as tough as the Mariners.
The Astros have the Royals, Mainers (spoiler?) and the D-backs. Depending on whether the D-backs have clinched, that might be the toughest or easiest finish.
In sum, if the Angels can stay in it till late September, they have a shot.
Many great points, sir. We get to watch Astros vs Rangers 4 game series battling each other this weekend. Texas will also have played 17 game straight all the way to ASG, further stressing their pitching staff especially bullpen. If we take care of business against formidable NL West foes, then we may see all of the top three AL West contenders bunched up before ASG. So much fun!
I agree with all points you make, and that is exactly what Nevin must be harping on Angels players to win the division.
With all due respect, sir, many of us ‘wanna be GMs’ will continue to pay attention to another avenue to achieve playoff spot. It is highly entertaining to think about all the permutations and ‘forces’ me to watch other teams games. So, please do not ban us from discussing WC.
I’m right here with ya brother man !
Outside of religiously following the Angels, I haven’t kept us with the sport as closely as I used to because for the last 5-10 years because we’ve been out of the playoff race by June/July.
It’s been beyond enjoyable for me to watch/follow other teams with the sole purpose of tracking the Angels playoff positioning.
I love it and it’s renewing my overall interest in the sport, outside of the Halos
Any baseball fan would have been thoroughly entertained by watching last night game. Viewed YouTube podcast of White Sox followers, who used phrases like “so fortunate to be alive to witness Shohei’s magic” and “wish Shohei were playing on east coast or midwest teams, so we can watch him before bedtime.”
I truly believe one of the reasons why more people go to/watch MLB games this season is Shohei.
Oh my goodness of course ! It’s a shame, and quite predictable, that the (American) national sports media isn’t mass covering Ohtani each and every day.
We are watching the greatest baseball player of all time in his prime.
People won’t understand what we are witnessing in Shohei until he’s long retired.
I see your aim of #2 in the AL West.
I raise you #1 in the AL West.
The Rangers are not as good as they show IMO. Today, 2nd best in AL, give or take. They might be overachieving, they have some weakness, top AL team no doubt, but not a 100 win team. They are due “second half” of the season for another rough week or two.
My bigger reason for this gut feeling? I think this Angel team has some magic JuJu. We haven’t hit our “Peak Premium Offense” yet. I think it’s in our team DNA. “IF” old Trout still is in there, and he shows up, MLB needs to be warned. Statistically as good as we are offensively, there might be another gear, a vicious Monster lurking. A pitcher destroying Beast that might be unstoppable. If that exists, with our improved defense, improved BP, and starting pitching that is becoming pretty damn solid, I see us taking the AL West. Probably take the entire season to do it, but it can be done.
Free AL West Champs 2023
Free the Plumber
Free Evil Arte
#2 in the AL. definitely was the point
Yes, I ran your obvious “shared opinion” with all of the other WC opinions..I agree with you👈 my bad.
Onward to the AL West Division Championship!
Kings of the West!
Preach it, Rex!
How about that Percivalish save last night?
And without Troy’s “special blend”
That was some fierce Japanese heritage on sho last night.
And I am glad that I didn’t have to bear the 9th inning thriller and Tungsten PTSDs because of work.
BTW I like moose more than goose.
Keep it rolling!!
@Kiyotchan – Well, the A’s actually did something good for the Angels last night. Guess I’ll eat my words. I’m glad I didn’t promise to eat my hat.
I had the game on TV as I was translating Shohei Q&A session, which requires quite a bit of my concentration. I was aware that A’s had a slim lead of one run in the late innings, and when I looked up, the game was over. The victory proves that A’s are still playing hard despite their record and MFYankees offense has been ho-hum without Judge. If interested, please go to last night postgame section to read Shohei Q&A, some of which were revealing.
For some reason, I was thinking ‘eating crow’ after reading your post. Did quick internet research and discovered crow meat is actually pretty good and one can be arrested if he or she hunts for crow.
“Eating crow” is another common idiom for the same thing, so I could have used that. I had no idea they are tasty.
I’ll check the Q&A.
Pigeon is pretty tasty as well. I’ve had in numerous times in China over the years.
Never had it, but I also understand Bird’s Nest Soup is a delicacy.
It’s pretty good.
Food in China is not my favorite overall, but it varies from region to region which makes sense given how large & populated that country is.
My uncle lives in Yokohama, which is famous for the largest chinatown in Japan and best Chinese food. He took me and my sons to one of the restaurants after 15 hour flight from US; the food was excellent, but both of my sons were falling asleep, not interested in eating at all.
Definitely recommend visiting Yokohama if you ever travel to Japan. Besides you get to watch Trevor Bauer pitching for the Baystars; I hear he is like a rock star out there.
Bird’s Nest Soup vs. Spotted Dick
Ever wonder why there aren’t many pigeons outside of McDonald’s? Pigeon nuggets are pretty good.
Expensive restaurants call pigeon “squab”
It’s also a French delicacy. Ever heard of squab?
I have, but I never made the connection to squab.
So the Angels went from 1 game below .500 on 4/22 to 7 games above .500 on 6/27 and their playoff odds actually got slightly worse? I suppose that is possible since Tex/Bal have increased their chances by almost +50.
Odds are not perfect. The shrewd gambler will seek to find the value play and put some money down. A smart play is to put some cash on the teams with a pitching staff built to win 3-game series.
I didn’t scoreboard watch last night and everybody that counts lost but us…who knew!!
The race for the Wild Card has a lot of parity. Angels have just as good as a team as any team not named Rays or Astros (but pitching injuries, they have declined).
Some team is going to go on a run in August and take charge, could even be the Guardians or Mariners.
Best thing to watch is for the Angels to win and everything will take care of itself.
After watching the Angel-Ranger 4-game series, I came away that there is a good chance Rangers will regress and be overtaken.
In that regard, it’s interesting to note the Astros and Rangers play 13 more games against each other. If the Astros dominate those series, there could be a 3-way race for the division title.
If the Rangers dominate, it could knock the Astros out of the race.
This is why I’m not giving up on the division yet. Although the Rangers have lead the division for a good amount, they haven’t ran away with it. Both the Angels and the cheaters are hanging around close enough.
In that series I don’t think it was so much that Texas played poorly, but MORE the fact that the Angels played really well… And especially Ohtani was other-worldly good in that series … It may go the other way next time we face them …
I don’t scoreboard much at all this juncture. If the Angels can consistently take series wins,
they should be in play at the end.
Angels are 44-37
6 losses back of the division
7 losses back of WC1
1 loss back of WC2
ANGELS ARE THE WC3
1 win ahead of WC4
6-28 Rooting Guide
Angels > White Sox
Braves > Twins
Nationals > Mariners
Reds > Orioles
Giants > Blue Jays
Marlins > Red Sox
Cardinals > Astros
Tigers > Rangers
Royals > Guardians
A’s > Yankees
The Angels (44-37) are actually tied for WC2 with the Yankees (43-36) but fall to WC3 based on head-to-head record.
Yankees are 43-36
Angels are 44-37
You arent wrong. Nevertheless, I prefer to use losses over wins/winning % — NYY have 1 fewer loss.
Speaking of losses, Aaron Judge figures to be on the shelf for multiple weeks.
As someone who cares deeply about Aaron Judge’s health — he should take the rest of the season off to properly heal up for next year!
Agreed. He should rest up and come back strong in 2024. We’re such compassionate people. Haha
i appreciate this daily look but my focus is on the AL West so the condensed version
———
Angels are 44-37
6 losses back of the division
6-28 Rooting Guide
Angels > White Sox
Tigers > Rangers
Haha touche !
A couple of 7-2 runs with a 9 game wining streak added in, and they’re right there
{re-post from last night}
C – Thaiss / Wallach
1B – MOOSE / Drury
2B – Drury
SS – Neto
3B – Rendon
LF – Ward
CF – Trouty
RF – Moniak / Renfroe
DH – Ohtani
Bench – Escobar / Rengifo / Fletch
#1 Ohtani
#2 Detmers
#3 Canning
#4 Sandoval
#5 Anderson
#6 Barria
Estevez
Moore
Devinski
Webb
Soriano
Bachman
Joyce
Loup
+ whoever Perry adds going forward.
I’m optimistic. LTBU !
Barring injuries, the lineup is probably set so any deadline additions figure to be BP or perhaps a starter.
Should they go BIG and get Trout’s buddy Marcus Stroman?
Focus on the BP? If so, they shouldn’t bother with a “mid” acquisition, they should make a play for a lights out reliever IMO.
Stroman would be a huge help in the regular and post-season. I’d like to see him swap out Anderson’s starts, although I suspect he pushes Barria into the bullpen and Anderson becomes #6.
If he doesn’t opt-out (or signs an extension) he would also be a huge help next year if Ohtani chooses to leave (or even if Ohtani stays).
Yeah, a fivesome
of Shohei, Stroman, Detmers, Canning & Sandoval would be formidable.
I also prefer Barria as the long relief / spot starter tweener. Anderson could also be a 6th starter / long relief dependent upon how the schedule shakes out, etc.
Agreed on the lineup being set.
In terms of pitching, Perry should be targeting a frontline SP and high-leverage RP.
Personally, not the biggest huge fan of Stroman. I would prefer going hard after Burnes, Cease…… Bieber, Giolito. If they aren’t available, I’d settle for Stroman.
I’m fine with all of the above,
frankly.
Cease was pretty effective this past Monday.
I’m sure it’ll come down to the pound (or three) of flesh that we’ll have to surrender in exchange, but the Perry and the Angels appear to be all-in at this point.