The Astros signed Josh Hader to a five year deal on Friday. Perry Minasian countered by hiring Robert Stephenson to a three year deal worth $33 Million. Jonathan Mayo has Nolan Schanuel as number 3 on this list of top ten first base prospects. Here is a breakdown of the statistical milestones ahead of Mike Trout in 2024. We talk a lot about whether the Angels are ever likely to rebuild. Should the Angels rebuild?
This article is about players in danger of falling short of 5% on the Hall of Fame balloting. Former Angels Torii Hunter and Bartolo Colon both made the list. Francisco Rodriguez got a mention in the “Hanging on By a Thread” section.
The Red Sox might be using The Amazing Criswell as a starter in 2024. Fernando Rodney is still trying to get back into the majors.
Further details have come out in the Wander Franco case. It’s about as bad as you might expect.
Photo credit: Rex Fregosi
Nice, Matt Moore too!
Perry woke up!
My heart breaks for the girl in the Franco case. She was completely, literally sold out by her own mom. Absolutely no mention of a dad being involved in her life.
She’s been completely let down by the two people who should defend her to the ends of the Earth.
Exactly this!! Prostituting your child out (Kris Kardashian blueprint?) should be prosecuted harshly. The little shits chanting Franco’s name and demanding his release should receive some therapy at a minimum.
strange how Bauer got (and continues to get) more blowback than this pedo facing 20 years in prison.
Probably because there’s no question about whether a team will let him put on their uniform again.
I’m just not inclined to deep dive on this one. It sounds horrific based on what little I know. Geez.
Chapman to the Pirates.
I know some here wanted him.
I freaked out when I saw this, stunned that the Pirates would sign Matt Chapman.
They’re going to do what some wanted here which is trade him to a contender at the deadline for prospects
It is Aroldis Chapman, by the way…
1 year, $10.5MM
That definitely sounds like a “flip him for prospects at the deadline” type of signing that we should be doing, if we are not going to be spending our money this season on anything else anyway.
Yep. Hence my sign Clevinger, flip Sandoval (who has way more value) idea. Then if we suck, flip Clevinger later on.
Yep
Another miss by the Angels braintrust.
Would have been a nice lockdown piece to add. Damn…could have flipped him if shit goes south.
Supposedly he has a bad attitude, but my opinion was that he can certainly impart some relevant knowledge to our youngsters. Chapman is the definition of “been there, done that”.
but we have Adam Kolarek.
And the pitching phenom, Jimmy Herget.
Actually, the NL Central’s kind of weak now and the Pirates are kind of making a low key run at the thing. They needed pen help. So Chapman’s both a “go for it” signing and he can be flipped if the wheels come off.
If I had realized Matt was also on the market I would have specified. Sorry.
Oh no problem… it was a funny mixup for me, as I was trying to figure out why the Pirates would suddenly jump for a huge contract…
Not me, but it is good to see the Pirates adding pieces that could help them.
Yep, any time the bottom half of the league make moves to improve it’s a good thing.
Glad it wasn’t us.
Nutting making a move, nice. Chapman and Bednar, nice duo on the back end.
My basic argument for A. Chapman was that he provided immediate help on the mound & an asset later.
I don’t think people realize that the Pirates are very “2022 Orioles”. They have a lot of really good young guys on their roster and could surprise this year.
Let’s try to focus on the positive and bring in a few more players in the next few weeks. I didn’t understand that JD Martinez is represented by Boros. I’m now off the reservation. He will cost too much.
Let’s get some other players in and move forward.
I don’t think there is an alternative to rebuilding. The trend nowadays has been to sign young stars to long term, well before arbitration in some cases (Atlanta leading the way there). Very few really good players hit free agency (usually b/c there’s something wrong with them, their current team, or both) and they will be way overpriced. (and just signing a couple of them won’t change anything–see below).
So the only path to building a good team is to build organization depth within and supplement them with trade acquisitions and, if that fails, FA’s. In other words, you don’t win in regular season, so to speak, with trade acquisitions or FA’s, but with your own people. They serve only to help you get over the top.
So, where are we with internal assets? We do have some interesting players with good upsides, but they don’t give us a “depth.” I’d say a good team needs 25-30 average to above average players on the 40-men roster (obviously including young spare parts that can be stashed in the minors), plus a few real all stars and few more good to really good players. The all stars and good to really good players may be acquired by trades or on FA market. The 25-30 average to above average players probably can’t–at least not enough of them. We don’t have anywhere near that many average to above average players. There’s only one way to build depth: tear apart the current team, come up with a 5-10 year plan (depending on how badly you want to gamble in the medium term), and start collecting prospects.
I agree h27, the A’s have been in a twenty year rebuild and that’s going swimmingly. Any rebuild involves utilizing FAs.
Oakland has made the playoffs 3 times in the past 5 years, compared to our zippo. I think most people around here would take that in a second, compared to how our seasons have gone.
Meh, now due to the NHL/NBA type post-season concoction, who besides the Halos DON’T make the postseason?
Oakland’s problem is that they don’t retain the studs their farm produces.
Yes, what I was saying is you can’t develop good players, then refuse to pay them and trade them pre-arb and expect to have consistency.
I don’t get all this “sign the vet and if it doesn’t work we can flip him for kids” business.
Do we have a track record of being able to do that? Or are we more likely to deal Quero and Bush for someone we’ll DFA?
I’m just bummed about it all because I have so little faith in Perry’s judgment
Perry flipped Thor for Moniak.
And D cell for Tucky D
…and Renfroe for salary cap room.
I definitely think we should be doing that. And perhaps taking on a short-term really-bad contract or two in order to take prospects with them.
Because our farm system sucks. And we’re not expected to contend at all this year, and perhaps not even next year.
So these are some of the ways to inject more talent into the system.
I just don’t get it whenever someone responds with a “but Perry has messed up doing that in the past, so it doesn’t work” argument.
Logic dictates that if you have 2 choices, to do or not to do (just ask Yoda), and you choose not to do, then you are guaranteed to get no results. At least if you “do”, there is a chance of success and we can improve the farm system.
You get it. 100% a worthy approach given where the Angels are. But seeing this is Perry’s final year, probably not going to happen.
We got Sandoval for an expiring Maldonado I believe.
We just don’t do it because we’re never really rebuilding. This was more what we should do if trying to stay sorta competitive/watchable while fixing the farm. Right now we’re nailing the “not good but sorta watchable?” part but getting no farm boost to show for it.
Well it would have worked out fantastic with Ohtani if Arte could have read the room.
I know. If only he checked in on CtPG the way people seem to think he does. He would have seen an army of people demanding an Ohtani trade back in 2022. I remember it. It was deafening.
Sandoval for Maldonado
Soriano for Jason Castro
Moniak for Thor
There aren’t a ton of examples because Arte rarely admits defeat and when he does he refuses to eat salary. D Cell could’ve brought back a quality prospect had Arte eaten some money.
Perry’s moves are limited by those factors. Conversely the Mets ate a ton of salary to get back quality prospects when they sold pieces last year.
Jeff, I think Castro yielded us the incomparable Gerardo Reyes not Soriano. Soriano was a rare international FA signing that may have panned out that we got back from the Pirates after a failed Rule 5 plunder.
You are correct. Sorry.
I knew it was a guy who threw super hard.
Interesting that the Angels negotiated a club only option with Stephenson for $2.5 Million in 2027 if he has any significant elbow injuries during the course of the contract. Considering his history, this was wise but I’m not sure that if he blows out his elbow in the next 6 months, getting a years salary at $2.5 million when he’s 35 years old is a great consolation if you paid him $11 million a year and misses 1-1/2 seasons due TJS.
I know the Chowds did this with horse face after his physical flagged UCL wear. But they eventually executed the option after he had TJS but if I recall, it was only league minimum .
Not sure this really protects the Angels but I guess we’re used to be paying players for not playing so what’s one more dead weight contract?
With a little cash, the Angels could do a bit of both.
Signing Clevinger wouldn’t break the bank and would allow for a trade of Sandoval or Canning. Say 2 years and $25 million for both a good pitcher and a few prospects.
Really you can do that for a few players on that list.
This was always the path forward that made sense. Start trading what you can and replace them with free agents. The team would be worse but not humiliatingly awful which I assume Arte wants to avoid.
Then focus on relievers and bounceback guys every year (like Bellinger types) that you can maybe flip at the deadline.
I’m not fond of the bounce back guys. They’re guys who have had trouble, then have one good year and it feels like we pay them for their next bad 3-5 years.
Rather wait until the trade deadline with Sandy. I’d like to see how he performs after getting rid of the last group of pitching wizards we had whispering in his ear.
Personally, I really like Sandoval. And the reasons why I like him are why he has solid trade value.
If the Angels are really going to improve the talent pipeline, some guys we like will need to go. That’s just the sad reality.
Should the Angels Rebuild?
Sounds to me like the same thing that’s been going on for years. They’ve had Trout, got lucky with Ohtani, but have tried to walk this line between buying big but creating little and it obviously hasn’t worked for the most part since at least 2014.
While almost completely ignoring their farm system. But however we define rebuilding, I have to believe it starts with a heavy and robust focus on minor league player development.
I’m not sure we are anywhere near establishing this.
I completely agree with you. People are probably tired of hearing about it from me. Players are currency, and Arte only pays attention to the big names, not the cheap ones that can be developed through a good minor league system like they had in the 2000’s. As I recall, there was a time when the Angels had three levels first place teams in the minors.
They have a new Funko Pop Rendon figure, but alas, it doesn’t really work…..
Rendone is a loser. There should be no more wishing he bounces back or defending him from any Halo fan imho. He sucks thru and thru. Cut the cancer out and release him. Worst contract in MLB history and it isn’t even close btw.
“I can definitely confirm Carrabis here…
Played with Rendon and literally hates baseball. Yeah it’s long isn’t that what you signed up for??? Just tell the team you want to play half the season and give back half your salary!!!!!”
https://twitter.com/TheRealJPap58/status/1749164394812977450?t=mkMpQT4BTJKqrkatNB9Pcg&s=19
No, you don’t release him yet, you make him show up and not watch TV all day on the team’s dime.
Make him go to work 🙂
Groundskeeping?
Hey Rendon, you only play about a 58-game season, how is that too many? Oh yeah, you’re required to occasionally show up to your workplace during homestands, okay, I get it now.
lol. People are freaking out over him answering a question. 99% of players want a shorter season
And pretty rich coming from Papelbon, who tried to choke out a teammate, and was drinking beer/eating fried chicken during games
I’m not freaking out over anything. Everything Rendone has done/not done in the last 3 years reinforces his lack of accountability, effort and overall interest in being a part of this team and org.
If you genuinely believe he was hurt all of last season — more power to you. The man has no desire to play baseball since Arte blindly handed him a quarter of a million dollars.
Rendone is a loser.
If he was healthy and refused to play, there would be a battle with the mlbpa
Nothing during his tenure in Anaheim leads me to give him any sort of the benefit of the doubt.
“Rendon held a rare session with the media and revealed for the first time that he was diagnosed with a fractured left tibia in mid-August. He said he sought another opinion because he was concerned with how long it was taking his shin to heal.
The Angels, however, had never revealed that diagnosis, instead stating that Rendon was dealing with a deep bone bruise and bleeding inside the bone. According to a source familiar with the situation, Rendon saw four doctors — two picked by the Angels and two picked by him — that found no fracture until Rendon consulted a fifth doctor in Houston who found a fracture in his tibia in mid-September.”
https://www.mlb.com/news/anthony-rendon-reveals-he-has-fractured-tibia-injury
He doesn’t want to play baseball. I’m happy to hear you out if you can provide any minor piece of detail that would suggest otherwise. Rendone is a loser.
That’s pretty damning evidence. As the commercials would say, 4 out of 5 doctors agree Rendon is faking his injury.
As somebody who dealt with years of having a torn shoulder labrum continually misdiagnosed as a micro tear in a back muscle by multiple orthopedic doctors (even after MRIs) at different clinics/hospitals linked to major sports teams, I believe it.
Totally understood.
Doctors misdiagnose all the time and I hope you’ve made or are making a full recovery.
In this case, I believe Rendone kept seeking for a medical professionals to corroborate whatever injury he wanted to find that would support his desire to sit his ass at home. I acknowledge I could be wrong.
I realize we’re legally obligated to dump on Rendon, but wether his shin was “broken” or simply the deepest of deep bone bruises; the distinction is likely matter of small degrees.
His shin was effectively broken IMO.
Eh, that’s fair I suppose.
I’m not much of a conspiracy guy but am convinced that dude will do anything and everything to avoid playing baseball. Truly despise Tony 2 Cool to Play.
Eh, I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, we need him to be Tony 2 bags, instead of Tony Douche Bag
Fool me once, shame on you.
Fool me twice, shame on me.
After being tricked once, one should learn from one’s mistakes and avoid being tricked in the same way again.
yabbut Arte ain’t gonna release him this year or prob next year either. It usually happens in the final year. Might as well smoke the hopium on this one at least until Mid May…barring injuries lol
What’s the over/under on Rendone’s next boo-boo date?
Mentally or physically ?
Physical ouchie.
You do realize that at no point has anyone been trying to trick you right? Not the first time, or the second time.
He gets hurt. He tries to play. He gets hurt again. He tries to play…. and so on. Come this spring, if he can actually run and stuff, he’ll probably try to trick you again.
All anyone has to do is watch the tape of that foul ball hitting him. I don’t care if it’s Rendon or John Wick, as soon as I saw it I was like “shit, that guys not playing any time soon.” What’s worse, the look on Rendon’s face wasn’t “it’ll be OK”. He looked pretty freaked out and defeated….. cause, you know, pain and stuff.
But hey, he’s not nearly as tough as CtPG guy, who would just punched a hole in the third doctor’s face, drank all his bloods, and then got out there and played like a man on a man.
Thanks for the morning chuckle.
I wish it was only a quarter of a million dollars, but I think it was a quarter of a billion dollars with a large “B” with rendon being a large “A”
Tres Comas !!!
Yeah. Fk Rendon and his completely destroyed body. If he was a hard fker like me he’d just play through all the broken body parts. What an asshole.
Thankfully, I doubt Rendon or any other player gives a shit what an internet that is 95% pussy thinks about him and his injuries. He probably would also like to see himself play a full season at some point here.
Yeah! I’m with Jonathan Papelbon and Sam the Hat! Someone get me a Goose Gossage take on this!
The things is, there are too many dang games. He’s right. And most of the players yall don’t have a sad half erection fueled by anger for likely feel the same way. If you read the above and get “This guy hates playing baseball” out of it you’re trying too hard.
We don’t need to sign all the high priced guys. We just need to sign the guys that will be in the top 5 for comeback player of the year.
Come Perry it’s that easy!
Just pick the right waiver claims and give out the right ST invites.
Good Morning Angels faithful, should the Angels rebuild? Absolutely, why try to pretend you are all that when everyone knows you got nuttin? There is more than one way to skin the cat so the saying goes, and the Halos way should be the draft and trade deadline.
Cody Bellinger was never a good choice for the Angels, he is another Rendone going to be signed somewhere and now we can say it’s a no-go with Arte and our team. our team. Cody has either got to be a deal & steal or your team will be on the hook for a long while.
Spring training right around the corner, I can tell as the days are starting to feel longer.
Hold on to what you got, don’t go selling your assets about until you have which could be in late July and will bring considerably more, of course unless dinged. but now is the time for all good pitchers to come to the aide of their team. 😀
Jettison Suarez and Rengifo for whatever you can get, then give Rendone the Hamilton treatment.
If they gave Rendon the Hamilton treatment, I doubt he plays for someone else. He’d just take the paycheck and golf.
I’m fine with him just playing golf. As long as he stays away from the clubhouse and team.
Golf is 18 holes. That must be too long for him.
😂
Miniature Golf?
Yes! CLUBHOUSE CANCER speculation and innuendo! Finally.
He’d be available for less than 30 minutes-Someone would pay him minimum MLB wage to play 3rd/Malcontent on their team.
Rengifo would net quite a lot because he’s good lol.
King Luis will be the starting 3rd baseman by May.
Comparing Bellinger to Rendon is a terrible comp in my opinion. Bellinger ended his season and went right back to work. Rendon doesn’t even want to go to work. I have some highly respected insider friends who think Bellinger figured it out and could improve on last season getting back to his MVP numbers. Rendon looks completely done to me. He got his paycheck and has checked out. You’d think when Arte was spending money he’d have done his due diligence and found out ex-teammates say he doesn’t even like the game.
Lest we forget that Bellinger figured it out with the help of our new hitting coach.
Interesting factoid…thanks 26.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_Washington_(baseball_coach)
Would somebody please explain to me WTF a rebuild even is? Rendone, Tyler Anderson and the GOAT have virtually negative value unless Arte wants to eat mega dollars, TBW has questionable value since people don’t know even if he’ll ever hit at a major league level again. Pretty much every young asset the Angels possess already have been rushed to the majors and are part of this year’s plans. So what does that leave? Should we trade Charlie Sheen and Brandon Drury for a couple of Single A+ Arms? Would that make the “Let the rebuild beginners” happy? There is no-one Ive mentioned above that is blocking a budding minor leaguer to play in the bigs.
Perry’s philosophy of aggressively promoting recent draft picks ( and international signees) is essentially a rebuild in progress. So unless all of the sudden Perry changes course and starts drafting a High School daycare program and trading away the likes of O’Hoppe, Neto, Schanuel, Detmers, Sandoval and Moniak for snot nose minor league prospects this clamoring for a rebuild is just white noise.
The rebuild commenced in August/September of last season.
How people don’t see this reality is vexing.
What is vexing is how it didn’t start in July at the trade deadline.
Or some might even say in 2015…
Fair enough, but ownership was all-in on winning now with Ohtani. Once they fell out – and injuries required it – the youth movement commenced.
Ownership went all in holding a 7-2 unsuited. And they lost. What a shock.
Because what Perry is doing isn’t the “prototypical” rebuild.
Imo, Perry has clearly realized by now Arte won’t invest in the minors in the ways Perry needs to be successful like he saw during his time in TOR and ATL.
Perry is drafting and bringing in players he believes can be developed at the MLB-level. It’s a different approach to rebuilding forsure. I think it’s kinda revolutionary/transformative, pushing prospects this quickly.
SP – Detmers, Sandy, Canning, Silseth
RP – Joyce, Soriano
C – O’Hoppe
1B – Schanuel
2B – Paris
SS – Neto
3B –
OF – Trout, Moniak, Adell
The rebuild has been underway lol.
Is Perry’s approach revolutionary or simply pragmatic based on the hand he’s been dealt?
It seems to me that he’s taking guys with a higher floor and potentially lower ceiling in exchange for increasing his odds at finding “decent-to-good” starters now – because the team does indeed need starters now.
I’d say both pragmatic and potentially revolutionary {if it works}