Now, onward to 400 homers! The Angels had excellent luck about injuries to starting pitchers this year. Anyone familiar with Yoan Moncada’s career knew that luck would not extend to the position players. Soler and Taylor are officially on the IL. Time will tell about Moncada’s boo boo. Scott Kingery and Gustavo Campero got called up on Saturday.
The Dodgers just released veteran reliever Lou Trivino. The Braves acquired Erick Fedde from the Cardinals for cash and/or a player to be named later. The Mets DFAd left-hander Jose Castillo yesterday.
The Reds just lost the services of right-hander Carson Spiers to a yet to be determined form of UCL procedure.
Photo credit: Rex Fregosi
https://www.yahoo.com/sports/mlb/breaking-news/article/longtime-cubs-star-hall-of-famer-ryne-sandberg-dies-after-cancer-battle-012806809.html
Bobby Grich should be in the HOF
Definitely.
Regarding the leaving California discussion. I lived in California all my life until four years ago. Was a great place to grow up, awww.. the glorious central Cali beaches. Great place to start a business, and of course go to Anaheim Stadium. I remember seeing Jim Fregosi and the boys.
But I had had enough, high taxes, smothering regulations, crime, homeless everywhere, high cost of everything. I found a beautiful place in NW Arkansas, built a Home and love it. The only regret I have is not doing it sooner. So much less expensive, beautiful lakes and rivers, very freindly people – they wave at you with five fingers ! But I still pull for the California Angels, listen to them on the satellite, live listening to Terry and Mark. I really like reading this site, you guys have amazing knowledge and insights, and funny! Keep it up.
Now Perry, get a damn third baseman who can actually play.
I remember when nobody ever talked about leaving CA, but now everybody does. If my kids leave, I’ll follow and both have been a little excited by the idea. I suppose I could subscribe to MLB TV and see all the games. That would be another incentive.
No Moncada in the lineup. He has 70 hours to get healthy enough to be traded.
Neto SS
Trout DH
Schanuel 1B
Ward LF
Adell RF
O’Hoppe C
Rengifo 2B
Campero RF
Newman 3B
Campero RF continues to start ahead of Lugo. Is that good?
🤷🏼♂️
Brayan Vergara starting at the Papago Sports Complex
Born: 12/21/2005 in Chitre, Panama
The
Stanley Cupwhatever they give the ACL champ must be in the house,Box says First Pitch is 111 F, Clear. They will have to win it without me.
we won’t have Fermin around to blame for loses, until he’s called back up
José Fermin was optioned to make room for Jack Kochanowicz.
https://x.com/JeffFletcherOCR/status/1949946178486829273
He’s talented but still young. I think he’s a good foundational BP guy in the years to come.
Good stuff, great velocity, but raw and inexperienced. Can’t really blame him for being in over his head.
Weelp, the Rays just Rayed the shit out of stuff. Two trades for two prospects I would have liked to get for our junk.
I’m not sure that Perry is way over his head, these are the type that making trades for some promising down the road. TA, Hendricks, etc
Rangers are 8-1, post All Star break
For today’s game:
deGrom has faced Angels 3 times, going 1-0, 2.25 ERA, 19 Ks
For the season, he’s 10-2, 2.28 ERA
Kochanowicz is back – yikes!
He’s faced Rangers 4 times, going 0-4, 7.97 ERA, 5Ks
For the season, he’s 3-9, 6.03 ERA
Our chances for a win are slim and none.
I’m betting on the latter.
(sigh)……
Is Slim still in town inquiring minds want to know 😆
During the winter I was hoping that we would sign Hays, but he ended up in Cincinnati, but on a one year deal I think. Good fill in for ward but only if Ward can bring something very good in trade. No one here would suggest trading Ward for less value except maybe Cowboy, he-he-he
It’s 2:00 pm, eating an In-N-Out Animal style cheeseburger and wondering where are the damn Angel trades…someone please ping Perry.
2:00 pm here or in Tennessee where In-N-Out is escaping to? I’m sure Arte or the next Angel owner will threaten to follow suit when their demands to the City are not met.
Amen, who in their right mind would want to leave California?
I left my mind and still want out. 🤒 🙃 😖
I left decades ago and now live in Oregon where they seem to want to adopt much of the same stupid crap that has so damaged California. For those of you that are too young to remember, California and especially Orange County was an amazing place to be a kid in the 70s.
Washington State same Cali ideas. Property in Montana his skyrocketed because of Cali, ditto Arizona and Nev. But I’m thinking of somewhere that they have at least minor league baseball would work.
We visited Idaho last summer where they refer to us as COWs as in CA,OR,WA. It’s not a term of endearment.
It’s a tough deal as so many of the people and places we love are here. The policies are leading me to believe that I’ll never truly own my home even after my mortgage is gone as they will make me a virtual share cropper with ever increasing property taxes.
That’s an important point. Back when rates were good we refinanced, got cash and a lower monthly payment. Otherwise we’d own the house outright by now but still paying those rising property taxes.
I’m licensed to lend in Oregon and Washington and some of the property tax bills I see in WA are worse than ones I see in OC.
There’s no Shangri La. There’s just a bunch of pros and cons in each place and you figure out which pros and cons are most meaningful to you.
Not that I would do it…but Huntsville, Ala. Space City, Aerospace jobs, Panda games, cheap taxes, insurance and free of the discourses you see on the Left Coast. Yeah, not perfect but if shit keeps getting worse, property values will keep climbing. I have some investment properties down near Mobile, cash flow good due to the low cost for ownership. Baldwin County, one of the largest growing counties there is.
I talked to my bride about that area as well. She locked up on hurricanes and humidity 🙂
My childhood best friend moved there about 15 years ago and is quite happy with all but the humidity during the summer.
Huntsville is great. If you like mountains and lakes. If I manage to find a job there’d I’d be in the car in two weeks.
Yah, Washington State has enacted the highest increases in the country. It’s similar to Cali as It goes beyond that where sensible is an endangered species. Many of my clients who own business are being systematically hassled to the point where they shutter or move elsewhere.
They don’t have state tax though do they?
No, we lived in SW Washington for 21 years. No income tax in WA but they kill you with property taxes, gov fees, sales tax and small taxes. I haven’t checked recently but they were always neck and neck with Oregon in overall tax burden.
I think CA is still the leader in tax burden along with NY but the north west is closing in quickly.
Shenandoah Valley Virginia. We have a place on Smith Mountain Lake to satisfy our need to splash. The ocean is 3 hours away. Skiing is 90 minutes away during the winter. You get four seasons, to include steamy summer days. If one misses the politcal games, DC is only 3 hours away. Lots of history to see and experience. The cost of living is reasonable.
It’s not Shangri La, but it’s on the road to Shangri La.
Beautiful scenery there, with very likeable people from what I remember. The unique to that area accent had me a falling for a few of those southern girls back when.
Been through there on tour a few times. It’s really nice. Always like stopping off there.
Property taxes are the only thing CA can’t go nuts on, but bonds, gas, income, sales and all other taxes are bad. Look up “effective tax burden”… last time I looked CA was 4th. I would save $20k a year moving or N. Carolina and I’m just a teacher.
It’s my 53rd summer in the Sonoran desert, and it’s the end of July. And year after year I say the same thing:
hell with this, I’m moving to the coast
I think I’d be cool with never seeing the sun again and do google searches on the foggiest parts of SoCal – it’s getting closer.
There are still some remote areas of the Central California coast that have always appealed to me. I’m not sure about restrictions or land values but there seems to be a lot of open spaces.
You better be a billionaire. Even in crap towns like Lompoc. You better be rich.
It’s 70F in CrapTown right now and 108F in Phoenix.
i started hard thinking about it this past weekend (annual tradition) and will do it
. eventually.
Serious question- is there an area along the SoCal coast that is foggier than others? What I can tell, besides Avalon, the coast from San Diego upwards is basically the same till Ventura?
would anyone say that particular points get more fog than other points in OC, SD, or LA?
Jeff said it – what is most meaningful to you?
Right now, a foggy day .
If you want fog, go north of Tomales Bay to Eureka. North.
its beautiful up there but its too far north. the more I think about it, the Monterey Bay would be about as far north as I’d want to go
Some areas between Ventura and Santa Barbara, around Mussel Shoals, but probably expensive .
The wife and I are retiring up there next year
Nice! My wife has six more years, then we will decide if we are going to move or not.
I’m up in SF right now and it’s been like our winters. Rained this morning.
😂
They may have minor league baseball, but I don’t recommend Oklahoma.
Well if it wasn’t for greedy bastard baseball owners and their Henchman Manfraud there still would be short season baseball in all kinds of those places. TBW is right on the money that have changed baseball for the worst:
https://x.com/TaylorBlakeWard/status/1946596175291052305
I don’t fault the owners for restricting how much they pay out by reducing minor league teams. There used to be hundreds of teams, but TV did the majority of cutting. If smaller towns wanted to support independent leagues they could, but that’s an expensive proposition.
Just getting back from Cooperstown, I can tell you that upstate New York is beautiful, gas was between $2.85 and $3.00 a gallon. A nice house with property is around 400k or less unless you are in Albany or one of the other few large cities. Of course there is the downside of lots of snow in the winter.
Born in 1971, I have lived in the San Gabriel Valley my entire life. For California, IMHO, the juice is no longer worth the squeeze. Has not been for a couple of decades now. The only thing keeping us here is that my wife LOVES her job, and she cannot work remotely. Once I retire, we are outta here.
It’s really heartbreaking that we corporately through action or inaction allowed people, mostly unelected to redirect our realities. We have a great house amongst the fir trees with a beautiful mountain view that my wife and I adore. We are coming to the same place in our mindset, knowing that soon we must make a move.
Anybody who doesn’t want to pay all the taxes CA charges…
The Tennessee Angels. New stadium, right next to Dollywood. New owner, Dolly Parton. Rocky Top played before home game. Stadium Ushers are called Volunteer’s. Winner Free Whiskey Nights. Buy 4 season seats and you get a big, long hug from Dolly. PTP remains as GM, only drafts players from University of Tennessee (New trAdition…kind of). Trout owns Palace on top of the Smoky Mountains. All done in secret, moving vans will pull up in the middle of the night…We later learn Arte has been dead for years, family members claimed they wanted their privacy…. I give this a 50/50 shot of coming true. And your Ippei Bucks won’t be good in the state of Tennessee.
If they do move to Nashville, I might be able to make a home game once a season.
You mean the city that bent way over and said “give it to me big boy” to Walt Disney, and his legacy company? And still does to this day, claiming it is a “benefit” to exempt Disney from the rules others are made to comply with.
Then… in an attempt to become “big-league”, built a beautiful, state fo the art (in 1965) stadium at their taxpayers expense for the “Beloved Cowboy” Gene Autry?
Then… ruined that great baseball stadium (at taxpayer expense) for Carrol Rosenbloom and the Rams?
.
Then… floated bonds the taxpayers of Anaheim are still paying to “fix” the stadium for Walt Disney’s Company?
That city? Yeah, they will cave, although I have not heard of any “demands”.
There could be some interesting castoffs from other teams that Perry could swoop up.
The Mets are reportedly shopping Vientos and will need to clear on of him or Baty, possibly Acuna if they add a position player. I’d gladly scoop up any of the three if the price is low.
The Dodgers roster is full. If they make a trade, somebody will need to go.
I’m not talking about adding stars, but some guys who can replace and possibly improve what we have might need to be moved.
Vientos looked like an emerging star last year but has regressed significantly this year. Baty was a top prospect who lost his future 3B job to Vientos last year but Baty has been okay this year. Either of them would be worth the Angels taking a chance on. I know less about Acuna other he has some speed but has struggled at the plate. I am just not sure what the Mets would want for any of them.
I misread this as “And will need to clear him off on eBay” 😀
Don’t they already have a defensively challenged third baseman with plummeting offensive numbers in Rengifo? Even if they can fix the bat, his defense looks to be a big issue.
Rengifo is a free agent after this year and is making $5.95 million. This would be an attempt to get a younger player who might develop into something and pay him $775k.
I get it. I’m just not a big believer in guys getting massively better as infield defenders at the big league level. Third base is brutally difficult and seems to be a spot where guys either have it or don’t.
The Mets’ Trade Winds are blowing?
Basically league average players that can give us quality innings/at bats. I’ve been ringing this bell for the past couple of weeks. Obviously we need to re-stock the minors as much as possible but, we also need some major league ready players – particularly if we move on from guys like Ward/Jansen.
Jansen sure because he’s likely leaving via FA but what kind of mlb ready OF can we get to replace Ward. A younger, not as good OF with a lower salary and longer control but I’m looking at the “not as good”. That’s why I’d prefer a higher ceiling prospect
I think we need some combination of both. If the prospect is ranked on the higher side, we can go that route. If the prospect is on the lower side, we can go with the MLB ready player. This team has enough holes to warrant both paths IMO.
Look no further than our current blackhole in RF (and 3B) ????
Almost anything would be preferable to Wade Jr. in the OF.
just looking around the league, 3B is a black whole for a large majority. Used to be Catcher was the quickest way to the pro’s, now starting to fade to the hot corner.
Turk’s has brought up the possibility of Cassie from the Cubs. There’s a chance the Phillies would trade Crawford.
It is pretty easy to see them both putting up 2-3WAR seasons in different ways. Cassie is more well rounded, hits for less power than Ward but plays better defense and gets on base a bit more. Crawford has insane speed and plays CF well but has no power whatsoever.
We could use either skillset and the $10 million in savings to get players at other positions of need.
Or we can go for a package like Abel and Kemp from Philly to fill a rotation spot and LF at MLB average production, shoring up a couple of holes and using the funds saved to buy a higher priced player.
I do think Caissie and Crawford both have a lot of suitors though, and are highly valued by their respective orgs. Not that Bowden knows much, but he was poopooing a Ward for Crawford swap just today in his trade deadline Q+A.
Reds might be a better match, but I don’t know that Perry has much of a connection there. Royals moreso, but there’s not much I like in their system.
None. We will not get an MLB ready OF to replace Ward necessarily. We are rebuilding.
Yes, just increase the size of the OF prospect pool. Can always find a Juan GG Lagares to fill a spot.
They took away 40% of Lagares’ production when he no longer got to hit versus the Angels. He owned the Angels.
castoffs!
we need everything almost and Perry loves castoffs! I could easily see us make a minor trade with the intent of shoring up the 40-man.
😮 Cleveland Ippeis
Clase suspension too
Technically- non disciplinary player leave.
It’s probably an honest mistake. It’s not like rule 21 is posted in both English and Spanish in every MLB clubhouse.
Maybe that’s why they let Shohei get away with it? Is rule 21 posted in Japanese?
FREE IPPEI !
Congratulations to Mike Trout on his 1000 RBIs. He now ranks 306 on the leader board.
I think you’re being sarcastic but, he does figure to pass Tim Salmon over the next month or so.
And GA will be DOA soon enough as well.. Mike will go down as the all-time RBI leader and let’s pray that we can get someone to overtake Mike.
62nd all time in HRs. Why the disparity? A lot of solo HRs?
According to BA, 250 solo homers, 105 with a single runner on base, 35 with two men on base, and 6 grand slams.
The angels use their aaa team to stock pile shit players there to call up when injuries happen.
Maybe Jensen’s value increased a bit?
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/07/guardians-closer-emmanuel-clase-administrative-leave-gambling-investigation-mlb.html
Yah saw that and was like “uh oh”. Hurray!
I’d settle for this guy: https://www.mlb.com/milb/prospects/guardians/angel-genao-694197
Yes. Me too.
No matter how good he gets with someone else, if we insist on using him as a reliever, he needs to be traded.
In a heartbeat.
Went to the sim, Genoa has a value of 26.9. That’s basically the combined value of Detmers and Joswa Lugo.
Considering Cleveland’s history of developing pitching, we might look back on this with disgust (like when we handed them Clevinger). But if Detmers is a reliever at this point, trading 3 years of him for 6 of a quality infielder makes sense.
🚀🚀🚀
Any chance he was taking Iglesias and Helsleys bets?
I would have paid to see Harper kick Manfred’s ass
https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/45842533/sources-phillies-bryce-harper-tells-mlb-boss-get-clubhouse
Mike just bit his lip and stared at him silently. He seemed like he wanted to punch him though. This is Spring 2019, when Bobby said Mike wasn’t doing enough to rep the game at 2018 AS Game.
https://flic.kr/p/2rjk5xf
I guess he’s doing even less now since he wasn’t even selected to play in it as one of those honorary type guys.
No kidding Sherlock. 👇
I guess when into that perspective, it is really impressive, considering Trout hasn’t had a fully healthy season since 2019 (which he still won MVP), except for the shortened 2020 year.
He missed almost 2 seasons worth of RBIs (2021 and 2024), and only had a half season in 2023. So to reach 1000 in his 10th year is actually quite impressive indeed.
That notes continues to re-enforce Blum is a POS. This is how the starts his report this morning. He never did mention #1000.
Mike Trout can’t play the field — and the Angels may be facing a harsh realityANAHEIM, Calif. — The timeline for Mike Trout to resume playing right field keeps getting pushed back, with little explanation.
First, it was supposed to coincide with his return from the injured list on May 30. Then, he needed a short time to ramp up. When that didn’t happen, the 33-year-old superstar said he hoped to come back after the All-Star break. Then, when the team returned home from its most recent trip.
None of that has happened. And currently, Trout is not preparing to play defense, citing soreness in his left knee — the same knee that needed two meniscus surgeries last season, sidelining him for five months in 2024 and one month in 2025.
“Still trying to get back out there, for sure,” Trout said on Sunday morning. “But when I ramped up the intensity, it was getting more sore. I’m just trying to stay in the lineup. … I feel it a lot.”
The question now is if Trout will ever be a regular defensive player again. As the Angels do everything they can to preserve his abilities for the duration of his contract, which runs through 2030, moving into a more regular DH role has to be on the table.
I understand you don’t like him but this is the reality the Angels face. Trout likely can’t play in the field anymore and Soler will be in RF next year. This team unfortunately is not likely to get better next year. In 2027 they’ll have an opportunity to improve but they’ll have to buy the position player improvement. And Ward will likely be gone in 2027 and be 33.
yeah. I’d say Sam kept Sam out of this one. It’s just news. Sure, he’s a little more bitch snaps about it than some guys may be, but he mostly just laid out quotes and facts.
Silly me . I thought the news yesterday was #1000.
You know, if there is a way to attach $13M Soler to a Moncada tor Jansen trade, I would do it in a heartbeat. Take lower level prospects, fine. just be gone.
Agree, no shame, 2026 Trout is full-time DH like his only mentor.
Hockey does this but there isn’t a cap here in MLB
Otherwise we could throw Schauny and Tony2-19 into a packet.
Yeah, quit whining about Blum. You sound like a jilted lover.
His points are valid. You just disagree. That isn’t a “him” issue. It’s a “you” issue.
God forbid he report what is happening accurately. If you want fake news click over to Fox on your cable subscription – which you probably still have.
Whiny looks bad on you.
If Soler is your starting right fielder, you probably are not getting into the playoffs.
Buh buh but! Transparency? Everything about this is cool because Trout’s saying a bunch of words that mean he is a real man of baseball even if he is likely NOT gonna play the field very much…. possibly for the rest of his career. Right? He’s saying right thing. CtPG guy is happy now. No? Trout is trying very hard with his mouth. I know I’m soothed.
If he came out and just said “My knee is trash. I’m gonna be a DH pretty much all the time now. But at least I can still hit. I don’t want to have surgery again. It hurts. I also love being able to walk and stuff because I have kids and baseball’s just part of my life, not the whole thing.” He’d be a total asshole.
Honestly, no issues with this article.
Trouty should be the full-time DH for the remainder of his career. Soler acquisition was a miss because of this.
Not to bother mentioning 1000 RBI is just a complete whiff.
It’s a significant achievement but he can’t be bothered with such trivial matters—- the main thing is to just piss
Sam isn’t a fan of Art or his team, often shows that more than reporting, he’s often 100% correct with his opinions. But Sam likely is a real dick. I doubt getting to know him would change that. And he does have a treasure trove of things to bitch about. And I still think this is one of the most secretive teams in all professional sports. And that lends itself to a level of much criticism and speculation….. Shit, we have a manager that’s dropped off the face of the earth without as much of a hint of what’s ailing him. We don’t need to know all the details, but I can’t imagine a franchise in any sport go this long without some explanation. That is Arte MO, or whoever is in charge.
Yes, I commented last week that the Angels might well have a vision for the future, they might well have rebuilt their scouting and they might have improved minor league instruction, etc. But if they have, they do absolutely nothing to try to tell the fans the vision and how they are moving toward that vision. Thus, we are left on a blog to speculate about what is and is not happening and we criticize and have theories, etc.
It leaves all kinds of room for as Gitcho likes to call them “Tin Foil Sombreros” speculators…. Along with zero winning to distract us and absent of any PR for over a decade, makes CTPG guy lean heavily on assumption and negative doubt. But, I’ll take what appears to be an uptick in player development and new influx of young players to give us hopium for the coming years…Who knows, maybe we’ll be distracted with a winning organization in another 7 years and we’ll forget the last 15 years….which by then, will be 22 years of sucking.
I’ll be here following along!
-trAdition
To be fair, the Angels PR Dept was really busy managing their side business.
Not to cape to hard for Same Old Hat here, but he did cover the 1000 RBIs in stories about 1000 RBIs. He even talked to Trout about it.
THIS story is about something else.
I only expect Roger Lodge to write a story about how Trout’s knees are toast and start it with “Mike Trout got his 1000th RBI!”.
Honestly, writing daily fluff pieces isn’t the dude’s job. That’s the job of Jeff Fletcher and Rhett Bollinger, who need to crank out daily reportage.
Blum’s job, like the rest of The Athletic team writers, is to write longform features 2-4x a week, not game by game coverage. He’s more akin to a magazine writer for a weekly periodical than a regional beat reporter
That’s the nature of the Athletic. It may not be everybody’s bag, but it’s also meatier in many ways than what Sports Illustrated has become – basically low paid interns cranking out cheap versions of CtPG’s daily News Crash.
It continues to puzzle me how much shit Blum gets for saying exactly what the overwhelming majority of us on this blog say and think every day. He’s far more aligned with the fanbase than any other writer out there. Jeff Fletcher just trolls the fanbase daily, while pumping out front office PR nuggets and justifying chronic failure in a manner often far more snarky and condescending than Blum, who seems to actually empathize with long-suffering fans.
That’s a straight up news piece. In fact, that’s a lot nicer than many of the snarky comments I’ve made about players here.
At this point the Angels need to assume Trout is a DH until/unless he proves otherwise.
Sam is writing in an inflammatory way so he gets clicks and doesn’t lose his paycheck.
If Trout doesn’t want to publicize why he’s not out there yet the Angels aren’t obligated by any measure to tell Sam or anyone.
Sam…everybody is writing, everything in an inflammatory way, everywhere. It’s our internet version of the blue pill.Check out Bollingers take on the trade plans versus Blums and let me know if they’re both inflammatory.
Perry must be super high on Jack.
Bullpen days on his turn of the rotation instead of replacing him.
Brought him up after ONE game in the minors to “work through some things”.
That, or Perry might just be simply high.
Nolan Schanuel age-23 season:
.282 / .369 / .403
116 OPS+
11.9% K rate
10.7% BB rate
1.9 WAR
Such a cool player, especially on our strikeout-heavy roster. I am holding out hope that Nolan can tap into a little more power while keeping his same approach.
If he kicks it into gear and hits .290 with 15 HR and 40 doubles in his age 23 season I am gonna be so pissed because we could have had Tommy Troy or Matt Shaw. I swear it seems like folks think that if PTP had intended to pass on Nolan then Paul Skenes would have magically fallen to us.
I just think he’s at his ceiling today. He’s Aubrey Huff or Phil Nevin without the power production, which isn’t bad. He’ll have a 10+ year career if he can continue to get on base at the rate he’s delivering today.
I’ve always thought of him as James Loney, with an upside of Eric Hosmer.
Yeah, sure, because players always peak at 23. So far, his arc is much more Olerudian than Nevian. https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/o/olerujo01.shtml
Olerud is a good comp too.
Still think, maybe a “really-really poor man’s” Fred Freeman…. Angel poor vs Doyer rich comparison.
Yea really poor!
I’d love me some Olerud.
Poor man’s Olerud as well. If he fielded like Olerud the comp would be closer. We’ll see where Schanny ends up and what he does next year.
Olerud was a witch with the glove. Schanny, not so much.
Crazy note that Olerud had a higher 162 game average WAR than Ichiro. To be fair to Ichiro, he played for a number of years with almost no WAR impact.
Now that would be a smash outcome
Olerud is a stretch comp.
Some players peak early in their career, some late. Some never peak at all. When Schanuel was drafted he was tagged as a “high floor” player. He was never thought of as a player that was going develop into a power hitter.
Schanuel is a what you see is what you get player: he’ll get on base, doesn’t strike out, and plays good defense. All that is good. I’m just saying there’s no basis in past performance (or Halo player development prowess) to expect Schanuel to start trending to 20 HRs per season and a career OPS+ 129 hitter.
Nolan is the least of the Angels’ problems right now – he has hit, he has fielded well (eye test) and he has stayed healthy.
And yes, if he can sustain that K% with some 15-20 HRs splashed there, that would be really good.
What I like about Nolan this season is he is practicing some conscious situational hitting (eye test). Men on base? He tries to hit it where the ball would find a hole, and he’s not necessarily trying to clear the bases. Bases empty? Then he gives himself more leeway to take a hack at it. 2-strike count? He’d go for a cheap hit just so he’s not out.
Since the Angels have lived and died by the HR this season, a hitter like Nolan is a very underrated gem
He is also competitive. Which you’d think CtPG Guy would love. He gets mad. He gets happy. He runs like a 70 year old, but with grit.
Let’s see what happens but I expect a slow week on the transaction front.
Perry only seems to want to move rentals and ours don’t have much value.
Quick thoughts —
Kenley has been nails all year and is one of the greatest closers of all time. I will be disappointed if he doesn’t fetch a good return (even moreso if Perry holds onto him).
Getting TA off this team is high-priority so Mederos gets a shot in the rotation. I can’t quit him lol.
Doubt we trade Ward. Would like to be surprised tho.
Burke could be worth something seeing what relievers with years of control have gone for.
sad sammy says this morning between Trout and Soler, our RF situation is a mess.
so trading away LF Ward is NOT the key to the week.
Only thing I hope for this week is my dream of Giffy to the Bronx for anyone sniffing NYY Top 30 list. I’d be OK keeping the rest, but if Jansen brings a return, do it!
When rebuilding “but then XYZ will not be good” isn’t much of a trade consideration. If he gets offered a some solid position prospects for Ward he’s gotta do it. Then we can just suffer through a pile of Adell + Soler/Trout/Lugo/Paris for a few weeks.
That is correct. Rebuilding means getting guys who can help us in the future, and any short-term setbacks and largely irrelevant, except to Minasian who is desperately trying to keep his job.
The Soler signing was nothing more than a “hope and a prayer” that he could have a resurgence.
It clearly didn’t happen.
Regardless of Sammy, the fact remains that our sub-500 record is not purely due to the play in RF. There’s more pressing needs.
we are gonna have holes in the starting 9. I’m no scientist, but my guess is because the team’s not very good.
For “not being scientist”, your analysis is sound. 😂
I also concur Mr Dr,
My advice to our fans is to start drinking heavily.
Again, can’t find fault with such sound advice.
RF will be a mess no matter what happens with LF. If we can snag Cassie from the Cubs that likely solves one problem for the next 6 years.
If we could get Cassie and one of Baty, Vientos, or Genao, we look younger and cheaper going forward. I would like to see something aggressive like this. We have the resources to do it without creating more holes.
It would take Ward and Moncada to land Cassie. But Cassie takes Ward’s spot and Moncada is a free agent, so net win.
No idea on Baty, but likely a prospect of some note.
Genao would hurt. Like Detmers and Joswa Lugo combined but he’s the type of player we don’t have. And as much as I like the new Detmers, Arte can buy another quality reliever easier than finding a young stud infielder.
With a Baty, Neto, Genoa, Schanuel infield with Moore in the wings, this team would be young and dynamic.
I absolutely agree. Ward’s value is if you’re winning this year or next and as I’ve stated before, if we’re not going to use Detmers as a starter, he doesn’t have nearly as much value.
I’m actually on the trade Adell while he has value bandwagon as well. Package him with Jansen and Anderson.
The decision on Adell is whether or not a slash line of mid-230’s average, OBP in the .300 range, 30 HRs, and league average with the glove is enough. If he fits with the surrounding cast, great. If not, move him.
Assuming he can replicate that annually and he’s going to be costing more money, and I believe he’s gone after 2027. It makes sense to trade him now if there are people interested especially after June. He’s already on the way back down.
Yup. Though, other than Ward, who really is just a longer term rental, I get it. I’m not gonna fault him for looking at the progress the current crop of Utes has made and not wanting to up end it. The veteran rentals have all been pretty ungood compared to other guys on the market. It’s unfortunate but it’s what he’s stuck with.
Just get what we can for em you punk rock platypus you.
Having watched the series against the Mariners, you can see the logic behind the overall framework of Perry’s draft. The Halos simply don’t have enough pitching. Yes, they managed a split and had some good performances. But they need young, close to MLB ready guys both as starters and relievers. And they need depth for the next several years — that’s where some of the HS arms come in.
Do they have enough day-to-day hitting? Not really. But it’s better than it has been in a long time. Neto is quality. Adell has emerged. Trout is looking at least like a decent aging player. Ward is Ward. Schanuel contributes and is a nice change of pace as a lefty and someone that makes contact a lot. Catching as to hitting is solved for now and 2026. Rengifo is fine. That leaves 3B and one OF position to upgrade for 2026 assuming Moore comes back and is the 2B in 2026. Anyway, it’s manageable and they could get upgrades. Rendon’s money comes off after next year, too. That frees up sizable space.
We will see as always. But they have an outline of something that could work eventually.
I’d like to see Framber signed for awhile. That and 3B is where my big FA Arte bucks go this Winter.
When we had Kole (RF) and Mike (CF) for a while last decade, I remember the revolving door(mats) in LF. Hopefully Taylor is re-signed, but need something beyond Soler (obviously). Rada?
Right now IF is:
Shauns is on first, Moore is on second, and I Don’t Know is on third.
A Third Baseman? How about a 29 year All Star coming off of a 1.010 OPS Season?
Wait we already tried that with Anthony Rendon.
TonyTwoNineteen
But clearly everything was pointing to Covid shortening his one good season with us and then him having major injuries for years and years. Everyone could see it because he’d had one injury before.
We need to be the team that only signs 27 year old free agents who have never had a stint longer than 10 days on the IL.
Yes that’s a good plan.
Ward will be 33-years of age as a UFA. I know he came up through the system and is a great guy but Angels need to think hard about paying into a multi-year deal.
It’s gonna be a big deal if Detmers can lengthen out. Also a big deal if Mederos or Johnson comes to ST ready to go in the rotation. Or Silent C gets fixed.
Koochi
Soriano
Detmers
Could be a sneaky solid rotation base, like the D Backs before Burnes.
It would be nice if Bremner spends at least a year in the minors…..
The 2025 draft isn’t going to make a difference at the major league level for three or four years at the earliest.
We have so many needs that it’s foolish for a GM to focus one draft “just on <insert position here>”
I suspect that is part of why PTP drafts a lot of pitchers. Put em in the lap. Make em look good. Some develop into arms for us, but some also become trade pieces that fill a couple needs sooner rather than later.
Not my favorite idea because pitching prospects are not as valuable as position players now. But there it is.
That and this is now a bullpen game and bullpen arms are getting expensive. Plus they break a lot.
I think he’s shooting for a cost controlled bullpen with enough decent arms to weather the inevitable injuries that occur throughout the season.
Kenley and Stephenson are combining to make $21 million this season. If he could cut that in half, he’d have money for another bat.
Sad thing is, that could be half without the Stephenson gamble.
Little Red Machine 🚒 We can claim the Arizona Complex League championship tonight. We never have won this league before.We’ve never won the Southern League either, nor the PCL since 1957.
Last minor league championship is IE in 2013, a club that went 69-71 for the California League. Orem OWLZ won the Pioneer League that year and SLC made the finals too. 2013 was good.
Already thinking about going b2b in ACL next season 😂
I’ve been thinking about these dudes as 2026 Rancho Cucamonga Quakes – California League Champions.
But being scarred by 1982 and 1986, it’s not a done deal – they need to win one of the next two on the road.
Did we produce any MLB All-Stars from our multiple 2013 minor league championship teams?
Nope.
663rs: R. J. Alvarez, Cam Bedrosian, Anthony Bemboom, Peter Bourjos, Sean Burnett, Alberto Callaspo, Chad Cordero, Jairo Díaz, Tommy Hanson, Kevin Jepsen, Sherman Johnson, Mark Lowe, Ryan Madson, Mike Morin, Tony Peña, Drew Rucinski and Eric Stamets were all players from the 2013 Inland Empire 66ers who played in the Majors during their careers.
OWLZ: Victor Alcántara, Yency Almonte, Alan Busenitz, Mike Clevinger, Kyle McGowin, Keynan Middleton, Chris O’Grady and José Rondón were all players from the 2013 Orem Owlz who played in the Majors during their careers.
Thanks – I wasn’t sure….
While no All Stars, there were a lot of solid contributors on those teams.
It would be really, really nice to have a Bourjos, Callaspo, and Jepsen in the pipeline right now.
Obviously a Clevinger would be a godsend.
But if we could get back to consistently producing MLB regulars and role players, it would both establish some depth and allow payroll to be spent on game changers.
“We’ve never won the Southern League either, nor the PCL since 1957.”
The Halos captured the PCL title in 1966 against the Tulsa Oilers. That success was a significant factor in MLB going to Seattle.
https://www.seattletimes.com/pacific-nw-magazine/seattles-last-baseball-championship-was-won-by-the-angels-in-1966/