Merry Christmas! Have some links!
Angels News
Jared Tims thinks highly of Gabriel Davalillo. The 2025 international signee is giving hope for the future.
MLB Network picks Ben Joyce to be the breakout player of 2025. Oh no, expectations!
Around Baseball
Japanese Christmas is still romance first, but how can you not be romantic about Baseball? Especially when you can win this is a raffle?
Zimbabwe is getting into baseball and the Giants sent a coach to help them out. They finished 3rd in the African qualifiers for the Tokyo Olympics and there will be Baseball at the LA Olympics in 2028, so time is of the essence.
MLB Umps got a new 5 year CBA deal pending ratifying in January. Aw, I wanted Robo umps…
Cards, Padres, and Twins have done squat this offseason. Yes, even the Pirates have done more, somehow.
On Christmas Eve 1969, Curt Flood kickstarted a change that would change Baseball forever by writing to the Commissioner of Baseball to suggest Free Agency. It would take a lot more than that, but eventually the Reserve Clause would be struck down in 1975, and Free Agency would be a thing. Curt Flood will never be in the HOF. The Owners still hate his guts to this day. But he got the ball rolling, even if he was out of Baseball before then.
Anything I missed? Post below for upvotes!
Merry Christmas, ya filthy animals. And a Happy New Year!
Did anyone find a competent ball club under their tree? No?
Shame.
hey we got
Merry Christmas to you too!
How long until the retirement community notices they’re gone?
Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa, and anything else to all of the Halo Faithful. I personally, being a former math teacher, celebrate the birthday of the inventor of calculus, Sir Isaac Newton. Remember, if you drink, don’t derive!
we definitely need to check our work for that 15 bWAR Wash calculation
Clearly somebody dropped a few decimal points at random. Harrumph.
I woke up to no shiny new trades or signings under the tree. Oh well, Merry Christmas and maybe next year.
Merry Xmas CTPG faithful. Silly Xmas wish: Arte sells team to Elon Musk who is too busy making space rockets and just gives Perry an open checkbook to improve the team. First transaction: trade and sign Vlad Jr, bring the son home to Anaheim! Enjoy today with family and friends, best Christmas wishes to all.
HO! HO HO!
You know that the whole HO HO HO thing is based on a mistake. Elves overheard Santa, but they didn’t realize he was going over his list of very bad girls.
Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!
I really hope Santa brings us more prospects this year. A healthy Trout would be nice too.
Enjoy your day.
mlb.com’s Christmas wish for MNT is 600 at bats.
The recipient: Mike Trout
The gift: 600 plate appearances
It’s been an exercise in frustration and disappointment for all involved — fans, the Angels, certainly Trout himself — to see a generational star unable to stay on the field. Trout racked up the most WAR in history (72.5, per Baseball-Reference) through a position player’s age-27 campaign but has averaged just 64 games and 275 plate appearances since then. Trout has, for the first time, expressed a willingness to shift to a corner outfield spot or even spend time at DH in service of staying healthy in 2025 and beyond. If the result is keeping his still-potent bat in the Angels’ lineup, Trout could reach some big career numbers next season (400 homers, 1,000 RBIs, 90 WAR) — and remind everyone why he spent nearly a decade as the best player in the sport.