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LA Angels Wednesday News Crash: Angels in the Court

October 15, 2025

Morning Angels fans, have some links.

Angels News

Skaggs family vs the Angels is ongoing and things are not looking good for the Angels. Opening statements include the team knowing that Eric Kay (the drug dealer under Angels employment that sold fentanyl for Skaggs) was a drug addict, including Mike Tout offering to pay for the rehab. It is a civil case, so, money and liability, not criminal.

Around Baseball

NLDS game 2 is over. Series is 2-0 Dodgers. Yoshi got a complete game. First for the Dodgers in the postseason since 2004. ALCS is 2-0 Mariners. Both home teams/higher seeds are down 2-0 in the LCS and that is unusual. First time since 1970.

Emmanuel Clase is out of Baseball. Number 1 rule is no gambling and he broke it. While his suspension has been ongoing, it is pretty much confirmed that it is enough to ban him for life.

The Qualifying Offer this season is $22.025M. That is an increase of 975K over last year.

Alex Bregman received a Qualifying Offer last year and so cannot be given one this year, as he is opting out of the rest of his contract. Pete Alonso and Cody Bellinger are also likely to be Free Agents this year who cannot get one.

Cleveland keeps Austin Hedges as he re-signs with them for 1/4M. Plus 500K of incentives.

Anything I missed? Post below for upvotes!

47 Comments

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Super Member

RexFregosi

3 hours ago

Giffy – AL Gold Glove Finalist at 2B!

CMo has a large legacy to live up to 🙂

Legend

FungoAle

1 hour ago

Reply to RexFregosi

You watch, Perry will go all-in and re-sign Giffy after this nugget

Legend

GrandpaBaseball

40 minutes ago

Reply to RexFregosi

Last at this time Adell was in the running for a GG, and now it’s Renny in the running for a GG, boy oh boy, have things really gone downhill fast. Next will be Ward or O’Hoppe in the running-YIKES STRIPES!

Legend

gitchogritchoffmypettis

4 hours ago

Looking on the bright side of life…. we actually have a draft slowly taking shape that may actually have a bunch of dudes we actually want pile up right around where we will actually pick. If you’re bored and want a little dream to dream here’s the deal…

I am actually spacing. I think we pick 12th? And then a bit earlier after the 1st round?

Anyway. Roch Chlowsky is the man and will likely go #1 unless he falls apart this spring. Not falling apart this spring is key to all these guys, of course. We won’t get the super sexy top 5 guys, but as far as my brain saying “Oh, I see how this guy could really help us sooner than later” this draft and our spot in it is actually more appealing to me than last year at pick #2.

College guys who will likely pile up around pick 12:

Chris Hocapian SS Texas A&M.
Tyler Bell, SS Kentucky
Ace Reese 3B Miss State
Gavin Grahovac 3B Texas A&M
Maddox Molony SS Oregon
Eric Becker SS Virginia

If they focus on getting a guy they know will transfer over to 3B fast then I’d be happy with all of these guys. Bell will likely be gone by pick 12, but if we got him we may want to move Neto to 3B. But that’s a nice pile of college talent that we need that will likely be around when we draft. I like all of these guys more than a HS pitcher, SS or 3B.

We will also have:
Sawyer Strosnider (TCU) and Caden Sorrell (A&M) and Chase Brunson (Tex) as OF prospects looming around when we draft too. Hell, if we are really lucky Brunson may be around for our second pick.

Who we are drafting: Jackson Flora, RHP UCSB. I’ve seen him. He is very good. We will hate this.

But all kidding aside. There’s a ton of college position player talent coming out. There are also very few spots left in our system for more pitchers. So maybe we’ll be trapped into drafting some of these guys.

Super Member

HalosFanForLife

3 hours ago

Reply to gitchogritchoffmypettis

We could end up with Savion Sims – who has such a high ceiling. Already touching 100mph and sitting not too far off. Dude is electric and could easily have more in the tank as he’s skinny as a rail. Coming out of same HS as Xavier Mitchell.

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Senator_John_Blutarsky

3 hours ago

Reply to gitchogritchoffmypettis

“Perry sez you omitted relief pitchers…..”

Super Member

HalosFanForLife

1 hour ago

Reply to Senator_John_Blutarsky

LOL

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steelgolf

3 hours ago

Reply to gitchogritchoffmypettis

Need to just start listing relief pitchers. That’s Perry’s wheelhouse.

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GrandpaBaseball

39 minutes ago

Reply to gitchogritchoffmypettis

ACE REESE, def a HOF name.

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MarineLayer

5 hours ago

Just sell, Arturo MoronO. Just sell.

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steelgolf

2 hours ago

Reply to MarineLayer

Maybe after the Skaggs issue is settled.

Member

AKA_rmhalofan

24 minutes ago

Reply to MarineLayer

Just picked up a new t-shirt. Angels script font “Sell the Team”. Nothing else on the shirt.

Editor

Legend

Jeff Joiner

5 hours ago

I’m surprised there wasn’t a settlement before reaching trial. The financial cost of the lawyers plus the PR hit for the Angels is steep. Having Skaggs drug use aired for the public and the risk of getting nothing is the downside for the family.

One side or the other was refusing to budge and I’m willing to bet that was Arte.

Super Member

ihearhowie3.0

5 hours ago

Reply to Jeff Joiner

Its an interesting one. I think the Angels’ position that Skaggs was a known drug addict — even to his family, who never alerted the team — that had 10+ drinks before snorting his pills is going to resonate with some jurors.

That said, the Skaggs side that Kay was clearly being given different freedoms than other users in the organization is compelling.

Civil trials i believe can assign a % of blame? I wouldn’t be surprised if its something like the Angels are deemed 30% responsible and cough up $60M as a result of their negligence.

Editor

Super Member

Charles Sutton

4 hours ago

Reply to ihearhowie3.0

That’s called comparative fault.

Proximate cause should be a hot topic here. It’s usually considered not foreseeable that people will commit crimes. We are all expected to stop for the red lights. I’m sure that’s why we are hearing these “everybody knew” arguments.

Editor

Legend

Jeff Joiner

3 hours ago

Reply to Charles Sutton

How cool is it we have a trial attorney on the board to help us understand this case?

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Fansince1971

55 minutes ago

Reply to ihearhowie3.0

If I had to guess, Arte is fully insured and has considerable excess coverage. His involvement in deciding whether or not to settle would be minimal. The insurance companies would make that decision based on what their counsel and management determined the exposure to be.

In some states, if a Plaintiff is 51% comparatively negligent, there is no recovery.

In California, even if a Plaintiff is 90%+ comparatively negligent, they still can recover whatever percentage is placed on the defendant. So if 90% is put on Skaggs and 10% on the Angels, then Skaggs family would recover 10% of their total damages. Again, all of this will likely be paid by insurance.

One other thing to consider, if there are multiple defendants and a jury assigns a percentage of fault to both of them, the deeper pocket has more risk. That is because there is joint liability for all economic damages – which is the largest part of the Skaggs claim. So if 1% is placed on the Angels and 50% is placed on the other defendants and those defendants dont have the money to pay their 50% – the Angels would be left to pay whatever portion of the economic damages the other defendants cannot pay due to joint liability for economic damages.

So, there are a lot of variables here. Whatever the variables, it is doubtful that Arte had any real input in settlement decisions unless he carried a huge deductible or self insured retention amount that would first have to be paid.

Last edited 53 minutes ago by Fansince1971

Super Member

AnAngelsFan

9 minutes ago

Reply to Fansince1971

The Angels’ insurance policy might have exclusions for intentional conduct and/or illegal conduct, such as an employee supplying illegal drugs to another employee.

That could be another aspect why the case has settled, because there are actually two fights: Angels/Insurance v. Skaggs and Angels v. Insurance.

Trusted Member

bobblanton

7 minutes ago

Reply to AnAngelsFan

Also sometimes insurance has a cap of what payouts would be. Another reason Arte won’t settle

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FungoAle

5 hours ago

Reply to Jeff Joiner

Cocaine wide spread usage (Pirates, Royals, Expos…etc) in the 80’s did not seem to hamper teams/cities PR.

Legend

gitchogritchoffmypettis

4 hours ago

Reply to FungoAle

Our team could use a little cocaine.

Legend

FungoAle

1 hour ago

Reply to gitchogritchoffmypettis

at least some cross-tops

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WallyChuckChili

1 hour ago

Reply to gitchogritchoffmypettis

You saying Wash used it all up?

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FungoAle

1 hour ago

Reply to WallyChuckChili

The foul and batter box lines did look a little thin

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steelgolf

1 hour ago

Reply to FungoAle

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Editor

Legend

Jeff Joiner

3 hours ago

Reply to FungoAle

Yeah, lots of thoughts on this.

That was coke, which was considered a high class party drug, back when there wasn’t as much media. Nobody died and there was no trial to air all the dirty laundry.

Skaggs is a higher profile personification of a national epidemic. I think we all know people who have died from fentanyl. I know 3.

On the one hand, I think most of us realize black market opiods are the drug equivalent of Russian roulette. At some point Skaggs was going to get a bad pill and die.

On the other hand, if the Angels knew Kay was bringing the Russian roulette game into the clubhouse and didn’t stop it, they bear some responsibility.

Yes, Tyler could have gotten his fatal pill lots of places. But he did get it from Kay.

Legend

FungoAle

1 hour ago

Reply to Jeff Joiner

Take a read back to the Pittsburgh drug trials. High visibility and the case was tried in a federal court; suspensions, jail time, etc. All I am saying is the PR hit was negligible of any.

All of this will come down to the “ownership and staff should have known” stance and see if the soft hearts of from the jurors buy it. Frankly, I think if the Angels had something to fear, they would have settled. Otherwise, take me to court. PR be damned.

Was it a bad “black market” pill Skaggs took or just a heavy amount of prescribed pills with whiskey chasers? That boy partied, big time. His wife knew of his habits.

Trusted Member

bobblanton

4 hours ago

Reply to Jeff Joiner

I think if he loses hundreds of millions in the lawsuit he sells to recover the money

Legend

gitchogritchoffmypettis

4 hours ago

Reply to bobblanton

No way man. I’ve been on these boards long enough to know that 60M to Arte is just pocket change and he won’t even care. Cause that’s how all these guys got so rich, a million doesn’t mean a million any more to them.

Editor

Super Member

Charles Sutton

4 hours ago

Reply to Jeff Joiner

Probably both sides moved some, but the gap between remained too bitter of a pill for either side to swallow at the time.

As the Jury hears testimony, the pressure will mount.

Super Member

HalosFanForLife

4 hours ago

Reply to Jeff Joiner

Me too Jeff. Lots of skeletons in the closet. Especially in a death case, I’m guessing the family will get a lot of freedom to explore the Angels TUE exemptions for Adderall and to show a pattern. They may not get to go into player details, but they can at a macro level. I believe about 10% of the league has an exemption – which is way above the adult male population. By the way, it’s much worse at some college programs where the players can be influenced, and I’ve heard it multiple times. I know the family of a college player (now pro) who was at prominent (regular top 10-25 team) where he, a pitcher, was pressured into “seeing the Doctor” to get prescribed Adderall. When he refused, they took it out on him in ways you wouldn’t believe. The player said almost every pitcher was on it (wasn’t sure how many position players).

Legend

Senator_John_Blutarsky

3 hours ago

Reply to Jeff Joiner

If Arte is going to meddle in baseball operations, there’s little doubt that Arte believes he’s the “smartest person in the room” with his legal counsel.

Super Member

PedroCerrano

2 hours ago

Reply to Senator_John_Blutarsky

I spent some years working with the founders at software start-ups who were in most cases, literal geniuses. Many of them never understood or acknowledged their blind spots and therefore lacked the ability to authentically absorb good advice. I’m not sure that Arte is that guy, however he does deeply grasp how to ignore wise counsel.

Super Member

Roy Hobbs

1 hour ago

Reply to PedroCerrano

Yes he apparently learns nothing when it comes to baseball.

Legend

Fansince1971

6 hours ago

This team is such a complete shitshow that it’s almost laughable. Add to the losing season streak, terrible Org filled with non-baseball people in top roles, laughingstock farm system and embarrassing trial the fact that Dipoto has been shown to be right, they received nothing for Ohtani and their cross-town rivals are the elite of baseball. It’s all there glaring us all in the face. Very tough time to be an Angels fan.

Super Member

BannedInLA

6 hours ago

Reply to Fansince1971

Other than all of that, we’re good. Haha

Trusted Member

Terry

8 hours ago

I read the news articles regarding the opening statements of the Skaggs vs Angels trial. I agree, it doesn’t look good for the Angels, if, in fact, they knew what plaintiffs attorneys are presenting. Did the team know the employee was violating team policy and didn’t take corrective action?

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Fansince1971

6 hours ago

Reply to Terry

Burn baby burn! Hoping for a total public disgrace of this crap Org and Arte. Maybe then he will sell what is left of this jalopy and it can be rebuilt.

Last edited 6 hours ago by Fansince1971

Trusted Member

HaloLew

6 hours ago

Reply to Fansince1971

I’ve always thought the reason Arte didn’t sell the team a few years ago was because of this pending civil case. Potential buyers didn’t want any involvement until it was resolved.

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FungoAle

5 hours ago

Reply to Fansince1971

He needs to be forced to sell and don’t think this case would do that. Doubtful he would voluntarily sell after any humiliation.

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gitchogritchoffmypettis

4 hours ago

Reply to FungoAle

Yup. He seems more like the type that will enjoy owning a team he no longer enjoys owning because he enjoys owning a team that everyone is telling him to sell.

But hey, he could just throw up his hands and take his giant pile of money and go do something with it while he’s still alive. I’d be more worried if his kids were all over the team, but they aren’t.