Nine days until the MLB trade deadline. Close enough to expect deals any minute, but far enough away that most won’t happen this week. No, it will be like watching your food heat up in the microwave. It will seem like it takes forever and won’t happen until you walk away to do something else.
On Monday John Mozeliak said what we all wanted to hear, that this year every option is on the table. That means Reid Detmers, Jose Soriano, and Zach Neto could be on the move.
Turk’s Teeth has done a great job reimagining a stocked Angels farm system as a result of a series of trades. Hopefully Mozeliak’s reality is close to Turk’s wishcasting.
Rumors are already starting to fly regarding several Angels names. I think it is pretty easy to envision Neto in Boston and the Red Sox feel the same.
I played GM and came up with a return package I really like from a fairly thin Boston system.
Speaking of Reid Detmers, I spoke with Reid Detmers in the Angels dugout last Saturday. He was fresh off blanking the Tigers yet still not getting a W. Reid is a very good dude and I wish we could build a winner with him. But it looks like the best way to build a winner is by trading him.
That 85 pitch start by Detmers was a clear sign he is on the move.
Detmers was not my only interview this week. Angels fourth round pick Rylan Lujo spent some Zoom time with me the night before he headed to Tempe. I like watching this kid play and always start rooting for the guys I interview. Rylan is an interesting mix of soft spoken yet intensely driven. He won’t be outworked, has talented bloodlines, and after meeting him I would not bet against the kid.
Speaking of a kid doing well, we might want to head out to the IE to catch Dylan Jordan pitch.
Something I just can’t shake and will try to unravel. The Angels did not go crawling to MLB to distribute their games. Molly orchestrated a buyout of their current network including the broadcast rights to the LA Kings. Yes, the Angels are paying the Kings their TV money. Mozeliak keeps saying the Angels have “resources.” This all seems connected.
Anyway, I’m entirely in wait and see mode through the end of the year. Either Mo puts his stamp on the organization and there’s reason to hope or Arte screws up the last good opportunity he’ll have to resurrect the franchise and maybe not die a loser. It is out of my control, so I’ll just report on what is going on.
There is one way that he’s put his mark on the franchise so far. Let the Grindlinger era begin.
FanGraphs updated their Top 100 prospect list before the trade deadline. Let’s see how many of these guys the Angels can add. Really interesting, the Angels top rated prospect is not one we discuss here.
Baseball and kids is always a great combination. I ran into the Maui Little League team while checking in on Saturday and had a blast watching them on the field for BP thanks to Kurt Suzuki. The dude’s heart is a good as his strategy is bad.
From around baseball:
The Tigers are a fun story to watch. They have a pretty favorable schedule leading up to the deadline. Can they avoid being sellers and make one last run with Skubal?
I’m hoping the Tigers go undefeated for two reasons. One, it would be fun to watch Detroit have a shot. Two, if Skubal is off the table that makes Detmers and Soriano more valuable.
FanGraphs has a nice series ranking players according to their trade value. Here is numbers 11-20 and here is 21-30.
Let’s keep the trade speculation going. Here are what seven bubble teams might do.
Enjoy your weekend and link what I missed. I have family in town this weekend and next weekend and will try not to work much.
