If I (John Henry) were named Angels GM

Getting a job offer in this economy is worth more than gold at this point. Angels GM though is not an easy one to take. I do not know why I would be chosen, but a job is a job and I am not looking at any gift horses in the mouth, that is how you can tell how healthy and old a horse is, it is where the saying came from.

I notice the parameters, my boundaries set by Angels new owner Stan. He can’t legally hire me yet, so technically Arte did through Molly through John M. I think. Things are a bit confusing but what isn’t these days?

Rules:

First off, in looking at the Angels recent payroll but allowing for a small Kroenke bonus, we will set payroll at $210 million. Spotrac currently projects the Angels to have $117 million in payroll but that is missing the Anthony Rendon payout. So, for this exercise the Angels have $125 million on the books and you have $85 million to spend before non tenders.

You must use salaries from either MLBTR’s projections or from FanGraphs projections when available. If not, be realistic when signing players outside of the Top 50.

Use the estimated salaries from MLBTR when non tendering players.

Trades must be run through baseballtradevalues.com or taken from there to show they are fair and realistic.

I look at my monitor again, what an odd way to do this, but I guess we cannot pay for any help like assistants or scouts either. With a deep breath and looking over my shoulder a couple of times to see if anyone is watching, I open up the links and come up with a plan.

What is my goal anyway?

I needed to have a plan before I did anything. Otherwise we would be spinning wheels like the last 4 GMs were. The team cannot compete in one year, and while I read comments and hear whispers of tearing everything down, I do not know if I have it in me to trade Neto and Detmers. I mean you build with those kinds of players, SP and SS are like THE positions to have to start a franchise. And Trout… man, I want to win with Trout, no matter how stupidly sentimental that would be. But then what do I do? We cannot just spend a way out of this hole… can we?

Taking a glance at the White Sox and their turnaround I compare the teams and figure out if I can do the same. I mean, the AL West is so down this year, it was worth a shot right? And it isn’t like this team can pick in the top 10 in the 2028 draft due to the rules. My goal then is to spend in FA on players who are young and/or short term deals that can be traded at the deadline when injuries happen again. So… I dust off the dice that were left by the previous GMs and do my best Ray impression of DIEMATCHIVE and say LET IT RIDE!

Sign Luis Arraez 3/48M

Luis Arraez is my favorite non Angel player. I have wanted him for YEARS. Old school style put the ball in play guy and now he is even good at defense. Using my big brain of beating Jessica and friends at Fantasy Baseball and the fact that I want a guy who hits .300 again damn it, I sign him and have him ready for 2B.

Sign Terukai Sato 5/80M

International players are good. And a 3B is available from Japan. He also makes contact and strikes out less than some other Japanese players who have moved over. This is a perfect match. He is also still in his 20’s which is rare for anyone in FA these days.

Sign Daulton Varsho 2/20M

Defense in CF has been a priority ever since Trout started getting injured every year, so why not the guy known for his defense and makes some of the most insane catches you ever see? Yeah, Varsho is perfect for this team.

Sign Kaima Taira 4/72M

MLB Trade rumors says opt out so, after the 2nd year I guess. Anyway, a 27 year old SP from Japan? What is not to like! And again the goal here is going young. And with signing JP players, Kikuchi can show them the ropes before he gets hurt again.

Sign Hiromi Itoh 2/20M

A command pitcher who is 29 from Japan. Doubling down on this sort of player is using your dice to roll for advantage. He has been a stable arm at 150 IP for 6 straight years. If he works out, great, if not, then it allows all those other arms to develop in the minors.

Sign Ryan Jeffers 4/75M

A 29 year old patient catcher with HR ability? Why not? A righty to go with the lefty of Ball, at least one of them have to be good, right? And even only playing 92 games, he has an OPS+ of 129 and hasn’t struck out 100 times since 2021.

Player cuts

At 89.75M spent, I am over my limit by 4.75 M. So, I can trade a guy like Kikuchi, although with 2 more JP pitchers I maybe shouldn’t. Or I can start cutting some ARB players. Josh Lowe is out for sure. As is Tyler Heineman. 40 man roster is still 1 over though so Siri had to go. That is enough money saved to get under the 85M limit.

Roster and Lineup

Bench is Grissom, Peraza, Guzman, and Teodosio as the 4th OF. Moore gets sent back to AA to learn more.

Added 4 batters and 2 SP while sacrificing no draft picks and with only 1 contract past 4 years. All hitters are known for not striking out much and both SP are Japanese vets who are still in their 20’s. Yes, bullpen was left without adding any names, but it is the most volatile anyway.

This team has a chance in the AL West. It also has a chance at 100 losses again. Point is, as the farm is being tended to, the team is being built for the future, with only really Trout and Kikuchi old on the team and Kikuchi can be traded mid season anyway if things go south. As can Varsho. Honestly, spending a lot just feels right, and a way to dig yourself out. Although just like all form of risky moves, it could blow up badly. Come 2028, we may be like Kurumi-chan and you would all feel correct in wanting to strangle me.