MLB Smack Talk

Hope springs eternal. I'll take the latter every day, and leave the Angels fans to enjoy their gaming in their mother's basement.

THIRTY FREAKING YEARS! 

Ya not sure if being a no-ran is any worse than being an also-ran...... if the 'chip is the only thing that counts or matters "WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE" if you are winning "meaningless games" or losing "meaningful" games? It's 'CHIP or no CHIP!!

So, what are your thoughts? 


Well I could go as far as to say ANYTHING to shake up the present situation in Anaheim is a plus. Joe Madden is solid. My take on Scoscia was he became too long in the tooth for AL and "new Era" baseball. By that I mean he was a great "small ball" and NL minded guy. Hit & Run, move the runner over, bunting etc. Today its swing for the fences, bomb, HR or SO!! 

I think this will be a defining moment for the Angels. I was always a Scioscia fan, but a few years ago, I realized most of his success was when he had Maddon as a bench coach. Plus, with our pitching staff, you can never pull a starter too early.

In fact, since Bick is our resident Doyer homer, I offer him the following two part bet - Part 1, I bet that the Angels will make the playoffs next year (2020 to avoid any wiggle room). Part 2, I bet the Angels will proceed farther in the playoffs than the Doyers (both missing the playoffs or getting knocked out in the same round counts as a tie).

You name the stakes Bick and we are on.

As an aside, at the start of the playoffs, the Nationals were 18-1 to win the World Series. One of my sons put $100 down on that bet and has a plan for some hedge bets during the World Series to make sure he walks away with at least a grand.

If you are asking exactly how it will happen, I don't know.  That is why I wasn't hired by the Angels.  Good news is that Joe Maddon was hired and he has shown time & again that he can get more out of the same group of guys than just about any manager in the league.  It is like religion, I don't have facts, I have faith (& no, I am not comparing Maddon to Jesus, unless by Jesus you mean that kid from the Dominican Republic who hit over .300 last year).

The Angels have the most talented player in baseball and they have a solid roster.  They are not the best team.  What they haven't had the last few years is a person creative enough to turn what they do have into winning team.  World Series winner?  Maybe, probably not, but a playoff team is not unreasonable at all.  

In baseball, there are so many examples of teams exceeding expectations.  Other than my son, who do you know that put money on the nationals making the World Series?  Look at the last time the Dodgers won the World Series back in '88, how in the world did they win the division, beat the Mets & beat the A's?  I could continue to list examples, but you get where I am coming from.

MLB talent level is so close, there isn't a whole lot differentiating the best from the worst.  It isn't like high school football, where the most talented players are heads & tails above the others.

Don't have me make too good of a case or else Bick won't take the bet!!

Good post, RPW, except for four words that torpedo it all. You said "they have a solid roster", and nothing could be further from the truth.

At catcher, Lucroy was so bad he got released, and Stassi, Bernboom, Garneau and Kevan Smith are not major leaguers.
At first base, Pujols has been a liability for three years, and at 39 will only continue to get worse. Bour and Walsh were jokes.
At second base, La Stella was a jewel until he got hurt, and there's nothing in his past that indicates he will ever be as good as he was in 2019. Rengifo should be a utility guy.
At third base, Fletcher had a good year and looks like maybe he can play. Cozart and Thaiss were terrible.
At shortstop, Simmons is an all-star. He's made himself into a very good contact hitter, and he makes plays in the field that Ozzie Smith can only dream of making.
In left field, Upton became a dog the second he signed that big contract extension. Goodwin had a good year, but it was way above his past performances. He should remain the starter, but they can't unload Upton or afford to keep him on the bench.
In center field, Trout is the best player at the position since Willie Mays. Period. No discussion.
In right field, Calhoun produced power but little else at the plate. The team will buy him out for $1 million so Adell can get his shot, and that's always a crapshoot.
At DH, Ohtani is very good, but he's already had two major physical breakdowns in two years, the pitching caught up to him in his last 30 or 40 games, and for me the jury is still out.
The starting pitchers were a trainwreck. The major league average ERA for was 4.49. The only Angels starter who was better than that was Tyler Skaggs, and he's dead. The other seven Angels who started at least ten games were all worse than the major league average. You may want to read those last two sentences again, because they are sobering. The Angels do not even have a #3 major league starter anywhere in their system
The bullpen was OK for half a season, but then, as could have been predicted, they collapsed under the workload. Nobody really established himself as a closer or setup man for the entire season.

That's it. The Angels have Trout and Simmons who are above average major league players year in and year out, and Goodwin, La Stella and Fletcher who've done it for one year (maybe a fluke or maybe not). Their starting pitching is the worst in the major leagues, and their bullpen has no assigned roles and no identity.

In short, this is NOT a solid roster.  And that's coming from a 50-year supporter.