The Official 2024-2025 Offseason Thread

[totdprods]

Would still like to see what Ward can do in a full, healthy year. I know he played a full year this year, but seemed to have an obvious slump around the time he got dinged in the head again.

The potential for him having a really good .800+ OPS year still  seems very possible and it would either be a huge boon to the team or to his trade value. Throw in Trout’s injuries, Adell and Moniak’s inconsistencies and our total lack of upper-level OF depth makes it real hard to part with him…for now.

I really would like to see an outfield of Trout, Ward, and Adell, with Moniak as 4th OF, and a part-time DH (splitting with Trout) brought in like Santander or Teoscar in 2025. The potential for that outfield to be really productive offensively and to be really deep is realistic and would fit our 2025-2027 plans for OF and DH so well.

[totdprods]

1 hour ago, jsnpritchett said:

Agree with all of this. 

And on Santander specifically, he's a poor defender with a pretty good arm, and as a batter, he's someone with solid but unspectacular StatCast metrics.  He seems like the type of guy who could easily fall off a cliff.  Sure, his HR numbers look appealing--but he's a guy with a career OBP of .308. 

One thing I like about Santander is he could also shift over to 1B if Schanuel gets hurt or struggles. 

There’s also a part of me that wonders if Vlad Jr. really will be a top priority when he hits FA…and if Schanuel was partly promoted to the bigs so quickly in order to get his trade value boosted up ahead of that happening.

Ideally, we trade Ward in the next 12ish months for a haul. And then maybe within a year after that, we’re able to move one of Adell or Moniak for a good return as well. Having a solid OF come in this offseason to supplement for the next couple of years would help make that doable, regardless of the Angels rebuilding or competing.

Edited Monday at 07:45 PM by totdprods

[jsnpritchett]

14 minutes ago, totdprods said:

One thing I like about Santander is he could also shift over to 1B if Schanuel gets hurt or struggles. 

There’s also a part of me that wonders if Vlad Jr. really will be a top priority when he hits FA…and if Schanuel was partly promoted to the bigs so quickly in order to get his trade value boosted up ahead of that happening.

Ideally, we trade Ward in the next 12ish months for a haul. And then maybe within a year after that, we’re able to move one of Adell or Moniak for a good return as well. Having a solid OF come in this offseason to supplement for the next couple of years would help make that doable, regardless of the Angels rebuilding or competing.

Santander has barely played any 1B in his professional career.  My concerns about his offense would still exist even if he's a 1B.

 

[totdprods]

2 hours ago, jsnpritchett said:

Santander has barely played any 1B in his professional career.  My concerns about his offense would still exist even if he's a 1B.

 

He has enough experience (70 games?) for me to trust him there as a short-term solution between now and a potential (purely theoretical) Vlad signing, or until we develop a better 1B depth option than Kavadas, Wagaman or DiChiara. I don’t see him as an everyday option. 

I’m not crazy about Santander - I’d actually prefer Teoscar, who I’m starting to get Nelson Cruz 2.0 vibes from - but one of the things I like about him is he’s fairly steady, not prone to streakiness, as a switch-hitter is actually really balanced against RHP and LHP, and does still possess some solid left-handed pop, something we’ve only had in Ohtani for many years now. For years I wanted Carlos Santana because he was just consistently steady, and still is, putting up 1-2 WAR even now at 38. Rarely slumped, balanced against different pitching, different parks, leverages, just a remarkably consistent hitter. Santander isn’t the same profile but does have a similar knack for offensive consistency. More power, less walks.

For a team with so many youngsters offensively, having someone with that consistency is a real plus. In the last three years, he’s only had two months where his OPS was below .700, the first and last month of 2023, when it was in the .600s. Not good, but still not a precipitous drop-off like some cold streaks for ‘power’ hitters. It also leads me to think that his regression might not come so swiftly or sharply.

There’d absolutely be a limit to what I’d feel comfortable paying him, and I’d be disappointed if he was the ‘marquee’ addition of the winter, but if his market doesn’t develop and he lands around a 3/$45M contract I would be satisfied with adding him to the mix. 

Edited Monday at 10:40 PM by totdprods

[Angels 1961]

Mike Trout to 1B

[Angelsfan1984]

22 minutes ago, Angels 1961 said:

Mike Trout to 1B

He needs to play LF or DH. That’s all. His best ability going forward will be availability. 

[jsnpritchett]

47 minutes ago, totdprods said:

He has enough experience (70 games?) for me to trust him there as a short-term solution between now and a potential (purely theoretical) Vlad signing, or until we develop a better 1B depth option than Kavadas, Wagaman or DiChiara. I don’t see him as an everyday option. 

 

Unless I'm missing something, I see it as 22 games (16 starts) covering about 150 innings over the course of his professional career:

https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=santan000ant

I'd guess any team would only want to use him there in an emergency.  He feels like strictly a corner OF/DH guy to me.

But I hear you overall...if you can get him at a reasonable rate for not too many years, sure, go for it.  I've seen some crazy numbers thrown around for him, though, and I want no part of a $100M+ deal for him.

[BTH]

1 hour ago, Angels 1961 said:

Mike Trout to 1B

Moving Mike Trout to a position he has no experience at seems like a great way for him to get hurt.

Moving to a corner is one thing, since it’s still OF. But asking him to learn a completely new position doesn’t seem ideal.

[totdprods]

7 minutes ago, jsnpritchett said:

Unless I'm missing something, I see it as 22 games (16 starts) covering about 150 innings over the course of his professional career:

https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=santan000ant

I'd guess any team would only want to use him there in an emergency.  He feels like strictly a corner OF/DH guy to me.

But I hear you overall...if you can get him at a reasonable rate for not too many years, sure, go for it.  I've seen some crazy numbers thrown around for him, though, and I want no part of a $100M+ deal for him.

Might’ve just had it in memory wrong after I last looked at it. But still, I think he’d be fine if used intermittently at 1B this year and next. Absolute max I’d consider would be 4/$80M, and that would be if I was getting really desperate. Transitioning to 1B after that many RF innings (and some 1B experience) isn’t a stretch. If Schanuel got hurt, we don’t have much if anything to put in his place, barring some mid-season deal for a Rowdy Tellez-band aid. And even if not needed, we have room at LF/RF/DH, especially if Ward gets dealt sometime in next year.

His career numbers are real close to Candelario who also was whispered to be getting a fortune last year since he was one of the few FA ‘bats’, and wound up getting 3/$45M. Similar age, positional limitations defensively, offense to a degree. I think Santander lands closer to that then $100M+.

The consistency remains his most appealing factor, IMO. He also would have hit more HRs in Angel Stadium vs. Camden. 

[angelsnationtalk]

I'm still stuck on Arte wanting to contend. Him wanting to "raise payroll" but not significantly is extremely misleading if he wants to be a contender in 2025.
To me, this roster isn't in need of a few pieces, it needs a complete overhaul which might be impossible over one year.

Perry has yet to show he can sign decent players via free agency and his trades have been mid. I love his drafts, but that's about it.

Bring in a guy like Farhan Zaidi for president of baseball ops to let this team take the next step.

I'll say it the same way I put it last season.... I'll believe when I see it now with this team.

[Blarg]

7 hours ago, Chuck said:

I would even look at Bellinger for CF if he opts out with the Cubs.

Bellinger is a non stop roller coaster of fail. He isn't opting out after a very Taylor Ward 111 OPS+. In fact Ward hit 7 more bombs than your boy that has no history of consistency. 

[Stradling]

18 minutes ago, Blarg said:

Bellinger is a non stop roller coaster of fail. He isn't opting out after a very Taylor Ward 111 OPS+. In fact Ward hit 7 more bombs than your boy that has no history of consistency. 

Yea if Chuck is over Ward there’s no way in hell he will like Bellinger. 

[AngelStew43]

4 hours ago, Angelsfan1984 said:

He needs to play LF or DH. That’s all. His best ability going forward will be availability. 

I think that Mike could play 1B, and more than passably.  The 3 best athletes on the field at any time are your C, SS, and CF.  Mike could do it, which would open up DH for Schaunel and a RHH platoon partner.  

[Angelsfan1984]

12 minutes ago, AngelStew43 said:

I think that Mike could play 1B, and more than passably.  The 3 best athletes on the field at any time are your C, SS, and CF.  Mike could do it, which would open up DH for Schaunel and a RHH platoon partner.  

So instead of having him pull his calf and hurt his knees in the outfield maybe 6-7x a game, we want him stretching his groin every time a ball is hit on the infield? 
 

look at rendon! He pulls his groin reaching down into his locker for a new Tampax. 

[jsnpritchett]

I truly do not understand why so many people are obsessed with moving random guys with little to no 1B experience there on a permanent/semi-permanent basis.  Seems like every year, multiple people suggest it for multiple players. 

[SlappyUtilityMIF]

26 minutes ago, jsnpritchett said:

I truly do not understand why so many people are obsessed with moving random guys with little to no 1B experience there on a permanent/semi-permanent basis.  Seems like every year, multiple people suggest it for multiple players. 

Seems like a lot of people throw out the 1st base philosophy of little league... As long as they can catch a ball it will be fine. Fielding a ground ball hot shot off the dirt on a short hop or a quick twitch dive left or right could end the experiment rather quickly!

[Blarg]

5 hours ago, BTH said:

Moving Mike Trout to a position he has no experience at seems like a great way for him to get hurt.

Moving to a corner is one thing, since it’s still OF. But asking him to learn a completely new position doesn’t seem ideal.

Bryce Harper moved to 1st base this season.  

[Angelsfan1984]

6 minutes ago, Blarg said:

Bryce Harper moved to 1st base this season.  

His beard keeps him safe from injuries at 1B. Trout would need to wear a Jon olerud helmet with elbow and shin guards to be safe out there. Maybe even need an umpire chest protector with steel toe boots. Who knows…he must be protected like a Chinese vase from the Ming dynasty.

[arch stanton]

Harper becoming a 1B seemed inevitable since his draft days and became necessary after his elbow issue. Trout can still play outfield and is more likely to get into a collision or take a bad hop in the face at first. I still think his greatest problm is he needs to drop some weight. If he could manage to start a season around 215 I bet he'd be a monster again

[totdprods]

When it comes to Trout moving, I agree that he’s meant for LF, but he probably winds up at RF. Partially because of course the Angels will find a way to finally make the right move (moving Trout from CF) and still do it wrong (going to RF instead of LF).

The other part will because of what Trout witnessed when he came up. He pushed Torii to RF. He’ll see Adell and Moniak as being the better defenders and meant more for CF than RF. Ward won’t play CF. Trout won’t push Ward from his position/roster. 

Truthfully…I think Trout needs to become an almost permanent DH. It’s his offense he’s primarily needed for and paid for at this point. 

I think likeliest outcome at this point is Ward gets traded, Trout moves to LF, Moniak to CF, Adell in RF, and a OF/DH-type is brought in. Not what I would do though.
 

Edited 10 hours ago by totdprods

[Dtwncbad]

15 hours ago, Blarg said:

Bellinger is a non stop roller coaster of fail. He isn't opting out after a very Taylor Ward 111 OPS+. In fact Ward hit 7 more bombs than your boy that has no history of consistency. 

Watching Ward play baseball as an Angel fan is like a music fan running into Debbie Gibson on a temporary stage singing “Only in My Dreams” next to the food court at the mall.

Edited 9 hours ago by Dtwncbad

[rottiesworld]

12 hours ago, Angelsfan1984 said:

So instead of having him pull his calf and hurt his knees in the outfield maybe 6-7x a game, we want him stretching his groin every time a ball is hit on the infield? 
 

look at rendon! He pulls his groin reaching down into his locker for a new Tampax. 

Rendon gets hurt just waking up in the morning.

[Angels 1961]

27 minutes ago, rottiesworld said:

Rendon gets hurt just waking up in the morning.

Rendon to 1B

[DMVol]

28 minutes ago, Angels 1961 said:

Rendon to 1B

1. We have a 1bman 2. Playing 1b won't keep him from getting hurt.  

[Angels 1961]

54 minutes ago, DMVol said:

1. We have a 1bman 2. Playing 1b won't keep him from getting hurt.  

Trout to LF, Ward to 3B and Rendon to 1B. Schanuel will replace Rendon when he gets hurt. Plus DH can be rotated to whoever is healthy.