Wednesday, December 19, 2012 |
Angels Deal Kendrys Morales To Seattle For Jason Vargas
Vargas was better at striking out righties than lefties, but lefties hit him worse last year than righties. A big red flag, though was his home and away splits, where he earned a 2.74 ERA in Safeco but a 4.78 ERA on the road, almost twice as high. Still, I can grit my teeth through the road if his 2.27 career ERA at Angel Stadium is any indication of how he'll pitch. Welcome aboard, and go Dirtbags!
Update: Weird paragraph from this Alden Gonzalez piece at MLB.com:
The Angels used the flexibility afforded to them with the Josh Hamilton signing, sending switch-hitting designated hitter Kendrys Morales to the Mariners on Wednesday in exchange for left-handed starting pitcher Jason Vargas.Usually when one discusses "flexibility", the word "payroll" is in the same sentence. While the Dodgers have gotten all the press for the spendy spendy, Jerry Dipoto hasn't exactly taken his foot of the fiscal gas pedal, either.
Labels: angels, hot stove, mariners, trades, transactions
Tuesday, December 18, 2012 |
So, How Bad Is The Josh Hamilton Deal?
Because Hamilton doesn't add any value via the walk, most of his offensive performance hinges on what happens when he makes contact. The outcome of a batted ball is dependent on two things: speed and quality of contact. The early 30s are when bat speed starts to slip and reaction time suffers. If Hamilton had better command of the strike zone, his ability to take walks could compensate for his inevitable declines in other areas. As it is, his offensive value is closely tied to skills that soon start to fade in free agents of a certain age.Which is to say, yes, very, very bad. He's like buying into Vlad Guerrero with more off-the-field problems, way lower walk rate, and starting with his age 32 season. Or maybe Vernon Wells would be a better comp, at least on the field. Regardless, Hamilton's on schedule for a 3.4 WARP season in 2013 according to PECOTA, which figures to be a pretty lousy bet for the kind of money the Angels are throwing at the problem. The always readable Sam Miller exits thusly:
Jerry Dipoto has been the Angels’ general manager for 13 months, and he has now made a whopping 13 moves at the big-league level. He has shown two skills that can make for a great GM: he’s great at picking up small pieces (especially in the bullpen) for cheap, and he’s great at making the big deal happen, which can be as easy as but also much more difficult than "offer the most money." Those big ones are the moves that get GMs into trouble. From a surplus-value calculation, the Albert Pujols deal alone threatens to undo all the other small, savvy moves Dipoto has made. Yes, the Angels have the money to outrun that mistake, and they have the money to outrun the Josh Hamilton mistake, if it is one. But avoiding the mistake in the first place would be best.That, from his track record thus far, seems unlikely.
Labels: angels, hot stove, transactions
Friday, December 14, 2012 |
About Josh Hamilton
Monday, December 10, 2012 |
Dodgers Sign Greinke In Drunken Hookup, Ryu, Too
- Over the weekend, the Dodgers signed Korean lefty Hyun-Jin Ryu for the insane figure of $62M. At least, that's the figure MLB.com's Ken Gurnick provides; the LAT claims it's only $36M to the pitcher and the balance as a posting fee to his Korean team. In addition, MSTI records that he has $1M annually in performance bonuses available. Not following Korean ball, I don't know for sure but that seems like that posting fee has to be some sort of record for anyone out of that country.
Ryu profiles as a starter, and had a 98-52 record with a 2.80 earned-run average with Hanwha. I don't know enough about him to know how well he'll translate to the majors, but it appears that he may have been the best Asian pitcher available this offseason. A different viewpoint comes from the always-interesting Fangraphs. Eno Sarris writes
Of course, Ryu’s changeup is his best pitch, while Wells was known for his curveball. You can scout Ryu yourself with this youtube playlist put together by Dan at MyKBO.net if you like (The video embedded below probably has the best angle). And it’s a little early to say that Ryu has a four-pitch mix like wells. He throws four pitches, yes, but by most accounts, his slider is not exciting and his curveball may just be a lefty-on-lefty type of pitch that won’t solve a platoon issue if righties like his changeup.
Sarris doubts Ryu will survive all six years in the rotation. - The big signing of the weekend, of course, has to be former Angel Zach Greinke, with the Dodgers opening an apparently bottomless spigot of money for a $147M/6-year deal, according to early reports in the Times. Apparently, also, he can exit the deal after three years, which the Dodgers would hope he does if he stinks (much like J.D. Drew did, to the Dodgers' relief).
I try, as a matter of principle, to avoid getting too excited about any particular signing, one way or another. Usually with free agents, I'm skeptical, and this case is no exception. Greinke was actually pretty good for the Angels late in 2012, but not enough of a difference-maker to salvage a lost season. He at least has been healthy; MSTI was thrilled, given that the next step down was Kyle Lohse. Gah. Not a ringing endorsement, but it has its limited advantages.
Labels: dodgers, hot stove, transactions
Friday, November 30, 2012 |
Angels Trade Jordan Walden For Tommy Hanson
The question, then, is exactly how much better Tommy Hanson makes them. He makes them at least a little better, because he’s a fifth starting pitcher on the roster. Previously there was no one in that slot. But there’s a reason the Braves didn’t have Hanson in their projected rotation, and there’s a reason the Braves gave him up for a reliever, even though he’s under team control another three years. The Tommy Hanson that exists now is similar in many ways to the Tommy Hanson that used to exist before, but when it comes to pitching, there are alarming differences.For my money, and given the Angels' dire situation with the bullpen early in the 2012 season, sending Jordan away is no small matter. I don't like recent acquisition Ryan Madson's inability to stay healthy. Madson had Tommy John surgery this year, so he's going to be back at some point in the 2013 season, though just when that might happen is still an open question. Even though my rule of thumb for UCL repairs is 18 months, that number is now down to a year, but we'll see how it goes. Even then, there's no guarantees, and while I didn't like Jordan's lack of movement — he could throw hard but not fool anybody — it seems we are deeply into "devil you don't know" territory here.
I'm okay with getting rid of Ervin Santana — the Brandon Sisk deal was exactly the sort of thing you can do, though it was risky exercising his option and then trading him. On the other hand, Santana showed an elbow ligament tear on an offseason, post-trade MRI, so this could easily have been the beginning of his own Tommy John surgery and perhaps a shot at redemption. But that won't be in the Angels rotation. Likewise, I'm fine with the prospect of Haren going away, and Greinke (though the jury is still out on whether that happens, the Dodgers are apparently the lead team there). For this to work, we have to believe that Hanson is at least going to fill out the fifth starter role effectively, and I'm not entirely sold on that.
Labels: angels, braves, royals, trades, transactions
Friday, July 27, 2012 |
Angels Trade For Zach Greinke
Update: NBC Hardball Talk says it's RHP Ariel Pena and Johnny Hellweg.
Labels: angels, trades, transactions
Thursday, July 26, 2012 |
Transactions
- The Dodgers disabled Adam Kennedy (15-day; for a right groin strain) and called up RHP Shawn Tolleson.
- The Angels have released RHP Trevor Bell after he returned from the minor league DL. He had a 1-6 record with an 8.27 ERA in ten appearances, all as a starter. Good luck, grandson of Bozo.
Labels: angels, dodgers, transactions
Tuesday, June 12, 2012 |
Andre Ethier Long-Termed, Angels Send Down Calhoun
- The Dodgers and Andre Ethier reached agreement on a 5-year/$85M deal that will keep the left-handed slugger in Dodger Stadium through 2017, with a vesting option for 2018 dependent on plate appearances. Given current industry trends, I don't see this as being terrible — until you see that Ethier is actually going to be paid for his age 31-35 seasons, a fact MSTI railed against before the season started, but is now "okay with it". It didn't seem unreasonable to me, though keep an eye on that knee.
- The Angels have moved Vernon Wells to the 60-day DL, optioned Kole Calhoun to AAA Salt Lake, and called up David Pauley. Pauley was horrible in an earlier stint, so I expect we'll see almost none of him.
- Update: It seems that Jered Weaver is close to starting a rehab assignment, and Bill Plunkett speculates he'll be back in the rotation for the Giants series.
Labels: angels, dodgers, injuries, transactions
Tuesday, June 05, 2012 |
Transactions
- The Angels have called up Hank Conger to replace Bobby Wilson, who goes on the 7-day concussion DL. Conger was sent down due to an elbow strain, and only just last week was allowed to play again.
Update: Mark Saxon says Chris Iannetta should be back in a couple weeks. Also, fouling my contention that Scioscia doesn't trust Conger behind the dish, he will get the start tonight.
- Javy Guerra had knee surgery this morning and is expected back in 4-6 weeks. I haven't been able to find out yet who gets the callup to replace him on the 25-man roster.
Labels: angels, dodgers, injuries, transactions
Thursday, May 31, 2012 |
Kemp Returns From And Goes Back On DL
Castellanos has the potential to be an interesting six-week pickup for fantasy purposes. On a tools level, he has average power and is a plus runner, and while a high strikeout rate will likely keep him in the .260-.270 range as a hitter, peak seasons of 15-20 home runs and an equal number of stolen bases are not out of the question. That combination makes him a valuable commodity if he can stay at second base, and early signs were encouraging.
Labels: dodgers, injuries, transactions
Tuesday, May 29, 2012 |
Transaction Fun
- The Angels placed Jered Weaver on the 15-day DL for back spasms, and then rescinded the announcement. WTF? I expect the Angels will put him on the DL anyway.
Update: Sure enough. WTF, Angels? Garrett Richards to get the callup.
Update 2: Mike DiGiovanna has a new blog post up, and guesstimates 3-4 weeks on the DL for Weaver.
- Also, Torii Hunter was reinstated from the restricted list, with Andrew Romine sent down to AAA Salt Lake.
- The Dodgers activated Matt Kemp and sent down Jerry Sands to make room.
Labels: angels, dodgers, injuries, transactions
Monday, May 21, 2012 |
Angels Call Up Cassevah
Labels: angels, transactions
Angels Call Up Kole Calhoun
Labels: angels, transactions
Sunday, May 20, 2012 |
The Angels Are A Bad Team, And Mike Scioscia, You Are Next: Padres 3, Angels 2 (13 Innings)
The Angels lost this one, predictably, in extras. I missed the ending. The Angels are back in the division cellar where, sadly, they belong. Does Mike Scioscia need firing? I can't tell, and don't immediately support it; but I wouldn't reject it out of hand, either. At this point, such a move would largely be symbolic, but if it meant the team would clean house on the idiotic offensive strategery, I would be all in favor.
Labels: angels, injuries, padres, recaps, rumors, stupid ideas, transactions
Monday, May 14, 2012 |
The Catch: Dodgers 3, Diamondbacks 1
Kershaw was predictably awesome.
The Dodgers' bizarre 2012 cruise seems to continue without any hitches, or at least, until now, when Matt Kemp went on the 15-day DL for a strained left hamstring; Jerry Sands got the callup from Albuquerque.
Labels: diamondbacks, dodgers, injuries, recaps, transactions
Juan Uribe To DL With Sore Wrist
Update: Trent Oeltjen will be DFA'd to make room.
Labels: dodgers, injuries, transactions
Torii Hunter Placed On Restricted List For "Personal Reasons"
Update: Hunter's 17-year-old son was arrested in Dallas on sexual assault charges.
Labels: angels, transactions
Friday, May 11, 2012 |
Dodgers Disable Hairston, Call Up Sellers
Related: Juan Rivera's tendon is ruptured, which speaks to a longer-term injury.
Labels: dodgers, injuries, transactions
Thursday, May 10, 2012 |
Chris Iannetta To Miss 6-8 Weeks Following Wrist Surgery
Hank Conger would have been the obvious choice, but the switch-hitter has been on the triple-A disabled list because of a strained elbow. He hasn’t played since mid-April and hasn't begun throwing yet during rehabilitation. Robinzon Diaz and John Hester have been catching at Salt Lake.Update: The Angels will call up C John Hester from AAA Salt Lake for the weekend series in Texas, may God have mercy on his soul.Diaz is the better hitter of the two triple-A catchers, but opponents have been successful on 13 of 14 stolen-base attempts against him. Hester has been with Salt Lake for only a week after being released by Baltimore's triple-A club. He's the better defender but is unfamiliar with the Angels' big league pitchers.
Labels: angels, injuries, rumors, transactions
Friday, May 04, 2012 |
Angels Demote Kevin Jepsen To Make Room For Ernesto Frieri
Update: Yup, I was right, he was optioned, per a post at Alden Gonzalez's blog. It seems to me astonishing that a guy who has been around as long as Jepsen still has options, but I guess the Angels have only infrequently exercised them. I can't imagine he'll be with the team next year (or maybe even later this year if he ends up a throw-in for something else).
Labels: angels, transactions
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