ANGELS First Half Report Card

by Rev Halofan on Jul 2, 2006 6:39 PM PDT in Angels News

We are halfway to 162 games. Here is a first half Angels report card:

Offense: C-
We knew it was going to be bad and it has been.

Pitching: B-
Without Jeff Weaver, it would be in the high B+ range.

Defense: F
The only silver lining is that we know the team is not this bad and would hope an Egression to the mean bodes well for less unearned runs in the 2nd half.

Coaching: C-
No great shakes and an awful hitting instructor, but Bud Black still gets props.

Managing: C
Scioscia is solid, although he has been caught with his pants down without steady Joe Maddon there for him.

Ownership: B-
The name-change debacle has blown over and the purse strings are open to win, but the shitty stadium food, the long waits, the boring homogenity of the stadium store and the universally LOATHED television announcers still reek of middle market Uhlichian management strategies.

GM: C-
Up from a D now that we are five games back. Still haunted by the stupid Finley signing and the Jenks/Turnbow ditchings, Stoneman entered a high stakes poker game with the DFA of Jeff Weaver and could raise his grade if the team he assembled competes in the 2nd half.

Angels First Half GPA: 2.0 C-

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Well said

I agree almost to the letter. Although I still think that killing weaver will not be the savior of that rotation. We need to get Escobar off the internet, away from playboy, get rid of lackey's big inning, and kick colon in his fat backside... that will save the day.

by Zookeeper on Jul 2, 2006 7:02 PM PDT reply actions

too generous of grades

Being only 5 games back has led to a bit of grade inflation i think on the offensive end.

offense is no better than a D. even Vlad is not playing as good as he should and the young'uns just have not come through.

As for Stoneman, i can't fault him - he tried to get Kornerko, and Weaver's problems aren't Stoneman's fault, plus he hasn't made any bad trades.

we are in last place of the worst division, and overall merit no better than a D.

by rbrianc on Jul 2, 2006 7:26 PM PDT reply actions

I agree on the hitting

C- would still be a passing grade, and I would say the O is definately not a passing grade, but then again maybe the Rev was grading on a curve b/c the west isn't all that great.

A bad day at the ballpark is better than the best day at work

by SoCalSoxFan @ Halos Heaven on Jul 2, 2006 9:21 PM PDT up reply actions

It is relative

Oaklands O is worse than ours at the moment...

by Rev Halofan on Jul 2, 2006 9:23 PM PDT up reply actions

Seriously

Is Kendrick going to play for us this year or not?

by higdog on Jul 2, 2006 8:59 PM PDT reply actions

I can't grade yet

I have to see what kind of deals (if any) they make before the trade deadline. We don't necassarily need to do a blockbuster, but we need to grab an outfielder so we can DH GA full time. If GA can DH, we might be able to eak another year out of him. That to me is critical. IF GA is out in the field this 2nd half, he's just not going to be healthy enough to produce at the plate like he can. Grabbing some vets on losing teams like Craig Wilson, Jaque Jones and Joe Randi would help. The cubs have a massive salary and are out of it, you can't tell me Jaque Jones is untouchable. He'd make a nice platoon with Juan Rivera. Or if Crawford is untouchable, what about Baldelli or Gomes?

We absolutely have to bring up Kendrick to at a minimum platoon with AK. That it hasn't been done yet is inexplicable. I could hit lefties better than AK is.

Middle relief is a concern. Donnelly, Carrasco and Romero are all under-performing. I wonder if Joe Saunders could help out there? When we have a pitcher get blown out early, he'd be handy for long relief at a minimum. And another lefty is always handy.

I've heard that Scioscia thinks we can win with what we have. Unless he's got a hot OF prospect hidden somewhere, I don't see it. Does he honestly think GA wil be fine playing OF and that Erstadt is still viable. even if he's healthy he'll be mediocre until his next injury.

by johnsamo @ Halos Heaven on Jul 2, 2006 10:55 PM PDT reply actions

My Opinion

I agree with the Grades save for the following:

Offense: Should be a D/D-. Being 2nd or 3rd from the bottom in virtually every important offensive category is not worthy of a passing grade which a C- is, although barely.

Coaching: C- is a little harsh I think. Sure Hatcher sucks but the rest of the guys are solid. Scioscia is a proven winner. The difference is that this current cast is not executing consistently due to the fact that they are a blend of green, youngsters and fading veterans(G.A., Erstad, Salmon, Kennedy). I'd give 'em a B-.

G.M. - Stoneman gets a bum rap. The biggest problem I have with him is that I get frustrated when I see other teams involved in one-sided trades and wonder why couldn't he pull one off like that.

For Example: TB gets Scott Freaking Kazmir for a piece of crap like Victor Zambrano, he of the 45-41 career record and 4 and a half ERA (6.75 this year). How the F did that happen. We could've sent them Aaron Sele or Appier or some other Schmuck that same year. How would you like our rotation of 2008 with Lackey, Jered, Santana and KAZMIR!!!

Also, all this talk about Soriano and that it'll cost us Santana and Wood etc....Washington got him for Brad Wilkerson (Mediocre player at best...moderate power, .255 CAREER BA, and he strikes out so much Rob Deer would shake his head....plus a couple of C grade prospects, Termel Sledge (who's hitting .269 in AAA, and Galarraga (5.59 ERA in AA). Couldn't we have managed this for Callaspo, Shell, and Erstad?

I'd give him a B. In general he's doing it right. Add thru F.A. since all you lose is a pick (or two). Horde the youngsters and use the surplus for trades to fill holes or acquire a difference maker.

Remember, the key to long term success is having a core group of young players coming into their prime at the same time and supplementing that core with free agents. That's why the Tigers have the best record in baseball and the ChiSox won the WS and are kicking ass again. Trading away young talent to rent a player for a postseason run for a suspect club is the asinine.

I don't want to see any Smoltz for Doyle Alexander/Bagwell for Larry Andersen/Schilling(and S. Finley) for Glenn Davis/Randy Johnson for Mark Langston type trades. Stoneman is right about keeping the core young talent of the future.

If I see Howie Kendrick win 4 batting titles for Washington, Ervin Santana win a Cy Young for Milwaukee, or Brandon Wood hit 50 homeruns for the Phillies, I will kill myself.

DarkAngel hath spoken....

by darkangel01 on Jul 3, 2006 2:23 AM PDT reply actions

Has

there been any update on Kotchman's return to the lineup.

by higdog on Jul 3, 2006 4:33 AM PDT reply actions

Kotchman

Here's an update on Kotchman from the Angels' mlb.com website:

Small steps: Casey Kotchman is slowly making progress in Arizona. The first baseman, who has been battling the effects of mononucleosis, which was caused by the Epstein-Barr virus, is currently working through baseball fundamentals but has yet to play any games.

The Angels had counted on Kotchman to handle first base this season, which prompted the move of Darin Erstad to center field. But Kotchman grew increasingly fatigued during Spring Training and was placed on the DL May 9.

There is no timetable for Kotchman's return and playing this season for the Angels remains in doubt.

"There will come a date when a guy has to be functional and playing and have a stroke to come up here and help," Scioscia said. "It doesn't matter how many Minor League at-bats a guy might have. There is going to be an adjustment to Major League pitching. We aren't to that date yet. He still has time."

http://losangeles.angels.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060702&content_id=1536127& ;vkey=news_ana&fext=.jsp&c_id=ana

by G Abbes on Jul 3, 2006 5:03 AM PDT up reply actions

Defense

I hope not, but maybe we're fooling ourselves thinking our defense is still great and just underperforming.

Aside from Kennedy and Cabrera, the rest of our full time players are average defenders at best. I do agree that these two specifically should play a lot better in the 2nd half, but Kennedy might be doing it for a different team.

So that leaves us with 1 above average defender. Am I missing someone obvious? Napoli is pretty decent at catcher, but may wear down behind the plate like most do, especially rookies.

by thewebb on Jul 3, 2006 7:02 AM PDT reply actions

asdf

I don't think its great and underperforming, I think its average and underperforming. Just an average D would have added a few wins in the first half of the season and put us more like 1-2 games back right now.

by leftwing on Jul 3, 2006 7:32 AM PDT up reply actions

Pitching grade

I'm tempted to give the pitching more like a B, maybe a B+ if you count recent history more. The starters have been great recently (baring the occasional bad one, which you'll always have). When they're not giving up 7 runs in 3 innings, they're almost lights out, all of them. The relief has been a little shakey, but I see signs of improvement.

by leftwing on Jul 3, 2006 7:34 AM PDT reply actions

I great article by Kieth Law from ESPN.com

It is inside content but I will give a brief rundown.
2006 is over. Give Howie and Aybar the 2B and SS jobs so the are ready for 2007.
OC is having a career year and would likely be sought after by a contender (Toronto?).
GA is now a platoon player.
A decision has to be made at 3B (Dallas or outside of the organization).
Kendry or Casey? This may end up in Kendry's favor by default.
Remove Figgins from an everyday role. Willits could replace him in center and improve on his weak OBP.
Erstad should not see anymore time regardless of injury status.
This strategy will also allow Eddie Bane to load up on talent in the 2007 Draft. Currently only B.Wood (2008), Adenhart (08/09), and possibly Hank Conger (09/10) can be viewed as impact players.

I agree with this 100%. I would take going to the playoffs three of every four years and if this is waht it takes it is time to start.

by riktermiller on Jul 3, 2006 11:52 AM PDT reply actions

Arredondo

Interesting that he lists Adenhart (who just made it up to Rancho), while failing to mention the guy he replaced - Cal League all-star Jose Arredondo, who's now been promoted to Arkansas. At this point, I'd say he has to be considered a serious prospect as well...and he's a step ahead of Adenhart, pretty impressive for a guy who didn't even start pitching until the middle of the 2004 season.

by jjackflash on Jul 3, 2006 12:12 PM PDT up reply actions

I wouldn't

Arrendondo has a plus fastball and that is it. He doesn't have good command at this point and his secondary pitches have not developed. He is very intriguing as a short reliever but this is it at this point. I want to see what happens against the more advanced hitters in AA before I consider Arrendondo an elite prospect or difference maker.

by riktermiller on Jul 3, 2006 12:22 PM PDT up reply actions

Couldn't have said it better myself....

Law knows is stuff. This would be THE BEST prescription for the rest of the season by far. As great as he's been, I agree with moving O.C., it's better to sell high, especially when you've got 2 Baseball America top 50 prospects at the shortstop position (Wood-3, Aybar-46).

Aybar will be just as good as Cabrera if not better within a year or 2. He has more speed, but less plate discipline. Wood needs another year+ in the Minors to cut down his strikeouts.

As for Kendrick/Kennedy, everytime A.K. comes to the plate I want to pull my hair out. Kendrick should be starting now. What left is their to figure out. Kennedy can't even be relied on for D anymore. If we had Howie hitting 9th instead of AK, that would be huge.

Law couldn't be more right with his assessment of G.A. He's done as an everyday player. Those of you who don't agree put too much stock on his RBI numbers. Sure he's on pace for 98 ribbies, but when you hit behind Vlad and O.C. (he of the 60 game O.B. streak), that's a given. Tommy Murphy would have 100 RBIs in that spot in the order, playing everyday.

For those of you who may chuckle at my assertion, consider this:

Anderson: Avg:.267, OBP:.305, SLG:.421 HRperAB:39-1.

Murphy: Avg:.265, OBP: .315, SLG:.449, HRperAB:49-1.

That's right. G.A. is actually (slightly) worse than Tommy Murphy, he of the 49 big league ABs. That's only looking at the batter's box though. Murphy has superior speed on the bases and in the field, and a great glove and excellent range in the OF. He also HUSTLES!

Unfortunately G.A. cannot be traded (10/5 player) since he can (and will) refuse any trade most likely as he's married with kids and grew up in SoCal. He's dead weight for 2.5 more seasons.

I still think Figgins is a solid speed guy, although he's NOT a leadoff hitter as he strikes out like a power hitter (without the power). He should hit 9th. Aybar/Kendrick should hit 1/2 with Guerrero 3rd and Napoli (and his .430 OBP and 12-1 HR-ABs) fourth.

The worst thing that can happen to this organization is be within 3-4 games of the division lead in Mid July and the (false) hope that they can do any damage in October (let alone even make the playoffs). Get the kids some experience and add a bat or 2 in free agency and 2007 will be time to make another run.

The Halos have $22million coming off the books after this season (A.K., Ersty, Big Weav,Romero), and $14 million more after '07 (Colon). Stoneman could sign Soriano AND Carlos Lee in the offseason and the payroll would basically be the same (especially if Cabrera's $8 million is moved at the break).

For God's sake, our 2-hole hitter is hitting .212!!!(Izzy). Forget the playoffs, the next 80 games are about DEVELOPMENT.

DarkAngel hath spoken....

by darkangel01 on Jul 3, 2006 10:39 PM PDT up reply actions

Murohy vs. G.A.

Low Sample Size for the Pinball Wizard - let's see if he Shore plays mean baseball for a full season...

by Rev Halofan on Jul 3, 2006 10:50 PM PDT up reply actions

a couple of idiotic parts of this article

"The reality is that the playoffs are already hopelessly out of reach for the Angels this year."

**This is stupid. He basically says this is the case because they aren't getting on base. Did he watch the Angels in '05? They won with solid pitching and defense and streaky/situational hitting. This isn't the AL Central, one 8-10 game winning streak and any team can be right in the thick of it in the AL West.

(talking about Cabrera) there might be a market for him that would allow the Angels to slide Aybar into their lineup, gaining better defense with roughly the same offensive value for a heck of a lot less money.

**Same offensive value? Better defense? From a rookie getting his first big dose of at bats in the Majors? This guy is brilliant. I would be willing to bet Cabrera will have a solid defensive 2nd half and has always been a 2nd half hitter.

by thewebb on Jul 4, 2006 12:29 PM PDT up reply actions