FanPost

Solving Problems......

Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

Angels Fans.....I am an baseball playing, 14 y.o. Angel fan from Montana and I think I can speak for many of the fans out there, expressing we are upset with how the offseason has gone. I have come up with a way to fix the terrible offseason instead of complaining further. Here, I will state what I think is a good way for keeping the fans, to make a run for the championship, and to stop wasting the best years of the best player in baseball.

There are obviously money issues (or are there?) or else we would be spending money to help the team. If we want to win this year, they will need to spend money, unless every player has the best year of his career. Right now the Rangers, Astros, and Mariners are all having a great offseason. We have to find a way to beat all of them or else we will be upset we didn’t make the playoffs again when we could have done something. We also need to, mostly, get it done through free agency because we have no farm system and we may not be able to make a trade at the trade deadline this year coming. If they don’t spend money they will lose fan base and will seem greedy to those fans that remain.

So, here is my way to make our team better:

It starts at the beginning of the offseason when we traded for Andrelton Simmons. We gave up our best two prospects (Newcomb and Ellis) and Aybar for Simmons and a crappy catching prospect. Our farm system was already bad and now it’s the worst in baseball again. I was ok with the trade after a few days of thinking. Then I thought "wow, Eppler has come to help us win now". Then a few weeks passed and I read every article on what was going on with the Angels. The great new coaches and front office people, who are the Angels going to sign, and why the Angels are going to challenge the Rangers and Astros for the A.L. West crown. Then Jerry DiPoto started getting things done in Seattle and they came into the picture as a team to be reckoned with.

The winter meetings came and went with the Angels having only done the Gott for Escobar trade and I was getting excited again. That brings us to today. The Angels sign Daniel Nava. At first I thought "who is that?" then I read his slash line and one thing stood out, .194 BA. WTF? We are now paying 1.3M$ for a guy who batted .194 last year. Then Arte said "we are ‘probably out’ on Cespedes, Upton, or Gordon." Seriously? We traded our two best prospects to not win now. Simmons will help in the future, but the free agent class next year is so bad. This platoon that is happening right now looks a lot like the Murphy/Victorino platoon that didn’t work at the end of last year until Murphy was playing every day. I’d have Murphy over Nava and Gentry.

Now I’ll go into how to make the team the best we can this year.

First we need to spend money or else this doesn’t mean a thing. They’re only disappointing the fans.

We need to take care of left field first because it is still our biggest need. Eppler is going down the right path with contact, and OBP. Alex Gordon seems to be the best fit, will help defensively, and will provide a "let’s win today" attitude for a competitive drive. Four years and 82M$ should do the trick. When Eppler talks to him though, he needs to sell why they are the best team for him to choose and not just for the money. That’s what the Cubs are doing.

I was thinking of a possible trade that involves CJ Wilson and his 20M$ this year for a second baseman. I don’t know if this would work but it seems like a good deal for the Giants and Rockies. A three team trade that involves CJ Wilson, Kelby Tomlinson, Charlie Blackmon, and DJ LeMahieu as the big names. The Angels send CJ Wison and 5-10M$ to the Giants because they have shown an interest in starters in case the other ones are hurt or not performing. Kelby Tomlinson and a few minor leaguers to the Rockies for Charlie Blackmon because the Giants have also been in the hunt for an outfielder. The Angels send Matt Shoemaker, Hector Santiago, Johnny Giavotella, and Jake Jewell to the Rockies and get DJ LeMahieu.

Again, I don’t know if this would work but it seems pretty good for every team. This also dumps about 15-20M$ from the Angels.

Now that three of our eight starters are off the board we can upgrade the rotation.

Skaggs might not be ready for Opening Day and I think Nick Tropeano could use a year in the bullpen to prepare for 2017. The Angels will need to go over the luxury tax by, at the most, 15M$. It’s not as much as the Dodgers, Yankees, and maybe the Red Sox. Arte said that he might be willing to go over the luxury tax if it’s for the right player a few weeks ago. Scott Kazmir and Henderson Alvarez are the right players, trust me. Kazmir posted a 3.10 ERA last year and a 3.55 ERA the year before that. He also has no draft pick tied to him. Kazmir could sign for 3 year/ 39M$ contract with an option for a fourth year. Alvarez is a wild card. You could probably get him for a one year 4M$ contract with a club option for the second year paying him 5M$. I think it is a risk worth taking for the guy who had a 2.65 ERA in 2014 before his shoulder surgery. He will still be coming back from the injury and will need to fight his way into the rotation around June.

I totally agree with Eppler in that Garrett Richards is an ace. He can do it, we’ve seen it. Heaney is on the rise. Weaver is a competitor and will find any way to win for his team. Skaggs is going to be great once he comes back from the injury. Kazmir will help out for sure with that low ERA the last few years. Alvarez is going to bring his skill and talent once he returns. Tropeano will have the year to grow and be good once Weaver leaves. We will have the best depth of starters in the American League.

I only want this team to succeed. We could be on the verge of something great. Carlos Perez is solid. CJ Cron can be great when he’s on a tear. Pujols is bringing leadership and power. Simmons will be fantastic with a little hitting help. If Escobar repeats what he did last year then he could have the best average on the team. Calhoun is great. Trout is Trout. If we add these guys then we will certainly be ready to make a run at October.

This FanPost is authored by an independent fan. Tell us what you think and how you feel.

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