WeekEnd HaloLinks: Scrubbing Troubles

Bryce Harper, Manny Machado, Josh Donaldson, Robinson Cano, Edwin Diaz, Noah Syndergaard, Patrick Corbin, Nathan Eovaldi...these are all the big names being bandied about in the MLB deal stories, with lots of teams in the mix.

I told you that the silence of Anaheim was not to be confused with inaction. Billy Eppler has been busy. Dillon Peters, Dustin Garneau, Tommy La Stella...people, we are killing it!

But, again, today is merely the last day of the month that opened when the 2018 playoffs could have still been going on. Tomorrow starts December. We got time. Right?

Have some I’d-Love-To-Get-Off-The-Porch-HaloLinks:

A Little Bit Of Angels News

In a sweet little move, Billy Eppler added some infield and dugout depth. Acquiring Tommy La Stella from the Cubs via trade, Eppler gives Ausmus another infielder, one who also plays 2B/3B. La Stella, who made $950K last year, is in his arb period, not eligible for Free Agency until after the 2021 season. In a uni, he is pretty much a David Fletcher stat clone, but with a reputation as a successful pinch-hitter. (No, truly, that’s his primary claim to fame.) Zack Cozart defensive flexibility without Cozart’s power. All that to say, this is what Kaleb Cowart iain’t.....But it was not Cowart who was turned loose from the 40-man to make room for the incoming La Stella. No. Fare thee well, Jabalderblash...........For some background, “fan favorit” La Stella was made expendable by the Cubs because the Cubs had recently picked up “fan favorite” Ronald Torreyes from the Yankees. And the Yankees made Torreyes expendable when they picked off Parker Bridwell from Eppler’s waiver wire. Full circle service..........

And we progress now to the deadline of tender-ness, which is today. To tender, or not to tender. This must be a difficult time in certain households among team members all around MLB. Thanksgiving just ended. Hanukkah is right around the corner, and Christmas just a couple of weeks beyond that. And today you must wait to learn whether or not your position is stable - with even a raise - or if you are cut loose from your teammates, coaches, medical support staff, training facilities, fans/followers, predictable income, and must now find your way to some new job, some where different. For the Angels, those certain someones include JC Ramirez and Matt Shoemaker..........(By the way, watch the news on Addison Russell in Chicago.)...........

GRich be Gone. Garrett Richards signed a 2-year worth $15 million with the Padres. This makes it easy to visit Angels Stadium and watch his buddies play while he rehabs, which should be all of next year. Lest you feel Richards was abandoned, word is that Eppler tried hard to retain him. This simply means that the Padres were willing to outspend...........

Reminder, LAA Job Fair 10AM - 2PM on Monday............

Everywhere In Baseball

Here’s a thought, certainly not an original one. Arte Moreno is getting on in years, and is in a current ceasefire concerning new stadium plans. So maybe he hangs on for another year or two, sees some playoff baseball, cashes out, and retires. He no longer cares about the marketing advantages of “Los Angeles”, no longer cares about locking the team to Orange County, and all he needs is a buyer. By that time, the buyer(s) will be ready.........

Rich Hill was surprised to be starting in the WS, and he might not have been all too happy about that surprise.............

The Dodgers added Robert Van Scoyoc as a hitting instructor. This is the first I have heard of Van Scoyoc, but apparently he is a famous hitting ‘guru’. When I hear that these days I can only think “upward swing plane”, as if that is some sort of witchcraft. But, actually Van Scoyoc is more than that: “In 2018, the Arizona Diamondbacks hired Van Scoyoc to the newly created position of hitting strategist, which, according to the Arizona Republic, entailed providing ‘individualized, data-centric strategies on how to attack opposing pitchers.’ “.....Which sounds quite intriguing. But that all was then followed by: “The D-backs ultimately underperformed offensively and fired hitting coach Dave Magadan.” So there...............

The key to being a Big League hitting coach is to not waste your playing career actually hitting pitched baseballs. All that base running and base stealing and run scoring must take one away from actually studying how hitters succeed while sitting on the bench...........

Yeah. I’m not the only one surprised by the players’ confidence inn union head Tony Clark..........

SBN Alert. Some of you should know this fellow SBN site, Minor League Ball, well. But now we hear that VOX is shutting it all down...........

Hot Stove

In another full circle tale, Jerry Dipoto obtained minor-leaguer Ricardo Sanchez in a trade with the Braves. Sanchez used to be a Halo. He was a Halo when Dipoto was GM in Anaheim. But on January 8 of 2015, Dipoto sent Sanchez along with Nate Hyatt to the Braves in exchange for Kyle Kubitza. Now Dipoto has him back.....Kubitza, by the way, gave Major League Baseball 19 games - all under the Halo in that 2015 year. He was then purchased by the Rangers out of the LAA farm system in 2016, claimed off waivers from the Rangers and landed back in Atlanta later that year. In 2017 he was granted his Free Agency. Kubitza retired from his baseball career this year, as a champ........

We appear to be on the verge of Robinson Cano AND Edwin Diaz to the Mets. That would be one of the top 3 transactions of this off season once it goes down, so good news for news-hungry baseball fans. The good news for us is getting Cano and Diaz out of the AL West. The bad news for us is that could end up being the Mariners’ version of the Hershel Walker trade, and we will be buried by the prospect return for years to come. (Well, maybe that was a slight exaggeration. The Mets are in the bottom third when it comes to farm systems, with the Mariners being dead last.)............

Rumors are sniffing around the notion that the Mets really really want to trade away Noah Syndergaard. Maybe that’s how BVW wants to maintain his farm after grabbing Cano and Diaz..............The Brewers and Rockies are very interested in Thor..............

Trevor Bauer is a badass tweeter.....Trevor Bauer the badass tweeter may soon be departing Cleveland, for Los Angeles.............

Color me surprised. All that Oakland A’s hoopla about their latest shiny new stadium? Not a sure thing. Nope. Probably, but maybe not.............

The bidding wars for the FOX RSN’s have started, and we are all confused...........

The Duffle Bag

Happy belated birthday, Vin Scully..........Job posting, but you gotta move to Cleveland............Throwback uniform bobbleheads............Mariano Rivera: first ballot Hall of Famer, tied for shittiest batter in MLB history. (Full disclosure - he only had 4 Plate Appearances.)............