Angels GM Billy Eppler downplayed the possibility of a late-spring rotation addition, as Jeff Fletcher of the Southern California News Group writes. It seems the organization is content with its existing options entering the season.
The indication for some time has been that the Halos have already pushed their payroll to the max this winter. Previously, the team inked Matt Harvey and Trevor Cahill to short-term but reasonably expensive contracts.
New elbow woes for southpaw Andrew Heaney won’t change the team’s stance, despite the ongoing presence of Dallas Keuchel and Gio Gonzalez on the free-agent market. For one thing, Eppler says, doctors haven’t identified any structural concerns in or around Heaney’s elbow. For another, he adds, the club already has “starters we are comfortable with.”
That statement doesn’t close the door on a move, though it hardly suggests that the organization is suddenly free to spend more to bring in a pricey hurler. And it seems the Halos won’t be rushing to make a cheaper deal with one of the other free agent hurlers still waiting for a job, either.
So, should Eppler be comfortable with what’s on hand? Righty Nick Tropeano is nearing a resumption of mound work but won’t be ready for the start of the season, putting him in much the same situation as Heaney. That leaves Jaime Barria, Felix Pena, and Dillon Peters battling for two openings, Fletcher suggests. There’s an argument that all three could be at least passable back-of-the-rotation options, though the Halos may need more than that if they’re to keep pace with a loaded Astros team.
Gio?
“Gio, time to go..” Any tenacious d fans out there?
Tribute
“You must throw your flame and bender for free, if there aren’t significant injuries”
You must give your cape and septor to me… and a smaller one for KG
In the end, the angels are the Mets when injury hit.
If Eppler and the Angels are content with this rotation . then either they are handcuffed at doing anything of reason by the owner or just plain dumb..we all know this rotation is not gonna last the whole season.They have been delusional about their pitching for years and years now,and each year it is proven they need pitching.
They know their window to compete is more likely to be open in 2020 when some of their top prospects will graduate to the majors and the Astros might lose some of their pieces. Makes more sense to spend on FAs next off-season than waste money on guys they’re not excited about just to finish in second or third place
Perfectly stated. I assume this sort of plan has been communicated to Trout as well. I don’t blame him for playing the wait and see game with the next off-season or even two when he’s a FA.
I, personally, know from a source inside the Angels clubhouse that Trout loves SoCal and loves playing for the Angels. That’s about all I know though.
Well I wouldn’t put too much stock in that source, you’re going to have to wait and see like everyone not named Mike Trout. If the Angels don’t add pitching that can over take the Astros and A’s in the next two years for at least a playoff birth, You ought start the good-bye tour. Trout will receive money from just about any team
In the league, the opportunity to win .. in a town he loves, that is what will seal it. Now, he could resign in LAA, personally I just don’t see it. You can wait in prospects all you want, but the majority don’t pan out. Even the top 100 have their duds. I think the bottom line is, trout is ready to win in 2021. I don’t think he’s going to want to watch the kids going through their learning curves. He’s going. To want to win ASAP, and that is available on other teams
He also loves Philly and is a phillies fan and am eagles season ticket holder.
I agree. Trout is the only one who truly knows what he wants to do. A regular Joe like myself would typically never have that kind information it was a chance meeting on an airplane. Is probably the best flight of my life just talking Angels baseball.
Next off-season and season will be critical to re-signing Trout. Ohtani will presumably be back in the rotation and there is a lot to like about our kids.
I really can’t imagine trading the greatest player of this generation unless he flat out states that he wants to play elsewhere.
Talk texting… excuse the grammar
Ironman, that’s also true. I just don’t think you can trade him unless he states that he wants to play elsewhere. I thought it was cool that someone who works with angels was able to communicate that sort of information to a fan. It was very cool.
I’m not so sure they’re “dumb”… it’s important to remember that both Jose Suarez and Griffin Canning could be up as early as mid-May adding some intriguing arms to the mix, even if they aren’t ready for opening day… if both or even one of them does show they’re ready for prime time, then that means they only need a bridge to get to them… there’s a non-zero chance either or both outperform Keuchel And/or Gio this season
“We are content with third place and Trout walking after 2020”
Yes, they 100% are. Unfortunately the vast majority of the Angels fan base is uneducated when it comes to the MLB. This is not directed at you Rev Halofan. As a season ticket holder and Angel fan myself, I’m sure you understand exactly what I mean…. This kinda crap would not fly in baseball city’s like the Dodgers, Card, Boston, Yankees, and etc..
You realize angels are considered an LA team just like the dodgers
Dodgers are the LA team, no offense to the Angels
Angels are called LA correct. Nothing LA about the Angels. They play in the city of Anaheim, in the County of Orange.
You are 100% correct DarkSide830. The Dodgers are LA all the way, this being why they get LA pub and the Angels don’t.
It’s called marketing numb nuts!! You do know a lot of professional teams do not play in their home city? You would do the same thing if you owned the team!
And let the season get started before you talk s#!t on the people who actually do this for living. I’m sure they have forgotten more baseball than you know!
Nothing LA about the Angels? You don’t know much about the Angels.
I could honestly make a legitimate argument that the angels are more “LA” than the dodgers
Well since all TV and radio stations in the Los Angeles region are based in Los Angeles that makes any sports team in the region part of the Los Angeles media market.
Los Angeles Angels.
Haloshane is the reason they had to remove the dislike button from this site. It was overloading their servers every time he posts his whining bitterness.
Another Angels fan here, and I do agree that it’s frustrating as hell not to be competitive when we have the best player on the planet… but Arte and the FO do spend money. We have the 5th highest payroll in baseball. I think it’s more about how they spend it… the albatross being Pujols. I do like the Cahill and Harvey signings (especially on 1 year deals) but both of them were like $4 mil higher than I would have expected. But I dont think it’s realistic to expect them to pay $15-20 million more for Keuchal. I think we should call up Canning and let the future start
What they should’ve done is not spent money on guys like Pujols and Josh Hamilton so they could fix the rotation. How many years must this go on? Moreno builds headlines but not winning baseball teams
Thanks for calling all other Angels fans besides you and Rev Halofan stupid…we may be stupid, but you’re still ugly. Oh and it’s baseball cities genius, not city’s.
I think you are a lot smarter than they are.
Flies with the Mets lol
HaloShane you are correct. No offense to you, but angels fans are some of the least baseball literate fans out there.
It’s fans like you that wanted to sign Crawford and Heyward. Keuchel? You want to sign Keuchel? Man you people are dumb.
Stop acting like you know Keuchel is garbage.
I don’t know he’s garbage. I do know he doesn’t miss bats and allows a tremendous amount of hits. And that’s with the shift. There is a reason he’s without a contract. I don’t find you very astute.
“We expect everyone of our pitchers to go on the disabled list, every year. This is nothing new.”
Dillion peters is a** not sure why i keep hearing about him. Has no business being mentioned as he has zero success in majors
He’s pitched 59 innings across two seasons
They really need keuschel. They don’t have anybody who they can be confident will take the ball every fifth day. Then next year they have him and Ohtani to take a run in trout’s walk year.
Just want to say that I love your name.
Bye Mike Trout 🙂
I’d get gio to add more dept into the rotation. he can throw innings. probably would be cheap as well.
Felix Pena lol
A team cannot win without good, healthy pitchers. Even children know this. One day the Angels’ front office and ownership will hopefully learn this maxim and take it to heart. Once again, today is not that day…
Who was good on the A’s last year?
Sean Manaea
He didn’t even pitch enough innings to qualify for an ERA title. And if you think pitching is so important, then you must feel very comfortable with the Angels finishing second.
Ironically, Manaea threw more innings than any currently healthy member of the Angels rotation did last season
And how many is he going to throw this year? People are worried about the A’s? Really. The biggest threat to the Angels and the second wild card spot are the Rays. If the Angels stay remotely healthy they’ll finish in second place.
The biggest threat to the Angels is they have gone 319-329 the last 4 years, with 3 straight sub-500 seasons – and the team has only gotten worse this offseason.
You are clearly obsessed with the Athletics and Mariners (two teams that won 17 and 9 more, respectively, than the Angels last season) while ignoring the fact that your team is moving backwards at an extremely fast pace. You should be much more concerned with the Twins and possibly even the Blue Jays moving up to push the Angels down to 10th best, than this idiotic idea that merely topping either the A’s or M’s is all you need to do.
You failed to mention that many of the players on those teams hit the DL
Calm down, you asked who was good on the A’s and I answered your question. I’m a big Angels fan and I don’t trash the team like some of the other guys on here.
Manaea, Cahill, and most importantly, the bullpen was great… a nasty bullpen can help fix a rotation full of back end starts without a true TOR guy… Edwin Jackson, Frankie Montas, Mike Fiers, and Daniel Mengden put together a combined 55 starts of a sub 3.8 ERA… you don’t need names to get mid to back end production out of your starters
The lack of a committed effort to sign either Keuchel or Gio, who are both durable/experienced arms, makes it pretty clear that we’re unsure (at best) of our ability to complete this year. The “roll with what we’ve got and reassess if over performing” tactic is a disheartening one.
Not really if you truly understand that Keuchel’s peripherals have been steadily declining. You have to be smart in today’s game and I just dont see a high draft pick and international money being less of a return than signing Keuchel for “x” amount of years. Were nearing the end of spring training and theres 29 other teams that pretty much think the same
See, that’s where I disagree. There’s a strong case that our window is 2020 and we should hold off for one of the big guns next off-season but there’s certainly a price point that would make a Keuchel signing cost effective (INTL $$/2nd rnd pick be damned). Lets say something similar to JA Happ’s 2yr/$34m deal was a competitive offer, maybe with an option for a 3rd year at similar AAV tacked on, I think we’d need to take a hard look. It’s very likely that Dallas will be a solid contributor through that time frame with upside to be better. The need for pitching is not going away and there’s no guarantee those top shelf arms will still be there come 2020. Getting a former Cy Yong winner at a bargain rate is exactly the kind of move a pitching starved org like the Halos need to be making.
So Dallas Keuchel gonna end up signing with the Long Island Ducks since everybody’s content with going with a Joe Blow in their rotation?
Does it really matter who pitches for them? They’ll be injured eventually.
Another third place near .500 season coming for the Angels. I’m sure Trout is fed up with this.
My God if Eppler thinks this current rotation will compete for WS he’s nuts.
They should just trade Trout for a bucket full of prospects. Rebuild the organization and count down to the end of that hideous Pujols signing. They could get a lot of pieces for Trout alone. It would make sense to do it this year before he has the chance to walk. Get something in return for this guy!
What do you mean what’s wrong with perpetual mediocrity?
To add… why on earth would Trout want to resign with this moribund organization? Why would anyone who wants to win resign there?
I can’t see him not testing the market at least unless the Angels blow him away with an offer he cannot refuse. This organization has not made an effort to put Trout in position to win. Shame his prime years are being wasted on a team like this.
Think about what you said, and how that reflects on any athlete. This player has money already. Sure he’ll get an offer he can’t refuse from the Angles, to along with the same mediocre team .. or he could get a slightly less offer he can’t refuse with a competitive window to win. My gut says he cares enough about winning to at least test FA, and when he does, he’s not resigning with LAA. I really don’t care how many inside angels fans on in this site here know of a friend that works inside the angels that has a childhood friend that washes Trouts jock strap … that’s says he loves SoCal … he may love SoCal, but I’m pretty sure he hates losing, and hates watching october baseball from home even more. Lastly, Arte really doesn’t have a day anymore. His leverage is gone… just like Trout
And the counter argument would be that it also your opinion as well. People evaluate and pay money for possible future performance and that goes for Trout as well not PAST performance. If you think Keuchel is the savior to this rotation or gio Gonzalez you are sadly mistaken.
On the one hand, the Angels FO has reconciled itself to losing Trout in 2 years, and is doing what they can to compete beyond the loss.
On the other hand, the team feels it can compete the same way it did in 2002…with a suspect pitching staff that chooses to fulfill their potential that year.
It’s happened before. Who knows???
If they’re unwilling to even sign Gio then they might as well give up Trout right now…
How could anyone feel optimistic with this starting pitching? Also most of our bullpen is terrible. Come on Arte sign Keuchel..
There is nothing this team can do to compete with that Astros. The Angels are competing with the A’s, Twins and Rays and an unexpected team for a one game playoff. Kuechel spells disaster and Geo stinks. The Angels have to play the hand they are dealt and hope they stay reasonably healthy.
Eppler should be canned for giving Harvey and Cahill that kind of $$. How ridiculous to give 2 has beens when he could of got 1 quality starter for that $$
Soooo they’re just trying to make a big move for Stroman in the middle of the season…. right?
Optimistic as ever, but the Astros win the division by 10+ games by the end of the season.
All we got to shoot for is a second wild card spot, and will probably miss that too. The Mets of the West.
Anyone remember names like, Kevin Appier, Aaron Sele, Ramon Ortiz, Jarrod Washburn and John Lackey?
What a group of jokes they turned out to be…
I see what you did there.
– Aaron Sele had thrown 1000+ innings of above average ball, winning 82 games and making 2 All Star games the 5 years prior to joining the 2002 Angels
– Kevin Appier had thrown 860+ innings of above average ball, and won 52 games on mostly bad teams the 5 years prior to joining the 2002 Angels
– Jarrod Washburn was a still young player who had already throw 415+ innings of well above average baseball for the Angels prior to 2002
– John Lackey was a well regarded 2nd round pick making his full season debut
– Ramon Ortiz was a very well regarded (top 30 in game in 2000) prospect making his full season debut
The currently healthy rotation of Harvey, Cahill, Barria, Pena and Peters with Tropeano and maybe Heaney doesn’t compare to that in any possible way, no matter how much kool-aid one drinks
– Harvey the last 5 has less than 530 IP of well below average production (90 ERA+)
– Cahill the last 5 has less than 420 innings pitched of well below average production (90 ERA+)
– Heaney has only managed 340 innings of well below average production (93 ERA+) over his 5 years in the league
– Pena and Peters are throw-away guys picked up off the waiver wire from other bad teams
– Tropeano was never a top prospect who has thrown just 200 innings of below average production over his career so far
– Barria I guess is the closest to being comparable to a 2002 arm, but he’s not the prospect Washburn or Ortiz were and his 2017 stats show last years results should not be expected again at all (4.58 FIP on that 3.50 ERA over less than 120 IP)
Angels current rotation is straight garbage, and there is no getting around that
Forgot Skaggs existed – although his 370 IP of below average production (93 ERA+) the last 5 seasons honestly doesn’t change anything
Oh you are going back five years. Five seasons ago the Angels had the best record in baseball. The fact of the matter in 2002 the Angels were 120 to 1 on winning the world series. I know, because I made a lot of money.
You’re not a very bright one, are you?
Original poster implied the 2002 rotation was not good but pitched well. Reality shows that couldn’t be farther from the truth – that rotation had 2 veteran all-star workhorses off very good 5 years stretches and 3 top prospects, 1 of which had already proven himself ML capable with well above average production.
This 2019 Angels rotation? 2 usually injured used-to-be’s off horrific 5 year stretches, 2 usually injured guys that have performed poorly over their careers so far, 2 trash players claimed from bad teams, a usually injured non-prospect that hasn’t performed well and a lesser prospect that pitched dramatically poorer than results showed in his limited showing last season. In other words, garbage
That 2002 rotation looks absolutely nothing like the 2019 one in any possible way, despite what he said, and as I showed
But oh, you mean 5 years ago the Angels were supposedly good? How many playoff wins did they manage again? Not even 1? And what has their record been since that season? Isn’t it 319-329? You must be so proud
Looking at a pitching staff in five year increments is pretty dumb. Araon Sele’s last good year was 2001. He stunk in 2002 and beyond.
Appier was out of baseball in 2003 and was so bad as the year moved on he almost cost the team the championship.
Washburn had a special knack of being a fly ball pitcher who could keep the ball in the park. I always liked him. Not as much as I like Skaggs and Heaney now, but I always liked him.
Not a lot of people were talking about John Lackey, which is why he only started 18 games.
Were people excited about Romon Ortiz? If you think so, that’s revisionism.
The 2002 Staff was’t all that great. It was OK. What made that team special was the bull pen and that was completely mismanaged by Mike Scioscia who didn’t even know what he had in Scot Shields.
And except for Percy… NO ONE was exited about the Angels Bullpen.
I made a ton of money on that team because I saw some potential and a totally mismanaged 2001 by Mike Scioscia. But no one else did.
If this team stays half as healthy as that 2002 team, it’s will finish in second place and compete for a wild card.
They’ve should have added another SP or at least tried to even before the injuries. It’s their way of downplaying to the media that they’re more of a offensive team, which is fine , but they don’t have to lie. They’ve lost Garrett Richards, you have Harvey as a number 3 starter who’s been up and down, but moreso down the past few years, and may I remind you that you guys overpaid him at a salary near 11 mil, number 2 starter Skaggs has an era of about mid 4, and then the other 2 starting SP havent had really a consistent track record for a solid ERA.. It seems they’ve soldified their CP, but somewhat at the cost of SP, which is generally not a good thing. So if the Angels want to make it to the playoffs, I feel they at least should add 1 more solid SP, preferably 2. However I would rather not give in to some the ludicrous contracts the remaining FA are asking for and keep my current roster, unless they agree to lower their asking price. If that’s the current situation, fine, but to say your happy with your current SP, kinda like the Padres have, is pretty naive when you know your starting rotation needs work.
And you have the best player of the last 5 decades on your team … about to hit FA. It’s pretty mind losing that more wasn’t done. Sure they could compete, but it is pretty unlikely with the astros and As in their division. Honestly in two years time, the Mariners May have already rebuilt faster than the Angels. 2 years is a long time, and I think THIS was the season to impress trout. If they miss the playoffs again, 10 games back, I don’t see that extension signed in the off-season no matter how many zeros arte puts in there. This is a huge year for the direct of the franchise … and honestly, it seems like the Angels are giving up. Harvey is a nice pickup … as a number 4/5. They need to sign Keuchel or trade for a better SP
It says something about the state of the FA SPs when the NYYS decide to pursue trade options rather than jump in with both feet on the remaining guys – including standing pat when 2/3 of their semi dependable of late rotation goes down for months with injury.
There’s a difference between buying a SP that makes sense and buying a SP because “well, we need one and this is the best thing still available.”
Gio or Keuchel? Sure, better be a 2 yr deal at a price that let’s you recoup your draft pick loss by trading them as a rental next offseason (or this july)
Unfortunately, neither guy wants to settle for that type of contract even as opening day fast approaches.
You worried about the A’s and the M’s… seriously? You are worried about the Angels staff? Have you even glanced at the M’s or A’s staff?
The 2018 Angels had a perfectly average 100 OPS+ and scored a below average 4.45 runs per game.
If they believe they are an offensive driven team then they are more delusional than I thought
Thanks for reminding me Skaggs exists though. I forgot him on my above post breakdown of the options.
In spite of so many injuries last year the Angels were exactly average. So I guess the sky is falling. That’s sarcasm.
80-82 (.494) isn’t exactly average – it’s below it
But coming off an 80-82, 8th place finish while sitting on a team that is noticeably inferior to that below-average one… I guess it explains your enthusiasm
Keep proving you don’t know baseball. Look at their run differential. If you are attempting to determine their starting point it is more important than record. To someone who knows baseball, that doesn’t need explanation.
Okay, let’s look at run differential
Scored 721
Allowed 722
So they gave up more than they scored, explaining their 80-82. In your world that means they were not below average, does it?
And their starting point? Huh? You can’t look at a 2018 clubs numbers and just say they are going to improve on that when they have only gotten worse since then.
For a person saying others don’t know anything about baseball, you seemail to know nothing but kool-aid influenced wishful thinking propaganda yourself
Which is 500 team with almost everything going wrong.
That’s their starting point. So which team are you worried about, the A’s. Have you looked at their team. The Twins, they do play in a weak division. How about the Rays?
Me too… I’m worried about the Rays, and that’s about it.
Just read that Jason Hammel said that if the Rangers don’t keep him in the roster he will not accept being demoted to AAA and would then look for a job with some other team. If no team gives him an opportunity to play in the Majors, then he would go home and retire. I think he could be a good addition to the Angels rotation right now….
Mike Trout deserves better than the Anaheim/LA Angels, Arte Moreno and Billy Eppler. Soon he will be rewarded with the ability to choose a winner.
Which team is that?
1. Arte naming the team after LA is insulting. It implies Anaheim is not worthy of a team. They won the WS as Anaheim. Also the Ducks won the Stanley Cup as Anaheim. There is pride that Anaheim is Anaheim it’s not LA. Arte calling them Los Angeles probably has to do with his own ego. Or maybe merch – will sell more Angels gear if it says Los Angeles.
2. Anaheim is not a mere suburb of LA. It’s distance is only 24 miles from LA but it’s size is approximately 360,000 people. Anaheim would be the largest city in 23 states.
3. Two teams that might benefit from the Arte naming system: the San Francisco Athletics of Oakland; the Washington Orioles of Baltimore.
You do realize they were the LA Angels in the 50s right? You do realize their first name was the LA Angels, and when they moved to Anaheim they were named the California Angels.
Disney insisted on them being called the Anaheim Angels when they brought the team and the Moreno insisted they change their name back to their original name.
I started following started following this team when they were the LA Angels. It’s not an insult.
I know several people in the Halo’s organization, and I can assure you that they are TRYING. Some of you need to go back through the articles on this page and take note of how many players they’ve gone after who simply did not want to come here. Maybe that’s because they see the angels haven’t been very competitive the last few years but to suggest the FOH is just complacent or stupid is ignorant. What exactly would you like Billy to say here? “Yup, our rotation sucks and there’s not much we can do about it.”? You can’t sign FA’s if they refuse to play in so cal, period.