AL West Preview: Why the Rally Monkey Willfully Bruises Your Asshole
The higher-ups here at the HoG have issued an assignement. "We need baseball previews," they say, "Every sports web site on the Internets publish baseball previews." Baseball previews are, in my humble opinion, (((gay))). But I do what I'm told, and I'll start with the easiest division to predict. These are the facts:
One, the Anaheim Angels of California will win the American League West.
Two, the management and ownership of the Angels hates the teams' fans.
Throughout baseball, you hear the age-old debate over winning now with high-priced veterans versus winning later with prospects. Some teams have this decision made for them due to their revenue. The Pirates almost universally shed salary and perpetually rebuild with youngsters. The income and recent success of the Yankees dictate that they sign top-dollar free agents and trade prospects for midseason help.
And then you have the Angels, who are in a major media market and have a rich, competitive owner, yet refuse to act as though they have the resources to compete in modern-day baseball. The AL West is lousy, and it is inexcusable that Los Anaheim is not running away with this division on an annual basis. Ever since their improbable title run in 2002, the Angels have had countless oportunities to move from one-hit wonder to perennial power, yet have shit on their fans by not doing so. They did sign big-time FAs Vladimir Guerrero and B.F. Bartolo Colon prior to the 2004 campaign, but otherwise every offseason and every trading deadline has been met with stone silence from Angels GM Bill Stoneman.
The excuses are alway the same. Los Anaheim possesses arguably the best farm system in baseball, stocked with prospects at every position that make scouts and greasy geeks drool. Stoneman steadfastly refuses to deal these potential stars for help now, resigning his team to a fate filled with borderline mediocrity.
Name any superstar who's been on the trading block over the last half-decade, and the Angels have lacked the balls to obtain him. Manny Ramirez, Alex Rodriguez, The Big Unit, Gary Sheffield all could have set up shop in th OC, but Stoneman sat on his hands and let them go. He always justified this inaction as protection of the minor leaguers, but that strategy is as full of holes as Dallas McPherson's swing.
Two years ago McPherson was the No. 1 hitting prospect in baseball, a third baseman in possession of monstrous power. Every team dangled All-Star players at Stoneman to pry him away, but the GM stood firm. In his career, Mac has shown a little pop (18 HR in 360 AB) but he doesn't hit for average, strikes out too much and is a defensive butcher. There are fifty 3Bs in the bigs better than him. He's still young, and he may eventually blossom into the next Scott Rolen or Chipper Jones or better. But it's a coin flip, while Manny Ramirez is an absolute sure thing. Yes, that sure thing includes not only a great average and power numbers but also immature goofiness and a $20 million salary, but Manny wins Major League Baseball games. Dallas McPherson exists only in the wet dreams of scouts.
Keep 'em comin'...Ervin Santana, Howie Kendrick, Francisco Rodriguez, Casey Kotchman, Brandon Wood, Jered Weaver, Kendry Morales, Robb Quinlan, Jeff Mathis, etc. All theoretical studs who may one day comprise a dynasty. More likely, one will reach superstardom, a handful more will evolve into solid big leaguers, and fully half of these kids will flame out entirely. They're coin flips. Use some, and treat the rest as the commodities they are and cash them in. Your fans, which supported you through decades of futility and fill your ballpark nightly, deserve as much.
AL WEST:
Los Anaheim 90 wins
Oakland 81
Texas 74
Seattle 68
One, the Anaheim Angels of California will win the American League West.
Two, the management and ownership of the Angels hates the teams' fans.
Throughout baseball, you hear the age-old debate over winning now with high-priced veterans versus winning later with prospects. Some teams have this decision made for them due to their revenue. The Pirates almost universally shed salary and perpetually rebuild with youngsters. The income and recent success of the Yankees dictate that they sign top-dollar free agents and trade prospects for midseason help.
And then you have the Angels, who are in a major media market and have a rich, competitive owner, yet refuse to act as though they have the resources to compete in modern-day baseball. The AL West is lousy, and it is inexcusable that Los Anaheim is not running away with this division on an annual basis. Ever since their improbable title run in 2002, the Angels have had countless oportunities to move from one-hit wonder to perennial power, yet have shit on their fans by not doing so. They did sign big-time FAs Vladimir Guerrero and B.F. Bartolo Colon prior to the 2004 campaign, but otherwise every offseason and every trading deadline has been met with stone silence from Angels GM Bill Stoneman.
The excuses are alway the same. Los Anaheim possesses arguably the best farm system in baseball, stocked with prospects at every position that make scouts and greasy geeks drool. Stoneman steadfastly refuses to deal these potential stars for help now, resigning his team to a fate filled with borderline mediocrity.
Name any superstar who's been on the trading block over the last half-decade, and the Angels have lacked the balls to obtain him. Manny Ramirez, Alex Rodriguez, The Big Unit, Gary Sheffield all could have set up shop in th OC, but Stoneman sat on his hands and let them go. He always justified this inaction as protection of the minor leaguers, but that strategy is as full of holes as Dallas McPherson's swing.
Two years ago McPherson was the No. 1 hitting prospect in baseball, a third baseman in possession of monstrous power. Every team dangled All-Star players at Stoneman to pry him away, but the GM stood firm. In his career, Mac has shown a little pop (18 HR in 360 AB) but he doesn't hit for average, strikes out too much and is a defensive butcher. There are fifty 3Bs in the bigs better than him. He's still young, and he may eventually blossom into the next Scott Rolen or Chipper Jones or better. But it's a coin flip, while Manny Ramirez is an absolute sure thing. Yes, that sure thing includes not only a great average and power numbers but also immature goofiness and a $20 million salary, but Manny wins Major League Baseball games. Dallas McPherson exists only in the wet dreams of scouts.
Keep 'em comin'...Ervin Santana, Howie Kendrick, Francisco Rodriguez, Casey Kotchman, Brandon Wood, Jered Weaver, Kendry Morales, Robb Quinlan, Jeff Mathis, etc. All theoretical studs who may one day comprise a dynasty. More likely, one will reach superstardom, a handful more will evolve into solid big leaguers, and fully half of these kids will flame out entirely. They're coin flips. Use some, and treat the rest as the commodities they are and cash them in. Your fans, which supported you through decades of futility and fill your ballpark nightly, deserve as much.
AL WEST:
Los Anaheim 90 wins
Oakland 81
Texas 74
Seattle 68
UPDATE: Angels Fans are falling for it again. God help the children.
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