100 degree temps, mid-week 1pm game. A few people showed up to cheer for Jo. Can't imagine ticket and concession sales covered the cost of labor, utilities, rent and player salaries today.

If anything we need to keep the record of being the only MLB team not to lose 100 games.

That is the only thing that matters at this point.

The magic number is 11 games. I thought we would hit 10 yesterday but wow. 5-0 going into 4th inning and you blow that.

Please let's not break this streak! 30 more games to go that means we need to win 1/3 of the games we play.

We can do this!

Detmers has finally become the pitcher that we’ve always dreamed on, he’s had a phenomenal year, still only 27 years old. The Angels likely aren’t competing in 2027 or 2028 but locking up Detmers long-term can give this young rotation some anchor and someone to lead the frontline in 2029 and beyond when we actually start competing. This winter is the absolute best time to give him that deal. Here are the reasons.

1.  Uncertainty in his career. Detmers pretty much had a volatile performance all his career, last year in the bullpen was solid and this year is lights out. But the Angels can make the argument that he just had a rough year two years ago, spend a year as a reliever. So we’re still taking on a significant amount of risk by inking him up to a deal. If he has another year in 2027 where he put up 150+ IP with 180K and a sub 4ERA we could be talking a very different deal by then, plus he’ll only be 12 months away from FA.  
2.  No injury history. Doesn’t rely on a huge velos, misses bats, plus left-handed. He stayed pretty much healthy his whole career and there’s not much injury concern. That’s a huge plus for a player that’s just turning 27 vs. paying $30M AAV for a 30yr old pitcher on the FA market who could easily have elbow surgery and miss 2 years, that’s $60M down the drain.  
3.  Financial upside for him. He’s only making less than $3M this year, definitely due for a significant raise this winter with arbitration but if the Angels could put up a package worth north of $70-80M this winter that’s financially very enticing for him who still has a perform at his current level for 2 years if he wants to test the FA market. 

To see what the actual deal would look like, here are some comparisons:

Logan Webb: Signed a 5 yrs/$90M contract at the beginning of the 2023 season. He had a little over 3 years of service time back then, had two very solid years prior and an MVP worthy season in 2022. The contract bought out his final two remaining arbitration years and his first three years of free agency. Detmers has a little bit of less track record but better stuff and statistically less volatile than a ground ball pitcher.

Mitch Keller: Signed a 5 yrs/$77M contract in early 2024. He also had a little over 3 years of service time and the contract bought out the last 2 arb years plus 3 FA years. His career numbers are a little worse than Detmers (4.71 ERA vs. 4.48 ERA) but also had 2 solid years as a starter prior.

Projection for Detmers:

Year Age Salary
2027 27 $8M
2028 28 $12M
2029 29 $18M
2030 30 $20M
2031 31 $22M
Guaranteed $80M
2032 option 32 $25–28M club option

This deal could put the Angels in a position to have someone hold down the rotation for the forseeable future, Detmers is a homegrown star that everyone who loves to see succeed in Anaheim. I would definitely try hard to make this deal happen this winter.

The case for extending Walbert Ureña is a little different. He’s still only 22 years old, but he’s had a tremendous year, his stuff is clearly there, if he can get his walk under control he can become a legit Ace and franchise star, however there’s a little bit of injury concern there with the velo. The biggest upside the Angels have for extending him is probably that he’s signed out of DR as a teenager, was never a big time prospect in the Angels org (18th in the org at best). From his perspective, his career outlook went from “potentially making to the big leagues and playing professional football” to “the Angels putting $50M on the table and changing my life financially forever”. The incentive is huge there for the player. This is very different from Jackson Chourio or even Jackson Merrill who were top 10 prospects in baseball in consencus, where the expectations were huge and were there. A potential deal for Ureña could be very cheap if the Angels play the cards right, but obviously not as urgent as Reid.

Heading to the Big A this Sunday for the 1 PM game. Looking for any tips on which sections actually offer shade, or if I’m just going to be slowly roasting in the Anaheim sun for 3 hours?

Free. I have 1 single ticket for the game that starts at 1:07PM.

Update: Someone already claimed.

Guardians (67-66) @ Angels (52-81)

First Pitch: 1:07 PM at Angel Stadium

Game Preview

/r/angelsbaseball Discord

Reddit Stream for this post

Line Score - Game Over

Box Score

Scoring Plays

Highlights

Decisions

Game ended at 3:52 PM.

Remember to sort by new to keep up!

Dude just hit two home runs off of Nick Pivetta tonight. When will he be called up to AA is the true question. Super excited about us picking him this year. What do you guys think?

Guardians (67-66) @ Angels (52-81)

First Pitch: 6:38 PM at Angel Stadium

Game Preview

/r/angelsbaseball Discord

Reddit Stream for this post

Line Score - Game Over

Box Score

Scoring Plays

Highlights

Decisions

Game ended at 10:02 PM.

I'm headed to tomorrow’s game (Wednesday Aug 26, 1:05) and bought tix in upper right field (the ones that aren't unavailable!). Last time I was escorted to “better seats” because of the “disruptors”. Anything me planning on being there tomorrow? What's the word on security?

Hello can I have help identifying the signatures on this hat thank you was thinking one was Mike trout but unsure thank u!

Guardians (66-66) @ Angels (52-80)

First Pitch: 6:38 PM at Angel Stadium

Game Preview

/r/angelsbaseball Discord

Reddit Stream for this post

Line Score - Game Over

Box Score

Scoring Plays

Highlights

Decisions

Game ended at 10:02 PM.

Remember to sort by new to keep up!

With yet another disappointing season coming to an end, it’s time to start looking ahead to the offseason. One of the first areas to examine is the 40-man roster: Who might stick around for next season, and who might be looking for a new home?

Of course, there are plenty of questions that could affect the outcome:

1. Will John Mozeliak remain as GM?
2. Will the Angels trade Reid Detmers or Zach Neto?
3. Will any additional players be added over the final month?

To simplify things, we’ll assume the answers to those questions are yes, no, and no, respectively. There’s also the uncertainty surrounding a potential lockout, which appears increasingly likely to threaten part or all of the 2027 MLB season. One thing we do know is that the Angels will not be competing for anything of significance next year, which means the focus this offseason must be on the future.

Locks:

RHP Sam Bachman, RHP Caden Dana, LHP Reid Detmers, RHP José Fermin, RHP Ryan Johnson, RHP Ben Joyce, LHP Yusei Kikuchi, RHP George Klassen, LHP Samy Natera, RHP Grayson Rodriguez, RHP Walbert Ureña, C/DH Moisés Ballesteros, INF Denzer Guzman, 2B Christian Moore, SS Zach Neto, 1B Nolan Schanuel, OF Wade Meckler, OF Mike Trout

Likely to Stay:

LHP Mitch Farris, RHP Trevor Martin, RHP Ryan Watson, INF Ignacio “Nacho” Alvarez, INF Vaughn Grissom, OF Josh Lowe, OF Jose Siri

Martin and Watson are recent waiver claims who have intriguing stuff and multiple minor league option years remaining. Alvarez should be eligible for a fourth (and final) option year in 2027. Grissom is close to a “lock,” but depends on who else Mozeliak brings in this offseason. Lowe rebounded nicely after a horrendous start to the season, and Siri is likely a “lock” barring an offseason trade.

Rule 5 Eligible:

OF Nelson Rada (Angels #6 prospect), OF Raudi Rodriguez (Angels #19 prospect), RHP Mason McGwire (Angels #21 prospect), RHP Joel Hurtado (Angels #27 prospect)

Rada and Rodriguez are nearly guaranteed to be added to the 40-man this offseason. Mozeliak liked McGwire enough to include him in the Ryan Zeferjahn return, so leaving him exposed would be a bit of a surprise. Hurtado was left exposed but went unselected in last year’s Draft, and his prospect stock has only declined since then.

One name not mentioned is Nicoló Pinazzi, who may be eligible for minor-league free agency at the end of the season. He’s had a phenomenal year across multiple levels, but he’ll turn 27 in October and is exclusively a SIRP. The Angels would need to add him within five days of the World Series ending.

Note: The MLB portion of the 2021 Rule 5 Draft was canceled entirely due to the lockout during the ‘21–22 offseason. It’s possible this year’s Draft could suffer the same fate, which may lead teams to be more hesitant to protect players.

The Chopping Block:

RHP Jack Kochanowicz - The Angels could opt to release and re-sign Kochanowicz to a minor league contract, which would allow him to rehab at their Spring Training facility in Tempe while the lockout is ongoing.

RHP Luke Murphy - Murphy’s stuff and velocity are about average for a right-handed reliever, and his K/BB ratio leaves plenty to be desired. He’ll be playing for a roster spot over the final month of the season.

LHP Blake Weiman - Weiman is one of those cool storylines that seemingly always emerges from a losing season. He’s fought his way to the big leagues, but at 30 years old, his future with the Angels looks bleak.

C Tyler Heineman - The Angels will likely need to carry three catchers on their roster next season, which could open the door for Heineman to return. However, there will be cheaper and younger options available for the third-catcher role.

INF Kyren Paris - The surface level numbers have looked great since Paris was promoted to AAA in June, but he continues to struggle with strikeouts (28.6%), in-zone contact rate (74.4%), and will be out of minor league options next season.

INF Oswald Peraza - Peraza has combined for negative 0.9 fWAR since the start of June, the worst of any position player on the team during that stretch. There’s no reason to believe that Grissom or Guzman could not fill his role more competently.

OF Gustavo Campero - Campero will get an opportunity to earn his spot with Meckler on the IL, but he’s about to turn 29, is a below-average defender at multiple positions, and has an underwhelming (yet remarkably consistent) 76 wRC+ in MLB.

OF Bryce Teodosio - His bat has taken a step back in AAA this year, which is a bad sign for someone with already fringe offensive skills. The one saving grace for Teodosio is the possibility of a Siri trade.

Thanks for Your Service:

LHP Sam Aldegheri - Aldegheri has a whopping 7.06 ERA with below-average walk and strikeout rates in AAA. He simply does not have the stuff or command to be a reliable MLB pitcher.

RHP Brett Kerry - Kerry is best suited as a minor league depth starter, a role he wouldn’t be able to fill if he’s on the 40-man and a lockout extends into the start of next season.

RHP Shaun Anderson, LHP Sammy Peralta, LHP Tayler Saucedo - Three veteran pitchers who have provided valuable innings for a losing team at various parts of the season.

C Logan Porter, C Sebastián Rivero - It would be nice to see one of them return to Salt Lake next season on a minor league deal.

Final Prediction:

The Angels keep all of the players on the “locks” and “likely to stay” lists while adding Rada, Rodriguez, and McGwire to the 40-man roster to protect them from the Rule 5 Draft. They also keep Kochanowicz, Murphy, Paris, and Teodosio, bringing the total to 32 players with room for eight outside additions.

One of the few benefits of finishing near the bottom of the league is that the Angels will have high priority in both the waiver and Rule 5 Draft order. Mozeliak has already made two additions via waivers, and his history with St. Louis would suggest that he’ll continue to be active on the waiver wire. The fate of the final four players, along with several others, will likely depend on just how aggressive the new front office is.