The September 5th, 2013 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels including Anaheim OKs lease in face of Angels threat to move, the annoying J.B. Shuck for ROY campaign
and much more…
The Monkey Says: The proposed points of the deal that is under consideration include the Angels getting to drop "of Anaheim" from there name and, more importantly, potentially giving Moreno the land around Angel Stadium essentially for free. The name is what is raising everyone's hackles, but the fact that Moreno might get the land for free is even more intriguing since it would allow him to build a new stadium privately, but without having to spend hundreds of millions purchasing the land. It would also cut the city of Anaheim out of the revenue in the process which is what you'd think Anaheim's mayor would be more upset about, not the name change. This vote also approved the Angels having until 2019 to opt out of their lease. That would give Moreno more than enough time to build a stadium elsewhere if Anaheim doesn't give into his demands. It doesn't sound like he wants to move though, but threatening to do so gives him all of the leverage in the negotiations.
The Story: The Angels won't stop feeding the press stories to pump up J.B. Shuck for Rookie of the Year.
The Monkey Says: There was a nearly identical story to the one linked above that the Angels ran on their site yesterday too. And then there is this ridiculous press release touting Shuck's accomplishments. They are trying to convince the media that Shuck is somehow a legit RoY candidate because of all that. Really though he has been below league average player who leads in a few categories primarily because this rookie class stinks and the few good rookies have fewer plate appearances than Shuck. If you look up more telling stats that people actually care about, you'll find that Shuck is 6th in OBP, 11th in wOBA, 9th in wRC+, 20th in ISO and 12th in fWAR. Honestly, he doesn't even deserve to be in the conversation. Not that it matters because Wil Myers is going to win anyway.
The Story: Tommy Hanson is still struggling in Triple-A.
The Monkey Says: Hanson has had one disastrous start out of four, but the other three weren't particularly good. Even with Salt Lake being a tough place to pitch, there is no reason to believe Hanson is going to magically turn things around. What a disaster.
The Story: Power rankings of the last 20 Angels trades.
The Monkey Says: It is potentially hazardous to your health to read this column and have sharp implements in your immediate vicinity. This really makes you consider whether or not the Angels should try and trade Kendrick, Aybar, Bourjos or Trumbo in the off-season just because history suggests that it will only end in tears even if it was a good idea at the time.
The Story: How to fix the fading Angels franchise.
The Monkey Says: The solution is basically to throw more money after the problem and the cross their fingers and hope for the best. The idea of giving a massive contract to injury-prone, jerkwad Matt Garza sends a chill down my spine. I see the logic behind it but am terrified of what it means for the Angels if the contract goes bad.
The Story: Previewing Cam Bedrosian in the Arizona Fall League.
The Monkey Says: Reading into AFL action is dangerous, but Bedrock Jr. has a lot to gain if he can impress against this tough competition.
The Story: Potential options for changing the Angels name.
The Monkey Says: I kind of love the idea of them just being the "The Angels" with no city affiliation. They can even go soccer-style with it and be The Angels Baseball Club or Angels USA. Hey, USA is a bigger market than Los Angeles! Why hasn't Arte thought of this before!!!
The Story: We should probably stop complaining about the Angels struggling against rookie pitchers.
The Monkey Says: Great, now everyone can focus their efforts on determining which Angel players actually "really care."
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