The June 15th, 2015 edition of Los Angeles Angels news including Dipoto’s 2016 option picked up, Angels sign first round pick and much more…
The Story: The Angels picked up the 2016 option for general manager Jerry Dipoto.
The Monkey Says: The option was exercised right around the start of the season but not made public until now. Why? I have no idea. This seems to be standard operating procedure for GMs around the league and I just don’t understand the reasoning behind it. Still, the real news here is that Dipoto will likely be back next year. There’s nothing stopping Moreno from firing him after the season though and the fact that no extension talks have taken place suggests that Arte isn’t fully behind Dipoto just yet.
The Story: The Angels signed first round pick Taylor Ward.
The Monkey Says: The important takeaway here is that Ward signed for more than $300,000 below his slot value. That will help with the signing of guys like Jahmai Jones, but only time will tell if getting those saving on Ward was worth reaching so far to select him.
The Story: The Angels are considering keeping Kyle Kubitza on the roster as a left fielder.
The Monkey Says: He worked out there during practice this weekend, so it looks like they will at least give it a shot. He’s shown enough in the minors that he deserves a long look, but they have to play him consistently either in left, third base or at DH to make it worth the roster spot.
The Story: Collin Cowgill suffered a setback in his recovery.
The Monkey Says: He’s off to get an MRI, so this probably doesn’t bode well for him.
The Story: Daniel Robertson was called up with C.J. Cron being demoted.
The Monkey Says: This was a direct side effect of the news above. The Halos were without any true outfielder on their bench and Robertson gives them a guy that can cover all three defensive spots. He wasn’t hitting much in salt Lake, but the Halos didn’t really have any other choice. Cron getting probably isn’t what they wanted to do, but it wasn’t like he deserved to be on the active roster anyway.
The Story: Trevor Gott was added to the 25-man roster with Drew Rucinski optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake.
The Monkey Says: Gott is well-thought of by the Angels and has been tearing it up in Double-A. Nobody else has emerged in middle relief for the Halos, so Gott has as good a shot as any at carving out a big role for himself.
The Story: Kirk Nieuwenhuis was claimed off waivers by the Mets.
The Monkey Says: I guess the Mets decided they couldn’t live without him. Whatever little amount of cash the Angels originally paid to acquire Nieuwenhuis is now basically a gift.
The Story: C.J. Wilson was “drained” from watching Game of Thrones before his last start.
The Monkey Says: C.J. made out a lot better than Shireen did.
The Story: Matt Joyce appears to have been benched temporarily.
The Monkey Says: It may be just one game, it may be more. He had a bit of a hot streak a few weeks back but has since gone ice cold again and Scioscia is starting to run out of patience. If anything, this might hasten the team’s already dire search for help in left field, though I suspect they will give Joyce one last kick at the can later this week before they trigger any deal.
The Story: Mike Scioscia adjusts but stays true to himself.
The Monkey Says: The most important piece here is how Scioscia stays consistent in the clubhouse. We only get to see his actions in games, but that is really just a fraction of what a manager is tasked with doing. That he has become a more modern manager on the field certainly has helped in recent years (I think), but the fact that he has not become complacent or impatient in the clubhouse is the best thing about him.
The Story: Albert Pujols is hot lately, but his career pace has slowed down.
The Monkey Says: Maybe he can keep this hot pace up though? He’s been pretty banged up the last two years, so this hot streak might be him finally getting healthy. It might also be really difficult for him to remain healthy.
The Story: Mike Trout is walking less but hitting more homers this year.
The Monkey Says: That was the plan, wasn’t it? He’s striking out less as well. The whole package has him on pace for an offensive season that could be his best ever.
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