Los Angeles Angels 1st Half Team Report Card

General Manager –  When Billy Eppler took over the Los Angeles Angels general manager role in early October he had some work to do in hopes of building back a deplorable farm system and solidifying a line-up and pitching staff that finished just out of the playoffs for the fifth time in six seasons.  Eppler first traded top pitching prospect Sean Newcomb and veteran Erick Aybar for defensive wizard Andrelton Simmons.  Many questioned the deal because of giving up Newcomb, however Simmons despite a thumb injury has helped to solidify the Angels infield defense.

Another big move Eppler made was to get third baseman Yunel Escobar from Washington in exchange for another high Angels prospect Trevor Gott.  This move has also paid major dividends as Escobar has played extremely filling the leadoff spot void the Angels have had over the past couple of seasons. He filled the Angels left field need with a platoon of Daniel Nava and Craig Gentry.  This really drew the ire of Angels fans everywhere who were hoping for a big name left fielder.

What went relatively unnoticed were a bunch of small deals and free agent signings that bolstered the Angels Triple-A Salt Lake City Bees with numerous players with major league experience that could be called upon if needed.  The other smart thing Eppler did was not trading away a couple of starting pitchers despite having eight pitchers for five rotation spots.

Well the if needed situation came to fruition quickly this season as the Angels lost Heaney and Richards early and C.J. Wilson and Tyler Skaggs ended up not being ready to comeback to the majors. Eppler reacted quickly to fill the rotation by getting Jhoulys Chacin for next to nothing in a trade with the Braves and also signing Tim Lincecum. Despite the ineffectiveness of Chacin and Lincecum for the most part, they still were low-risk moves that could still pay dividends.

Eppler also picked up Deolis Guerra and Ji-Man Choi out of the Rule 5 draft and both have played important roles due to injuries.  He also picked up Gregorio Petit, Jefry Marte, Shane Robinson, and Rafael Ortega who have played key roles as well due to injuries.  Signing Cliff Pennington and Geovany Soto as reserves in the infield and behind the plate have also paid off despite injuries to both players.

Think of where this Angels team would be without these maneuvers. I know the team is still a major disappointment after having fairly high expectations coming into the season. Again some of the blame has to fall on the GM, but with so many injuries I believe the verdict is still out on Eppler.

Grade: B- = Eppler has not even been here a year and  people are calling for his head which I think is unfair.  With the budget constraints he had to work under due to bad contracts from the previous Jerry DiPoto regime, Eppler did a decent job filling the holes from last year’s roster with the exception of left field and strengthening the bullpen. The next two weeks will go a long way in determining the success of his first year at the helm.  Eppler’s task will be to decide who is expendable and how much can the Angels get for them in a trade deadline deal.

In the off-season Eppler may have a little more flexibility as the Angels shed the bad contracts of Jered Weaver and C.J. Wilson that paid the pair 38 million dollars combined this season. (Both Weaver and Wilson were effective earlier in their contracts). So let’s see what “Billy Ball” will be all about moving forward.

As a whole the 2016 Los Angeles Angels have been a disappointment in the first half.  Let’s see what the second half will bring.  So far so good after the sweep of the Chicago White Sox. Hopefully this will continue and the team can get back in the race for a playoff spot.  It seems very unlikely, but stranger things have happened.  As the late Yogi Berra once said “It ain’t over til it’s over.”