LA Angels: 3 New Year’s resolutions for the 2021 season

Joe Maddon, Los Angeles Angels (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images)
Joe Maddon, Los Angeles Angels (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images)
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With the new year upon us, the Angels could have some New Years Resolutions as a team that they should hope to complete with the 2021 season.

Happy New Year to everyone out there! As many of you do, the Angels also have some resolutions that they would like to see addressed in 2021. Their fans do, too. Let’s take a look at three resolutions the Angels have for the 2021 season.

Add Frontline Starter

One of the Angels resolutions can come early as the off-season drags on and the team is still without a true ace in the starting rotation. Two trading options in Blake Snell and Yu Darvish have both went to the San Diego Padres as they look to take dethrone the World Series Championship Dodgers, so this leaves the Angels looking for other options as when it comes to a trade, it will come down to how other teams value the Angels farm system.

They could go back to the Cincinnati Reds and try to string another trade in either Sonny Gray or Luis Castillo, but this would require a much bigger haul than what they dealt for reliever Raisel Iglesias.

They could also go to the free agent market and try to find their key starter there, however, other than Trevor Bauer, there isn’t too much to like as the rest of mostly tier 2 or 3 starters. It was reported by Jon Heyman, that teams were suggesting that Bauer is seeking a 5 or 6-year deal worth around $36M to $40M per year.

While Bauer was dominant in the shortened season, the asking price might be too much, he is asking for Mike Trout money as Trout is making $37.7M per year. Either way, the Angels window for acquiring an elite ace to the 2021 rotation is getting smaller, and Angels general manager, Perry Minasian, might have to get more aggressive should they want to land a top of the rotation starter.

ANAHEIM, CA – SEPTEMBER 16: Dylan Bundy #37 of the Los Angeles Angels pitches in the first innings against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on September 16, 2020 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, CA – SEPTEMBER 16: Dylan Bundy #37 of the Los Angeles Angels pitches in the first innings against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on September 16, 2020 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images) /

Find a Pitching Philosophy that Works

While there’s no doubt the Angels need to acquire starting pitching to upgrade their rotation, they also need to figure things internally if they want to compete in the AL West. I’ve been saying this in previous posts, but I’m going to be stressing this again as the Angels will need to get more out of the starters they have.

Even Angels manager, Joe Maddon, has expressed this himself in a zoom call with reporters in December stating:

“For me, it’s about building a better pitching method, pitching philosophy internally.”

Other than Dylan Bundy, no Angels starter had a ERA under 3.50 which is something that has to improve with young starters such as Patrick Sandoval, Griffin Canning, and Jaime Barria.

The Angels could use at least two starting pitchers as Maddon has also said himself, and with those starters, they could add a fresh set of eyes to struggling young starters. Someone like Bauer, who calls his own game plan, could offer some advice and maybe see things when he’s not making his start. This would come down to leadership in a sense, as while Andrew Heaney has been the number one starter for the Angels, he hasn’t pitched like it. Heaney has his own issues to figure out as he finished with an ERA of 4.46 in 2020, if the Angels are going to add starting pitchers that are going to be leaders in the rotation, they will have to be well established.

SAN DIEGO, CA – SEPTEMBER 22: Mike Trout #27 of the Los Angeles Angels looks on during the game against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park on September 22, 2020 in San Diego, California. The Angels defeated the Padres 4-2. (Photo by Rob Leiter/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
SAN DIEGO, CA – SEPTEMBER 22: Mike Trout #27 of the Los Angeles Angels looks on during the game against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park on September 22, 2020 in San Diego, California. The Angels defeated the Padres 4-2. (Photo by Rob Leiter/MLB Photos via Getty Images) /

Get into the Postseason

This is the complete package of the other two resolutions and as a team as the Angels need to get into their first postseason since 2014. Of course, this is easier said than done as the Angels will have their hands full with figuring out the previously mentioned pitching problems as well as many other glaring issues such as what they plan to do with Shohei Ohtani, making sure their young prospects produce at the Major League level, and completing the rest of the bullpen.

All of these issues are being handled by multiple parts within the Angels organization with cooperation from Joe Maddon and Perry Minasian. Minasian has been rebuilding the Angels bullpen as the team non-tendered a majority of their previous relief pitchers and acquiring names such as Raisel Iglesias and Alex Claudio. The Ohtani concern will also be met cooperatively as the organization will have to see whether they want him to keep pitching and hitting, or fully convert to one in order to reduce risk of injury.

The other issue regarding their young prospects comes with the struggles that Jo Adell faced in 2020 with the lack of having a normal year. Joe Maddon has mentioned Adell might be needing some extra time in the minor leagues to figure things out as they might not be such a bad idea as the Angels need their top prospects to produce. Should they figure out these key issues, they will be in a much better shape to get into the postseason.

Next. An analytical look at Reid Detmers

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