Los Angeles Angels Need a MIRACLE to Make the Playoffs? Who Will Manage in 2026? | FANMAIL FRIDAY

Los Angeles Angels Need a MIRACLE to Make the Playoffs? Who Will Manage in 2026? | FANMAIL FRIDAY

On this episode of Locked On Angels, it’s fan mail Friday and you asked what miracle needs to happen in order for the Angels to make the playoffs. I’m laughing because you said miracle and that feels accurate. We’re going to answer that question and so much more. I’m Mike. That’s John. We’re the Super Halo Bros. And this is Locked on Angels. [Music] You are Locked on Angels, your daily Los Angeles Angels podcast, part of the Locked On podcast network. Your team every day. Thanks for making Locked on Angels your first listen of the day. You can find us anywhere you get your podcast, including Apple Podcast, Spotify, and SiriusXM by searching Locked on Angels. And if you’d like to get back to the Super Halo Bros. For all the Super Halo content, here’s some things that you can do. Leave us a rate and a review on Apple Podcast. Hit that thumbs up and subscription button on YouTube. And while you’re here, leave a comment. It’s one of the best ways to get in touch with us and be a part of the conversation. And this episode of Locked on Angels is brought to you by 5Hour Energy Transfusion. Go to 5hour energy.com today and enter the promo code locked on golf to receive 20% off your order. Order 5hour energy transfusion flavored drinks and order them today. And you can come bowling with us with Logan Hoppy, the hero of the last game against the Dodgers. And we’re going to bowl with him on Saturday or Sunday. September 7th from 5:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in Fountain Valley. We’re raising money for the YMCA of Orange County. It’s the Logan Hobby All-Star Bowl. Get your tickets by clicking the link in the episode description and use the promo code Halo Bros. Can’t wait to bowl with you. Can’t wait to hang out with our buddy Logan Hobby. Going to be a blast. We’ll see you there. Mike, my hair feels luxurious today because it’s so salty. It’s salty in the air because there’s a lot of salty Dodger fans from from yesterday’s show. So, I just I feel luxurious. Thanks for being here for this episode of Locked on Angels, where it’s your team every day. You’ve got the Fresh Brothers here with you, aka the Super Halo Bros. My name is John. That’s my brother Mike. Well, you know, the Angels only won cuz CB Buckner is a bad umpire. That’s the only reason why they won. My name is Mike. And that’s my brother John. Hey, we’ve been fans of the Angels our whole entire lives. It’s our fourth season talking Angels baseball with you here on Lockdown Angels. Monday through Friday, every single weekday. on today’s show. It is a fan mail Friday. Do the Halos need a miracle? And then who’s in charge here? That’s never a good thing to hear. And then we’ll get into some of your questions about potential roster moves. Mike, let’s start it out with the Halos needing a miracle. Let’s talk about it. Yeah. Let’s start with Izzy Cruz from Instagram asking this question. What miracle needs to happen to make the playoffs in all honesty? John, you want to take a shot at this one? I can certainly take a shot at this one. Look, I was looking at it and I know inevitably everybody’s going to talk about uh the Tigers last year and on August 15th they were four games under 500, Mike. Wow. And the Angels are three games under 500. The Tigers ended up going 17 and 11 in August. Right now, the Angels are six and six. So, they would have to go 11 and five to even match what the Tigers did last year. But here’s the thing. You have said all season long, win series, not win streaks. And often we live and die by what the Angels do night after night. Naturally, we’re Angels fans. We recap every game, right? We have Gavin afterwards. Doesn’t waste your time. Has a great postcast uh live on the YouTube channel after every game. If you haven’t checked that out, please do that. And then you and I give our takeaways from each game. So, in a sense, we’re kind of built to live and die by every game just based on what we do here on Lockdown Angels. But, you know what I noticed about the Tigers the rest of the way. They won two here, they lost one there, then they win, they would win like four in a row, and then maybe lose one or two, but then they’d win three in a row, and then they lose one, and then they’d win four in a row, right? So, they didn’t necessarily have this steamroll to the end of the season where they’re sweeping everybody and doing this and that. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love a good sweep. In fact, uh didn’t we just did we just Yeah. Not not that long a Okay. Yeah. It was against the uh the um uh who’s the team that won the World Series last year? Uh uh the Clippers. Is that who it was? Close. Uh Dodgers. It has an S in there. Dodgers. Yeah. Yeah. I knew there was an S, though. Um, but listen, um, it’s great to have sweeps because they certainly help you in the win department and it makes up for any series you might drop later on. Mike, the Angels got to win series. Yeah. And that’s really what needs to happen in order to make the playoffs in terms of miracles. I’ve said this before and I I’ll say it again. Last year, and and I’ll speak from experience, I drafted first baseman Spencer Tolson in fantasy baseball. He got off to a terrible start. In fact, he got demoted to Triple A. Mike did. Yep. And then the Tigers brought him back towards the end of the season and he started doing the things that they expected Spencer Torqulson to do. Now, he didn’t end up with a great back of the baseball card for 2024. But the last few months there, he was the Spencer Torlson that they all expected him to be. And I bring that up because everybody has to click. Logan Hoppy’s got to come through the way that he did on Wednesday night. And he’s got to have, you know, more often than not a one for three day with a walk, a two for four day, right? Maybe a home run here and there. He’s got to come around. Mike Mike Trout has to come around. He’s put the ball in play and he can’t be taking strikes looking when they’re right there in the strike zone. He’s got to swing the bat. Something about Trout right now just not confident, not swinging the bat, trying to work a walk. If he’s going to continue to do that, he doesn’t belong in the three hole and I would like to see a change there as well. As for the others, Zach Neto, I think he’s playing at Zach Neto level. Well, I think he’s playing at Nolan Shawa level. We’ve had a great second half from Luis Ranhifo. Yoan Manata is healthy and continues to be a threat. I know that it’s frustrating to not see Christian Moore start, but I have enjoyed the fact that when Monata comes up in the order, but there’s a lefty on the mound, he can’t swing it right right now. They bring in Christian Moore, and they did that halfway through the game on Wednesday night. So, going back to the original question from Izzy Cruz, what miracles need to happen? They have to have a winning month. They need to go at least 11 and five in order to match what the Tigers did last year. And let’s not live and die by one loss here because if they’re picking up two and three along the way, I think that’s a really great thing. Mike, how about Ravenclaw dropout on Instagram? Will we ever get back to the playoffs with Arty as the owner? Why don’t you take this one? It it will happen. I’m confident it will happen and it’s going to be despite Arty. It’s not going to be because of Arty. And what I mean by that is we are close to 500 this season. Not because of Arty Moreno, but because of the draft picks and rushing people to the major league level and not developing them like people talk about Zach Neto, Nolan Shaw, all the people you mentioned, these are the guys that are going to get us there. And I think that if they make some moves for next year, the moves are going to be in-house moves that will be significant. I don’t doubt that they’ll probably try to go out and get another arm because Kyle Hendrickx and Tyler Hand Anderson will not be in this rotation next year. They’re free agents at the end of the year and of course Renifa won’t be here. Mata won’t be here. I’m I’m thinking that we’re going to see a lot of maybe in-house moves and those guys are going to have to perform. The reason why I believe that we will get back to the playoffs with Arty as the owner, maybe not in 2026, although I think there could be a potential there, is because we have a really good pitching rotation on the way. We have a lot of really young pitchers that I think are going to be solid. Are they going to be aces and blow you away? Probably not. Right now, I’m up for being wrong. I think maybe George Clawson might be that guy, right? TGA might be that guy. But I think if we get a bit more consistent starting pitching, we have a bullpin that can help us to get from the sixth inning to the ninth inning. I think that there’s a good potential that this team could be a team that makes the playoffs in 26, maybe 27. But it won’t be because already went out and got this person and that ace and that third baseman and all of those things. It will be because somebody like a Bryce Teodosio suddenly becomes really really good. And this isn’t the first time that we’ve seen this. Arty rode the decisions that were made by Bill Stoneman and those that drafted with the Disney organization when he purchased this team. And one of the one of the things that we found out was that there were hidden gems with this team like Reggie Willlet. He was somebody that saved this team in the late 2000s because there were injuries and he came up left-handed bat, hit 290, didn’t hit any bombs, but was somebody that played a great left field. He caused chaos on the bases. That was a gift and it wasn’t expected. I think that we’re going to see a lot more of that over the next two seasons with this Halos team. There’ll be some players we’re like, “Yay, this guy’s fantastic. Kaden Dana, we expected this.” But then I think there’s going to be a lot of Bryce Teodosios that are going to fit in well with the Netos, the Shauna Wells, and the Oh. And the reason why I believe that is because we do have some solid pieces that anchor down this offense and defense even with Joe Adele and even with Taylor Ward. And they are able to now piece in some of these other players that don’t have to be the guy, but they can be a guy and help this team get really far. So, the answer is yeah, I think we will. I don’t know when we will. I think I I could see us maybe next year, especially if they finish 500 this year, maybe 2027. I think it’ll happen, but it won’t happen because Arty Moreno made it happen, right? And I think you kind of answered Brody Widle’s question on Instagram. I’m not really asking for hope, but is there something to actually be excited for? Yeah, I think it’s a it’s a 500 season or a winning season. It’s it’s getting close to 500. It’s turning around the narrative around the Angels and saying, “Hey, look, there’s something to be excited about in Anaheim because these guys know what they’re capable of after this season.” And and you look at the young core that they’re working to build and they’re still adding to that. Um, now that guys like Neto and Joe Adell and Shaunell all have the experience of this kind of season and the kind of play that they saw against the Dodgers where I think you mentioned it the other night um or the other day that was a playoff atmosphere, right? And and that certainly is something that they can benefit from. Dodger Oso on Instagram is somebody I like to go back and forth with. He’s a do he’s a Dodgers fan I actually like because uh he knows how to he knows how to rap. He knows how to play the game right between fan bases. He said, “Would you rather miss the playoffs or get pounded by the Dodgers in the World Series?” Well, to be fair, he sent this last week before this Dodger series, but I’ll take I’ll take getting to the World Series and getting spanked anytime. Like, if the team makes it to the World Series, that means they were pretty darn good. And then if it’s, you know, four and out, that’s fine with me. But the thing that kind of was demonstrated over this series with the Dodgers is that when you have a three-game set, five game set, seven game set, anything can happen, right? Yeah. Yeah. And I will take getting beaten by the Dodgers in the World Series if I only have to interact with Dodgeroso. I will not be able to live my life normally if the Angels made it to the World Series and got crushed by the Dodgers based off of where I live and the people that I know and my in my real life job. Like it just wouldn’t go well for me. I would I would have to quit and go into like uh you know witness protection program because it would be awful, John. It would really be awful. Absolutely. Thanks for making Lockdown Angels your first listen of the day. Thanks for participating in fan mail Friday. Coming up, who’s in charge? What’s going to happen with Perry Minosian? What are we going to do about the managerial situation? You guys had some great questions about that. Mike and I will share our fanguided wisdom in just a minute. Time to fill up with fivehour energy transfusion flavors like grape, ginger, lime, or some of the most favorite flavors of our everydayers. And whether you’re out on the golf course or you just need a little extra push to power through the day, 5-hour energy transfusion delivers the flavor that you love and gives you the energy that you need. You can try the grape ginger lime flavor for 5 hour energy trans transfusion. It’s perfect for a busy lifestyle and it doesn’t doesn’t waste your time. It’s actually really good and it amps you up having even more fun during the day. Now go to 5hour energy.com today and uh use our promo code locked on. You’re going to receive 20% off your order. This offer is only valid until September 30th on one order and cannot be used with other promotions. The code is not good on subscription orders, so be aware of that. Next time you’re meeting up with friends and you need an energizing boost to power through the day, order transfusion flavored 5hour energy shots today. This is the Lockdown Podcast Network where it’s your team every day. Thanks for making Lockdown Angels your first listen of the day. Got a couple of questions about who’s in charge and regarding Perry Manassian, regarding Ron Washington, Ray Montgomery, what’s going to happen with all of that. So, let’s take it to Scott Chapman on Twitter who said, “Is Perry done? There’s no way they will let him hire another manager at the end of the season. Or are they going to keep Perry and Ray?” Mike, what do you think? I think they’re going to keep Perry and I think they’re going to keep Ry. I think they’re going to keep Perry because if they’re at 500 or near 500, it’s a huge improvement year-over-year. And Art’s going to see that. Also, it looks like they’re making money. uh they’re having people come to the stadium and this team is intriguing and it’s August and people are still talking about this team. Art’s going to notice that. John Carpino is going to notice that. So, I think Perry’s going to make it through next season. He has a year on his contract still. I could see maybe an option being added to that to where he could go through 2027. But I do think when it comes to the managerial position that it probably will be more than likely Ray Montgomery. I don’t know if they’ll go and get anybody else. And I wonder if that was kind of the game plan all along. Ray’s name has come up multiple times when the Angels have been looking for managers and he hasn’t been the guy that they’ve selected. And I think a part of the reason why is because he needed some work. He needed some experience. He needed to learn. And I think this is an opportunity for him to get all of that. Do I agree with that? I’m not a huge fan of Ray Montgomery. There have been moments where I’ve been like, “Okay, that’s a good decision.” like I’ve seen some sacrifice bunts. I’ve seen some uh decision- making in in in those categories. Now, was it him making the call and them following through? It seems like that, but there hasn’t been too much discussion about that. The one thing that I don’t like is I don’t see the chaos on the bases that the Angels said that they were going to cause. Bo Porter said we’re going to cause chaos by stealing bags. Part of that might be who’s actually on this team and they’re not running that that much. Which is why I love Bryce Teodosio and I know I pushed back on his attempted steal of third base in that last game against the Dodgers and Every Dayers were saying no, it’s a good move. We want to cause chaos and after some thought I I 100% agree with you. I think that we need somebody on the base path that can do that. Zach Neto’s another guy that can do that. I think having maybe one more to do that would be great. And so I would love to see Ray Montgomery, if he’s gonna manage, have the the the leash taken off a little bit and have him be somebody that stirs this team up. He just doesn’t seem like a fire starter. And I’ve said for a really long time, we need somebody that can really start the fire and inspire these guys. A Darren Ursstad type, somebody that is a little bit spitfire, Jim Harbaugh from football, right? I think that that’s going to be a guy that can really get this team over over the playoff edge and possibly successful in the playoffs. Ray Montgomery just doesn’t seem like he’s that type of manager that will be able to do that. You know, you made an interesting point about the fact that the Angels haven’t really been causing chaos on the base paths and that’s something they really did a lot in 2024 when Ron Washington took over. Mike, to be fair, even when Ron Washington was part of this team, you didn’t see a lot of the bunting that you would expect to see in certain moments. True. You didn’t see a lot of attempted stolen bases when you might expect to see that, right? Joe Adele, Zack Netto, all those guys ran a ton last year. And it’s interesting to me that something changed over the off season. And with with Ron Washington, I don’t know. I I I don’t mean to make a bad pun here, but like because of his health issues, maybe his heart wasn’t in it. I don’t know if it was a distraction. You know, what do you think? I think health has a lot to do with this because Joe Adell was hurt last year, right? And he was hurt at the start of the year. Luis Renhifo was hurt at the start of the year. Mike Trout, of course, can’t run because they’re trying to be really cautious with him. So, I wonder, John, if a lot of the decision-m on the base pass, especially when it comes to stealing, has to do with let’s keep this team healthy and let’s not have any more wear and tear than they already get by playing defense and hitting at the plate. And so, maybe that has adjusted the strategy a bit. I mean, let’s be honest, this is the longest Mike Trout has played in a really long time in consecutive months, even though he was out for a bit. And then Joe Adell hasn’t been hurt. He’s been able to be in there. Zach Neto has been able to be in there. He had the shoulder issue, right? Learning how to slide differently. So maybe maybe health really does factor into this. Not necessarily Wash’s health, but the health of the players. Yeah, that’s a good point because you mentioned it. Renifo was another guy stealing a ton of bags last season. Now, he had a a biceps injury, but it was earlier this year that he had, you know, some some leg issues going on, quad strain, and that sort of thing. kind of leads into our next question from Karsten on Twitter. He said, “Should we bring back Ron Washington next year? I kind of want him back since I don’t have a lot of trust in Montgomery, but we would be in a pickle if Wash’s health declines again mid-season or do we go for somebody completely new?” I’m going to give my thoughts and I’ll turn it over to you. I think with this one year left on Perry Minosian’s contract, I think it’s a bad idea for them to allow Perry to hire somebody brand new whose contract carries over into the next season and Perry Manosian might not be here, if that makes sense. It’s kind of like what happened between Billy Eper, Joe Madden, and Perry Manassian. then we’ll be right back to where we were where there’s a disconnect between the front office and the dugout and especially with the manager on how to handle things, on how to run things, that sort of situation. The thing about Ron Washington and even Ray Montgomery by extension is Perry hired both of those guys. He finally got to hire his manager, which was Ron Washington. And Ray Montgomery has always been the bench coach through Joe Madden and Phil Nevin and and Ron Washington. He’s been there the whole time. And we’ve always said he’s kind of the eyes and ears for Perry Manosian in the dugout. And you brought this up earlier with Ray Montgomery in terms of his name coming up for the Angels, but you know, the Astros were looking at him as well before they went with Joe Easpatada. So that’s also an interesting wrinkle to the whole conversation. So, in my opinion, Mike, do they bring back Wash next year? I don’t think so. I don’t think I think he’s done, to be honest with you. And not that I’m wishing that he’s done. I just I I don’t think for his health it’s a good thing. I don’t think for, you know, the energy that it requires for this team to be a manager. It’s a good thing. I just want the guy to be okay. And and I don’t think that being back in the dugout is the best thing for his career. It’s not as if he’s gone from the team, right? He’s on medical leave, medical absence. But look, depending on how they finish the second half of the season, they’ll probably stick with Montgomery. Um because the h what do I say? The through line, the the messaging is, you know, consistent between because Montgomery was already here when even when Wash was here and and they’re sort of continuing that, but then he’s also kind of doing things in his own way. He’s got a quick hook for those starters. He’s not necessarily giving him the Ron Washington pep talk all the time, right? And so I say all that because I think if there’s going to be any consistency from this year to next year, I think it starts with Ray Montgomery. Whether we like it or not, I I have to say that if if we want to keep things consistent and keep the messaging consistent, keep these guys in the same kind of mindset that they’re playing in right now and that carry over to next season, I think it’s going to have to be Ray. But what are your thoughts on this? Uh there’s a couple of thoughts that I have. First, I think Ron Washington with his health is not going to come back next year. I think the best use of Wash is found in how the Atlanta Braves fans talk about Wash and what he did for that Braves team. They’re like, man, he’s the missing link to this team. And the reason is because he wasn’t the manager. He was just a base coach, but he was always in their lives. Wash is a inspirational mentor. He’s not a manager. He’s not a CEO, right? And so what the Angels have the opportunity to do because he’s still under contract is to unleash him as a guy who kind of rs him up, gets him excited, right? And and Ray’s not going to do that. Ry seems like he’s got a bit more of an analytical mind. Here’s the plan. Here’s the strategy. Here’s how we’re going to execute it. And I’m going to make sure that my managers and my coaches and my leaders are all ready to go. He does defend his guys out there, though. He face of the empire. That has been great. Now, I I really think that this is the world that we’re going to be swimming in as fans of this team. And what I mean by that is it’s going to be Perry Manasian two years, three years at the most, right? If he gets any sorts of extension, it’s going to be a manager for two years, maybe three years, because I think that that’s how Arty wants to do this thing. I think that his future cast, his vision is bite-size steps. It’s not going to be this long-term five-year deal, big manager, five, right? Like I think he’s going to go with what’s what does this season look like? And if you listen to Perry when he talks about things like when Sam Blum asked him like, “Hey, what’s the potential for 2026?” We’re really focused on right now. I don’t look into the future. We’re going to do this and we’ll get to 26 when we get to 26. I think that we’re going to be operating one to two years at a time with this team as long as Arty is here. Which is why I also don’t think that Perry’s going anywhere because Perry is not going to break this thing down. This team has shown the ability to win. Not at the level of being over 500 or getting to the playoffs, but they’ve improved year overyear. The the players that he’s brought in, the young guys that he’s drafted. And if he gets let go, fired, or moves on, Arie’s not going to bring in uh Dumbrosseski. He’s not going to bring in a guy that’s going to trade everybody to get big pieces. That’s how a lot of these GMs operate. And that’s how like AJ Prowler has operated. Arty’s not going to bring in somebody like that. He wants somebody that is more Florida Marlins, right? Like he wants somebody that that kind of does that and and that’s what Perry brings. So I think we’re going to have Perry for the next year and I I think we’re going to have him for maybe another year after that. They’ll extend him maybe three years out. And I think that we’ll also have somebody like a Ray Montgomery doing the same thing because they have shown to work really well together. Yeah. And it’ll be interesting to see how it shakes out with the management because again there’s there’s not really a clear answer right now. At the very least, I don’t think it’ll be somebody new. And that’s not to say we don’t want somebody new. It’s just we’re trying to answer the question from the perspective of what are the angels yes going to do? And I think that you hit the nail on the head with that mentality of taking it yearbyear. We all would love to manage our money. We would all love to manage our money in an easier way. And that’s why Monarch Money is your best bet to do that. Whether you’re growing your savings or you’re planning a big purchase, Monarch Money puts you in the driver’s seat. It’s like having your own personal CFO giving you full visibility and control over your finances. You’ll be like Ron Washington. And Monarch Money could be like Ray Montgomery. You can be the fun guy, right? And the inspirational person. And then Monarch Money could be the one that has the strategy and has the plan and executes all of those things. Monarch Money is more than a budgeting app. It’s a complete financial command center. You can track all of your accounts, investments, and spending all in one place. So, in addition to managing your money, you can also build your wealth. So, take control of your finances with Monarch Money. Use our promo code lockdown MLB at monarchmoney.com for 50% off your first year. That’s monarchmoney.com promo code lockdown MLB for half off your first year. Got some questions on future moves uh potential roster moves in the short term and the long term. And we’ll take it to the long term with Carl and Jeremy question Carllin Jeremy’s question on Instagram. What realistic free agents do you think the Halos could go after in the off season? It’s a very interesting offseason because there’s a lot of player options. There’s a lot of guys who did like a one-year deal. Uh some guys got traded like Kyle Tucker with one year left on his contract to the Cubs and he’d be a free agent. Mike, in terms of realistic guys, I took a look at who’s available next year. This is what I came up with. And obviously as we get into the off season, as the World Series winds down, we spend a lot of time talking about this. But if we want to just get a quick glance at this, I’d say somebody like Michael King from the Padres’s, starting pitcher who’s a free agent. Uh he is back on the IIL unfortunately at this point. Dustin May, who I did not realize was going to be a free agent after this year. He just got traded from the Dodgers to the Red Sox. Finally pitched really well for them the other night. And then Mike Willie Castro who got traded from the Twins to the Cubs and he’s somebody who can play both the infield and the outfield. Feels like a Renifo type and so you might just bring back Renhifo if you’re not gonna go after somebody like Willie Castro. But those three guys have things in common. They’re not Kyle Tucker. They’re not Alex Bregman. Yeah. Right. They’re not They’re not um uh who am I thinking of from the Padres’s who’s going to be a free agent? Came over from the White Socks, right? And and he’s not had a great year, but at the same time, he’s going to be a big- time starting pitching free agent. It’s not any Yes, thank you. Dylan CE. Uh I kept wanting to say Chase. Um, and and so to me, these are the guys that Angels would likely go after. So when Carlin asked what realistic free agents, I’d say Michael King, Dustin May, maybe Willie Castro. You got to have some more starting pitching. And I think it would benefit them to have somebody who’s been there, done that. And they’re also decent pitchers, too. So it’ll be interesting to see where those guys land. But in terms of realistic, that’s probably the ceiling for the Angels next year. Yeah. Evan Canard04 on Instagram asked, “Do you think that we’ll sell off any of the contracts like in 2023? And if so, then who do you think that it will be?” John, I know that we’re after the trade deadline, so a lot of the deals that they would have to make would be potentially in the off season or at the next trade deadline. So, what are your thoughts uh on what Evan’s asking here? Yeah. So, if you remember back in 2023 when they made the moves that they did, they actually went over the luxury tax. So, they sold off essentially. They released or DFA guys and made, you know, the other teams picked them up to help them get to the playoffs. Obviously, Gito was one of them. Um, a couple of the other guys that we brought over in that time were part of that as well. So they they DF guys with a hope that another team would pick them up and take on their salary because they did that. The Angels got back under the luxury tax. I don’t believe that they will do that this year. And the reason why is because right now in terms of luxury tax payroll basically what all of the payroll adds up to being in terms of the luxury tax it’s 220 223 million about and the first penalty for being over the luxury tax starts at 241 million. So they don’t need to do what they did in 2023 because they’re already under that number and so they won’t face any penalties if that were to happen. Mike, how about this one? kickback day on Instagram said, “Will Ward get traded in the offseason if Teodosio ends up having a solid 2025 for the rest of the season?” What do you think? Uh, I’d be surprised if they trade him. Here’s why. He’s going to be a cheap offensive option for the Angels. Yeah, he he gets traded if Matthew Lugo plays out of his mind and then I think the Angels could see him as a trade piece. But he’s going to go back into arbitration. He’ll probably get 10 to 15 million. and I think he’s at 8 million and we were surprised at that for this season, but his numbers are strong and if he gets MVP v votes then I think that th those ARB numbers are going to go up. So I could see him being like 15 million next year. You’re not going to get a player with Ward’s production at 15 million in the outfield. And so they hang on to him and I think that Teodosio is going to be a uh a cherry on top. I also think that we don’t want to overestimate what Bryce might be able to do. I think what we’re seeing right now is in spurts is somebody that that’s how they need to use him. He can’t be an everyday player. I think he needs to be somebody that is out there occasionally but not every day until he can prove that he can do that. The end of the season could be that opportunity for him. But I don’t think they trade Ward because Teodosio has been playing really well. Yeah, Tito dosio being a, you know, two times a week guy off the bench, you know, in a game kind of guy, I think is uh probably his best role and he’s getting all the playing time right now just because they need him to, right? And he infuses something into this lineup which is sorely been missing. Finally, Mike, uh Joel Gon’s 12 on Instagram said, “With call-ups like Rada to Alea and draft picks coming, who’s the first to be called up? September is closed.” So, there’s a couple things I want to make sure everybody’s aware of. Uh, rosters expand in September from 26 to 28. However, right now when it’s 26, you can only have 13 pitchers on the roster. When it goes to 28, you can have 14 pitchers on the roster. Also, anyone on the expanded roster has to be on the 40man roster. So, it’s unlikely we’re going to see Rada or any of the recent draft picks because they are not on the 40man roster. In all likelihood, it’s going to be a Kaden Dana, Sam Daryry. Maybe Orion Johnson gets a start here at the end of the season just to see what’s up with him. If he’s healthy and feeling good again, it could be Chase Silth for the bullpen. It could be Sam Bachmann again for the bullpen. Matthew Lugo, Kairen Paris, they could be backup as well. And don’t forget that Jorge Cer and Chris Taylor are both on the IIL, so they’re going to need roster spots for them as well. And most importantly, if anyone’s added to the 40man and brought up in September, it does start their service time clock and it will count as an option year if they’re sent back to the miners at the beginning of next season. If they were to stay on the 26-man roster through next year, then it wouldn’t count as an option year. So they don’t want to lose an option year for any of the guys just to give them a look in September. And that’s going to apply to guys like Nelson Rada, Denser Guzman, George Clawson. I think if we’re going to see them, we’re going to see them at some point early next season, maybe June at the latest, but I wouldn’t expect those guys to be up in September. It’s probably going to be guys that we’ve already seen getting a second look as the season winds down in September. Thanks for making Locked on Angels your first listen of the day. Make sure you’re subscribed to Locked on Angels on YouTube so you don’t miss all of this great Halo content so you can be a smarter fan. That includes the best postcast in the business with Gavin Carlson. Good for the whole family. He’s live after every game right here on the Lockdown Podcast Network where it’s your team every day. Hey, be sure you give us a follow on Twitter, Lockdown Angels. Can connect with Mike and I super Halo Bros on Twitter and Instagram. Somebody tagged us in a video of uh Show Otani announcing his retirement after being swept by. It was inappropriate, but it was really funny. Uh Mike, what do we have on deck after this weekend when we come back on Monday? Well, of course, we’re going to have our takeaways from each of the game Friday, Saturday, Sunday against the A’s. And I’m hoping that our takeaways are wow instead of wow. And we’ll talk about that on Monday on Locked on Angels. You know, everybody’s so worried about the A’s. The last time the Angels faced the A’s and the Dodgers back to back, they I know we’re through all seven games. But we’re also been fans of this team. Realistic. Yeah, exactly. Exactly. All right friends, we hope you have a great weekend and we hope you tune in to the podcast after each and every game this weekend. Until Monday show, my name is John and that’s my brother Mike and my name is Mike and that’s my brother John. Thanks for being here with us everybody and we’ll see you back here on Monday. Woo! Fan mail. Thanks for the questions. That was great. Yeah, we had to do a makeup because we had so many questions last week. So thank you.

What will it take for the Los Angeles Angels to make the playoffs in 2025? On Today’s Locked On Angels, the Super Halo Bros. answer YOUR Fanmail Friday questions about how the Halos could possibly make the playoffs by the end of the season, what will happen with Ron Washington and Ray Montgomery, and what kind of roster moves will they make in the offseason and when the roster expands in September? We’ll get to these and so much more on today’s show!

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