Arte Moreno’s BAFFLING Decisions Leave Angels Fans Questioning Team’s Future | Halos Held Hostage?

Arte Moreno’s BAFFLING Decisions Leave Angels Fans Questioning Team’s Future | Halos Held Hostage?

Arty Moreno has some decisions to make about the GM, the manager, and the players on the field. So, when will he make those decisions? Right now, nobody knows because he’s not talking yet. [Music] You are Locked on Angels, your daily Los Angeles Angels podcast, part of the Locked On podcast network. your team every day. Arty may not be talking, but we are. Thanks for making Locked on Angels your first listen of the day. The Angels finished with another losing record and the fifth consecutive losing season under Perry Manassian. So, will Arty let him go? That’s a interesting question. And the Angels, they need a new manager. So, who’s already eyeing for 2026? And the Angels, they also need some players to support this young core. But will, you know, that guy Arty spend the necessary money to get the support that they need? That’s what we’re talking about today. But before we talk about our angels, we want to thank our sponsor, FanDuel. Right now, new customers can bet $5. And if your bet wins, you’re going to get $300 in bonus bets to use across the app. Download the FanDuel app today. Thanks for being here for this episode of Lockdown 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, and that’s my brother Mike. And my name is Mike, and that’s my brother John. Hey, we’re talking Angels baseball with you every single Monday through Friday, every single weekday, we’re talking Halos here on Locked on Angels, even through the offseason. So, you can count on us for all the Angels conversation because it always seems like during the offseason, the the conversation comes quickly and fast and we’ll be talking about it and we want to talk about it with you as well. So, we’re here talking Angels baseball with you. Hey, by the way, we’re doing our player roster report card uh next week. So, if you want to get in on that and grade each of the players on the roster from 2025, there’s a link in the episode description that you can click on. It’ll take you to a Google survey. Just fill that out and your grades will be included in the uh overall grades that we’ll give next week here on Locked on Angel. So, we’re excited about that. Jump in the jump in the episode description, hit that link, and uh make sure you do that before next week comes around. John, the Angels went 72 and 90 this season. Second straight year with 90 losses. First time in franchise history that the Angels finished in last place in consecutive years. Fourth year in a row they’ve had at least 89 losses. Fifth year in a row that they’ve had at least 85 losses and three seasons of 90 losses in the last seven years. Okay. Where’s where’s the good news, Mike? I’m just trying to get to the point that this team hasn’t been good. So, John, the question that everybody is wondering about and hopefully we’ll hear about soon is what will Arty do? That’s the question that Bill Shankin of the LA Times wrote about among other things in an article addressing the Angels. So, here’s the two biggest things that he wrote that we’re going to talk about first. First, let me address the first conversation, the first topic. Shanken wrote that he wanted to ask both John Carpino and Arty Mareno to share with the fans what the Angels have determined about what’s not right in their organization and how they’re going to go about trying to fix it. But John, neither man was available for an interview according to a spokesperson that’s close to them. Now, I’m not surprised. I know that you’re not surprised, but do you think do you think that it’s because they’re making some moves behind the scenes and they’re not ready to share or is that complete me being completely naive? Oh, you you not sweet summer child, Michael. You uh no, they’re they’re not going to acknowledge their failure at this point in time. And so until we start getting word about managerial stuff and and you know Perry Minosian’s job is up in the air as well, um Mike, I I don’t think that they’re busy behind the scenes trying to plan their next move, right? I think that uh considering recent history when they let go of say Billy Eper, we knew right away, didn’t we? We knew right away that Brad Osmus was let go, right? So, the uh Angels are dragging their feet here and I’m not surprised considering everything that they’re having to deal with in the off season and that includes the Tyler Skaggs trial, that includes uh the state doing an audit on the stadium, right, that we’ve read about in the news as well. So, all of that stuff coming down the pipeline for them. It’s going to make a big impact on this organization. And so, yeah, they’re they’re spinning a lot of plates, but I don’t think they’re the plates that we want them to be spinning. And I also don’t think that they’re going to address that in the immediate. I think we’re going to hear some things about probably Perry Manasian, probably the managerial stuff, but but come on. I mean, I I I would like to see a new GM. That’s just me. I know that uh Perry has his detractors. Perry has people who really like him. You and I have historically really liked him because he’s worked within Arty’s sandbox, but can they do a GM search while they’re spinning all these other plates? I’m not so sure. And he does have one year left on his contract. So, that really opens up the question of, you know, what are they going to do next? At this point, I think it’s just a wait and see game. Yeah. It’s really a shame that our favorite baseball team doesn’t focus and prioritize on baseball because the drama that they’ve allowed to take place in their organization and the way that they’ve tried to skirt the rules and skirt the law and it’s just a mess. Now, the second thing that Bill Shankin wrote about is that he acknowledged that according to people familiar with Arty’s thinking, but not authorized to speak publicly, they have said to him that he’s not looking to sell the team. Shanken writes that Arty might be better served by those people who know him have and they’ve said this to wait out the collective bargaining negotiation set to start next year and see if owners can push through a salary cap which league executives believe would increase franchise values and specifically sale prices. So, Don, do you think that him waiting to not sell the team, him choosing to not explore that is really about getting the highest price for this team or do you think that Arty just doesn’t want to sell because, you know, like he told us, unfinished business and man, I walk through here, it just felt like, man, I I would miss this. I’m such a baseball fan. John, tell tell me what the truth is there. Yeah, when it comes to the price and the franchise value, Mike, it was never going to be bigger than it was when he first said he was going to sell the team. When you had Show Otani and the opportunity for the next owner and the next GM and the next president of baseball operations, even though we don’t have one, uh, you had the opportunity to work with Showi Otani. was the advantage of selling the Angels when Arty said he was going to sell the Angels that you had time to work with Show Otani to figure out a deal and maybe get him to stay in Anaheim and make him a franchise player. You still had Mike Trout, you know, a decent year in 2022. Remember, he played 119 games, but he hit 40 bombs that year, right? So, uh, the things were not as ugly as they look, you know, since last year with this team. So, to me, the franchise value is really only going down from this point. Now, you might contend that some of these young guys kind of help bring that value up, but at the end of the day, uh, waiting out something to get more valuable. I don’t know, man. I just don’t see that as a possibility with the Angels right now. I’m not sure. And and of course, people close to him said this part of it that he’s waiting to see if owners can push through a salary cap, which means that it would increase franchise values. That to me, I’m not sure I understand the connection there. What would a salary cap have to do with increasing the franchise value or the sale price of a team? What are your thoughts on that? It’s probably be what what I think that is being implied there is that the contracts aren’t going to be so expensive and so long-term that you’re going to be able to have some flexibility and not have to go into the red uh to be able to go and get players if that’s I think that that’s the understanding behind it. I don’t think that that’s the case, though, because look at the NFL or look at the NBA, right? There there are ways around salary cap, but they’re still spending a ton of money. And a salary cap doesn’t make you more valuable. It just means that you got to get really creative on how you’re going to negotiate the salary cap. And I think that the Angels have proven that they’re not creative at all. I think the Dodgers have proven that they are very creative. And so, I don’t think a salary cap is the way to go. I think it punishes teams that are willing to spend money. I think a salary floor is better. And quite honestly, I think that would actually raise the value of the Angels if they had a salary floor, if other teams had a salary floor. Because then that guarantees that the product on the field is not going to be a bunch of guys that you got off the bargain bin. It’s going to be a bunch of guys that you’re going to have to pay for. And and they’re probably going to be guys that can perform. They’re going to be one, two, three war players, which is what you want. And so that way you can’t skirt around the details. You you can’t say, “Hey, we’re going to get one guy and then we’re going to go and bargain shop and bring all these guy in guys in.” So I would I would be of the opinion that a salary floor would be better than a salary cap. There’s two things that cross my mind. Number one is already 79 years old and you know, uh I don’t want anything bad to happen to him, right? personally like, you know, as the owner of my favorite baseball team, I think he’s a terrible owner, but I’m not going to knock him as a person or wish any upon him, right? Uh but having said that, being 79 years old, like you’re not as spry as he used to be, right? And the the truth is is if you’re going to play this waiting game of, oh well, maybe in a year when the salary cap might be implemented, uh you know, I’ll be a little bit more competitive with these teams because they won’t be able to spend as much. It’s going to be retroactive. I mean, look at the Mets, right? The Mets are way over whatever salary cap they might implement and it’s going to be grandfathered in. That’s not going to change anything in the immediate. So, whether or not they have a salary cap isn’t going to change the fact that you can’t compete now if you don’t spend the money with the likes of the Dodgers or the Mets or any of that. And the irony of it is, Mike, who’s not in the playoffs? One of the most expensive teams in the league. And that’s because baseball is probably the one sport out there where money doesn’t solve everything. It solves some things, but it doesn’t solve everything. And the problem with that statement that money doesn’t solve everything, is that when it comes to the Mets and not making the playoffs with the salary that they have for that entire team, the payroll, Arie is the opposite problem. He thinks that he can make the playoffs by not spending money. And you know, teams do and teams don’t, but you haven’t done enough over the last 10, 15 years to be a team that makes the playoffs without spending money. You’re not the Rays, right? You’re not you’re not you’re certainly not the A’s because they’re about to lap you in terms of getting back to the postseason, right? They’ve they they’ve done a a tradeoff and they’ve sold all their players and then they got good again and they sold those guys off and now they’re good again. like it’s not going to be long before they lap you. They’ve already they’ve already passed you up once. They’re coming back. Yeah. To pass you up again. And so Arty just has the the wrong mindset to be an owner of a baseball team, especially in this day and age. I understand you want parody. You want fairness. You want a salary cap. You don’t want teams getting away with spending so much money that it just becomes impossible for you to overcome. The Dodgers are not the 120 win team that everybody thought they would be just because they signed every good player over the off seasonason, right? They’re in the playoffs, but they got 96, 95 wins, 96 wins. Nobody got over 100 wins this year, Mike. Right. Nobody. Brewers had the best record in baseball. 97. They’re not a very expensive team. So, I’m saying all of that because one, already playing this waiting game just doesn’t line up with uh the timeline of the average human being that lives in the United States, if you catch my drift. Second, uh I he’s playing it backwards. He’s playing this game backwards. Don’t you think so? And that’s what I that’s the point I wanted to make is it you mentioned how it’s sometimes about the money, sometimes it’s not about the money. And I think Arty’s argument would be, well, look at the Mets. Look what they did. And he, remember, he used the the the Padres’s as, well, they had to go and get a loan to be able to do that. Arty, it’s not about that. What it’s about is that the last 10, really 12 years, you’ve had the same strategy. Now, you can blame your baseball people, but you hired the baseball people. And if the strategy of the organization I’m leading is not helping you be successful, and you still don’t change the strategy, then that’s on the one who represents the organization. that is not on the people that you’ve hired because you’ve hired them and they’re doing the same thing. Eper Manassian had a bit of a different approach, but the strategy is still the same. They’re going to spend this amount of money and try to make it work. They’re going to have these kind of players and try to make it work. And it just keeps happening over and over and over again. So, that’s ultimately on the one who’s owning and leading this organization and hiring the people to come in. And this is what happens when you bargain shop, not just for players, but you bargain shop for for managers and general managers and not have a president of baseball operations. And there’s a lot that goes into that. So, this isn’t just about the money. Ultimately, I don’t think it’s about the money at all. I think it’s about you’re doing the same thing over and over and over again, and you’re trying to spew this narrative that it’s going to work this time, guys. It’s going to work this time. Here we go. Yeah. Is it a is it an issue of just needing to be right? Is that what the issue is here? Because it’s starting to feel like that because yeah, how many how many career renaissances are the Angels gonna try to count on? You know, Matt Harvey, right? I mean, God bless him. Kyle Hendricks had a decent year for what he where he’s at in life, right? 35 years old pitchers. That’s no spring chicken, right? You know, and we got what we expected out of him. But how many career renaissance are we banking on here for, oh, if this one guy just goes right? No, it’s going to take more than that. takes more than one guy and you can’t bank on a career renaissance with these guys on the fringes and not be willing to spend and get somebody who’s really going to fix your franchise. That’s the issue here. Thanks for making Lockdown Angels your first listen of the day. Coming up, who’s going to manage this team next year for Arty and who is Micas? Who’s eyeing for that seat at the end of the dugout? We’re going to get into that and so much more in just a minute. Everydayers, it might be time for you to give Neutrifll a closer look. Full disclosure, I’ve been taking Neutrifll. So, I have been. They gave me uh a taste test uh three-month run with it. So, I’ve been taking it for about a month. How do I look? Looking looking uh furry on top. There you go. Thank you. I’ve always looked very furry. Uh, Neutrfil is a the dermatologist recommended number one hair growth supplement brand and it’s trusted by over 1 and a half million people. I’m included in that. And it’s now the official hair growth partner of Major League Baseball. You can feel great about what you’re putting in your body since Neutrifol is a growth supplement that’s backed by peer-reviewed studies and NSF content certified. The gold standard by the way in thirdparty certification for supplements. And Neutrifol is just a simple ad to your day. I take four pills with a meal every morning. No prescription needed. They don’t taste bad. They they quickly dissolve. It’s super great. And you can see thicker, stronger, faster growing hair with less shedding in three to six months with Neutrifol. So, I’m paying attention to that. I’m a month in, so we’ll see what happens in three months. Uh for a limited time, Neutrifold is offering our Locked Onel listeners $10 off your first month subscription and free shipping when you go to neutrfll.com and enter the promo code locked on MLB. Time to find out why Neutrifll is the bestselling hair growth supplement brand in the country. Neutrifll.com promo code locked on MLB. This is the Locked on Podcast Network where it’s your team every day. Thanks for making Locked on Angels your first listen of the day. Wherever you listen to podcasts, you can find Locked on Angels. Of course, we’re everywhere. You’re everywhere to me, Michelle Branch. Uh, and also whether you’re watching or listening, you can come on over to YouTube, find today’s show, get in the comments section because we love to read all your comments. We do our best to get back to each and every one of you. By the way, thank you to everybody who said, “Guys, thank you for getting us through the season together.” Yeah. And uh, you know, it’s we love to commiserate with you, right? We love to talk about the highs together and the lows together and everything in between. often. I think the offseason is the most fun we have on this show just because we do our GM episodes and the roster report card which is in the episode description. You can click the link there. So, thank you for being here and again, jump over on YouTube, hit that like button, hit that subscribe button. We’d love for you uh to be an everyday with us. Our boy Tommy saying hi to us in the comments yesterday. Got to meet him at the game. That was rad. Okay, John, we’re sharing Bill Shankin’s article from the LA Times. He wrote recently about the Angels. He addressed the general manager situation and said in the last five years under current general manager Perry Manassian, the Angels have posted a 442 winning percentage and finished a combined 111 games out of first place. That’s not good. And what’s interesting is Shanken mentioned in this article that John Carpino at the end of the 2020 season said something’s not right in our organization. And when he said this, it was in the discussion about the dismissal of Billy Eper as the general manager. Consequently, that’s the last time we ever heard from John Carpino. Nobody even knows if he’s a real person. Mike, is he still alive? Now, Eper’s in Eper’s five years, the Angels posted a 46-9 winning percentage and finished a combined 110 games out of first place. Not too good. Carpino said of Eper’s firing, it was a business decision and we’re in the business of winning baseball games. So bet that was hard for him to say and we just didn’t win enough over a five-year period. So Johnny question, if that was the case then, why would it not be the case right now? Yeah, that’s a very interesting point considering it’s nearly identical, right? 111 games out of first, 110 games out of first, nearly identical winning percentage between both GMs. But Mike, the strategies are different, aren’t they? Because, yeah, one, you’ve got Billy Eper, who, to his credit, brought in Show Otani and was a big part in getting him here. That was going to be, you know, that was going to be our our future ace. and he did turn out to be our future ace, but the timing didn’t line up over those years uh early on with Otani and and of course he got hurt early on didn’t be didn’t quite become Otani until that 2021 season, right? Uh obviously, you know, the COVID season, I know that’s part of Billy Eper’s regime, but I just can you even count that, right? Flush it. You got to flush it. But the other But the thing I really want to get at here is you had Otani come in. you signed Anthony Rendone, right? There’s the the story that Eper was on his way to talk to Zach Wheeler and Arty wanted him to turn the plane around and come talk to Anthony Rendone. Well, we all know how that worked out, right? But it was an age of kind of doing what they had been doing all throughout the 2010s, and that’s signing those big contracts and those contracts that didn’t live up to expectations. That’s why we are where we are now because Arty gets cold feet after, you know, a Hamilton contract or a Vernon Wells trade, right? And he didn’t even sign Vernon Wells. He traded for him, traded two two of our best guys, right? And then, you know, Anthony Renone and then you you you have uh uh even Pool Holtz to some extent, right? I know that wasn’t Eper, but the truth is is that Arty feels like he’s been burned by these contracts. We all understand that. We get that. So now you have to swing to the other side of the pendulum. How do you build this team without spending a ton of money and paying for those big free agent contracts? That’s what Perry Manosian’s been doing the last five years. Yeah. And look, I I know that like my patience has kind of run out. Um and it has been five years, but if I’m going to be fair here now that the season’s over and I, you know, I haven’t uh lost my cool uh like I did a few weeks ago, I mean, it makes sense, doesn’t it? like you’re you’re building something from the ground up, but you also still have players like Trout on on the team, right? And you got some salaries you got to pay for that are not contributing anything. Trout’s been off the field. He’s been hurt. Rendone, he’s on the moon, right? Like, who who cares where he’s at? who knows where he’s at. And and so you have all this money tied up in players that haven’t been able to contribute over the last five years. And you’re trying to build by the draft. You’re trying to build your team out of first round picks. And I’d say it’s working pretty well. But Mike, let’s be real. Even before Ray Montgomery took over this team, this was a 500 team at best. Yeah. When Ron left, I think it was 47 and 49 was the record. Something close to that. 36 and 38. 36 and 38. Okay. So, two games under 500. Yep. About 500 baseball really when you think about it. And that’s the ceiling for this version of the team. If they don’t get Garrick Cole like they should have done in 2019, right? If they don’t get the ace that they need, right? They they’ve they spent money. They got Kenley Jansen and he was a great closer, but how good your closer if you’re not winning games that getting to him. Yeah. getting to him right and and bringing him in in tie games. How many tie games did he have to pitch because you couldn’t count on anybody else? I like the move. It was it was a win now move. But all that to say, the strategies are they couldn’t be more different, right? One one pendulum swing to the left and one pendulum swing to the right. Eper is one and Perry is one. And that’s kind of where we stand right now. Yeah. Shanken also writes that it’s unlikely that Arty’s going to be able to lure an established general manager to replace Perry if he gets rid of him. Like Andrew Freriedman, Dave Dumbrosski, they’ve already declined some of the overtures from the Angels in the past few years. And Shanken also indicates that the Angels have never hired a baseball president of baseball operations to work with a general manager, which is why some of these established guys don’t want to come in because doesn’t feel like it’s a well functioning organization. Now, you mentioned the manager and Shanken wrote about that and here’s what he said about Ron Washington. They were 36 and 38 under Ron. They were 36 and 52 under Ray Montgomery. And even though they struggled with fundamentals with Wash at the helm, it certainly got worse after he stepped away. Now, Shankin brought up that there’s some names out there that Angel fans are familiar with that could potentially take the lead in this team. Buck Shoalter was somebody that was a finalist last year. There’s Skip Schoeacher who is an Orange County resident, was the National League manager of the year for the Marlins in 2023. Of course, Tori is a part of that. Darren Erstad has been brought up. Even Albert Pooh. So, John, as we hear these names, we still don’t know what Art’s going to do, but are you still sticking with Tory Hunter or do you think that they need to go with some of these other guys or a veteran guy like a Buck Shoalter? Yeah, we just got the news. You know, Bochi’s out in Texas and Skip Schumacher is part of that organization. Yeah, that to me is a that’s a a gimme, right? Like Shoemaker’s taken over that team. Yeah. What I’m afraid of, Mike, is a Bob Melvin. I know he’s had success, but look, Bob Melvin has been a part of many great teams, those A’s teams, those Padres’s teams, this Giants team that, you know, was making a fight there toward the wild card toward the end. I I can’t help but wonder if he’s propped up a little bit by some of the teams that he’s managed over the last couple of years because once he was gone, you know, and Mike Schultz took over in San Diego, they’re right back in the playoffs, right? And so to me, I I would be upset if it was BL. I like BL, but I think time has passed him by. However, you look at somebody like Bochi who could go back to the Giants and and he’s able to come out of retirement and do his thing. Uh, Tito gets the Reds into the playoffs one way or another. I know they kind of fell butt backwards into it, but the truth is is they got there, right? And that that’s why they hired him. So, Mike, I I’m still going with Tory Hunter. I still really like that idea because I still stand by the fact that you need somebody from the quote unquote glory days of the Halos to bend Arty Marino. We spent all this talk about, you know, he needs to spend this or he needs to do that. Who better than somebody like Tory Hunter? Now, Rocka Baldelli is out in Minnesota. Do you think that that is a potential place for Tori to land? Do you think that that’s going to be competition for the Angels? I think it could be. However, with Tori being part of the organization, like a paid employee, I think that does give them the advantage. So, you know, I I guess I’m not really too worried about that when it comes to the Twins, but if he doesn’t get the job in Anaheim, then he certainly will go to Minnesota. That’s that’s how I feel about it. Yeah, I 100% agree with you. I would want to go with Tori. I think he brings all the energy and the excitement that we would need. He feels like a ready now guy. We need somebody that’s going to infuse some excitement into this team. I also think that we need somebody that’s going to hold them accountable more than I think Ron Washington said he was going to do and actually did. I get that they were around 500 with Wash, but I think they need somebody fresh. Wash maybe on the staff, but I don’t think Wash needs to be the manager of this team. I think Tory Hunter would be great. Now, this is uh one of the first times in a while I’ve seen Darren Urstad’s name come up, and I know you’ve brought up Ursad many times on this show. I wouldn’t hate that either, Mike. No, I think that if you need somebody to kind of whip them in the shape and get those fundamentals down, Tori and Urstad would be very different managers. However, I think they would both be good choices for this team for 2026. If you haven’t yet, you should download the FanDuel app because right now, new customers can bet $5. And if your bet wins, you’re going to get $300 in bonus bets to use across the entire app. And I love using it because you can bet however you want. Player props, building the same game parlay, or even jumping in on the live action. FanDuel’s quick, it’s easy, and it’s the best way to add a little bit more energy, especially those Sunday games, maybe if your favorite team isn’t playing. So download the FanDuel app right now by visiting FanDuel.com. You can get started there. again, fanduel.com to place your first $5 bet. Final thing that Bill Shaken wrote in the LA Times was focused on the players. He wrote that the success of the team all comes down to the players. And that’s no shocker there, right? He said, “For two years now, the Angels have talked about mature uh nurturing a quality core of young players. And according to Shaken, the Angels have only developed just two young players who would fit onto a championship roster.” He says Zach Neto and José Sorano. And he did add that Joe Adele could be another piece if his 37 homer season is for real. I mean, look at the launch angle. Look at the hard hit percentage. It’s for real. It’s going to be it’s going to stick these nerds. Now, Reed Deetmer’s could also be a piece as well, at least as a reliever, but he said that Nolan Shonowell and Bryce Tiodosio could if the Angels can find enough big bats to keep them in the lower half of the lineup. I think that that’s interesting. He said Logan Hoppy could if his offensive and defensive regression is corrected. Christian Moore could if his bat is as advertised. And he finished by saying that’s a lot of ifs. And even then, the Angels would still have a hole to fill at third base, in the outfield, throughout their pitching staff. So, Mike, when you look back at everything that Shaken said, where is he right and where is he wrong? I I think he’s wrong about the Nolan Shawell moving down in the order. I think that Nolan Showell fits into this lineup perfectly. He’s a guy who’s going to make contact. And I think if Teodosio can make a bit more contact, then I think that he fits in. And quite honestly, John, we saw when Teodosio wasn’t in the lineup and playing defense, it affected the pitchers. We we saw with Joe Adell, when Joe Adell went back to get a ball against uh the Royals and we were at that game and if Theodosio was in there, he would have caught that bases loaded would have got Salvi Perez out and they wouldn’t have given up four runs in the top of the ninth of that game. So, that’s the thing that I think Bryce brings to this lineup. Now, if he’s in the bottom of the lineup, it makes sense have him hit ninth. if he hits, you know, around 200 and he’s got a 690 OPS, I’m kind of comfortable with that because of his defense. I don’t I don’t I don’t ask the question about the outfield and go, man, they just they have some holes in the outfield because I think they have too many guys for the outfield, right? And it’s nice to have some depth. Where I would agree is in the pitching. They do need to add to the pitching staff and they do need to figure that out. All of the names that he mentioned are the young guys that some regressed this year like Logan O’Hoppy. But I think that this is going to be a down year and then I think next year Logan’s coming in with a fire in his belly. I think that that’s going to happen. Christian Moore, he was hurt. The guy that we saw before he got hurt, I think is the guy that he is and he started to heat back up again as the season ended. So I I I agree with him on the pitching. I don’t agree with him on his assessment of the young guys. I do think they need to add more though and that’s I think where we’re gonna gonna find some unity. Yeah. And he makes another point about, you know, will the Angels add players they need to make this team successful? And you know, he brings up the fact that like Luis Severino went to the A’s for 67 million. They spent 63 for Kikuchi. Yeah. The Angels are kind of in the $200 million range. It’s the middle third of teams. A third of that goes to Rendone and Mike Trout. Um attendance is up. uh from last year but it is down 25% from its peak you know when it was always over three million easily TV revenues down uh because of the bankruptcy of Valley Sports and all of that is why it’s important for fans to hear from Marino and Carpino says Bill Shaken and he said what they determined uh they they need to determine what is not right in their organization and how they have been going about trying to fix it it’s not evident in the standings or to the fans who buy tickets or watch at home. So, Mike, the question here is we don’t know what they will do. Or do we based on what they already have done? What do you say? Uh, I’m going to hate myself for saying this out loud, but I’ve been an Angel fan long enough. You’ve been an Angel fan long enough, and our everydayers have been fans long enough. I I think we know exactly what they’re going to do. They’re going to do what they’ve always done, right? I don’t think that there’s going to be a big sweeping change for a couple of reasons. One, because of recent history, longtime history. Two, I do think that some of the collective bargaining stuff is going to get in the way of already making decisions. Three, I think some of the SCAG stuff is going to get in the way. I think there’s a lot of distractions. So, I think what we’re going to get is a copy and paste, a repeat of what we got. I think the only change will probably be the managerial change. I think that that’s the only change that we’re going to see that’s going to be a huge dramatic change and it’s probably not going to be something that we’re super super stoked about. If it’s not Ron Washington, I have a gut feeling that it’s not going to be somebody we’re like, “Yeah, let’s go.” Right. I don’t know if Arty is is paying attention to that, but I think if he wants to at least distract a bit, I would go and get a really good name that everybody has been talking about and put him in the managerial spot because I don’t think they’re going to do anything else because recent history and long history tell us that they’re just going to keep doing the same thing hoping to get different results. Yeah, you’re gonna get Adam Frasier this off seasonason and you’re going to like it, buddy. That’s what’s going to happen with the Angels for us. So, yeah, that’s really what it comes down to is the fact that they have to fill a roster and how they do that is going to happen this off seasonason. That’s that’s the part that’s going to happen. Yeah. But what it specifically looks like, that still looms large. That’s the big question as we head into the off season and watch all these other teams play really exciting, fun playoff games while we get to watch from home. Thanks for making Lockdown Angels your first listen of the day. Now for your second listen, check out Lockdown MLB Game Night every game every night until the World Series champion is crowned. You can get local analysis on a national scale and you can find game night on the Locked On MLB YouTube channel or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, how come you never tell people that I’m going to be there? Don’t Don’t you want to incentivize people that I’m going to be there? They know, John. They know. Hey, give us a follow on Twitter, locked on angels. Connect with Mike and me on Twitter and Instagram, Super Halo Bros. Again, coming over to today’s show on YouTube. Get in the comments section because we’d love to hear from you. Mike, what do we have on deck for Wednesday’s show? I think Arty should take a page out of Steve Cohen’s playbook and do for the Angel fans what he did for the Mets fans. What did he do? We’ll tell you tomorrow on Locked on Angels. All right, looking forward to that conversation. Until then, 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 Wednesday. Hey, did you hear John’s on game night? Hey, did you hear that John’s on game night? Hey, did you hear that John’s on game night? Hey, did you hear that John’s on game night? It’s about time you told

Are the Los Angeles Angels stuck in a cycle of mediocrity? The team’s second consecutive 90-loss season and back-to-back last-place finishes have fans questioning owner Arte Moreno’s decision-making. This episode breaks down the Angels’ struggles under GM Perry Minasian, comparing his tenure to that of Billy Eppler. Will there be a managerial shakeup? Hosts Jon and Mike Frisch analyze potential candidates, including Torii Hunter and Buck Showalter, while assessing young talent like Zach Neto and Jose Soriano. The conversation heats up as they dissect the organization’s strategy and communication with fans. Tune in for a no-holds-barred look at the Angels’ future and whether they can break free from their losing ways!

#angels2025 #angels #angelsbaseball #gohalos #repthehalo

GRADE THE 2025 ROSTER RIGHT HERE: https://forms.gle/pEXwVPs2yj2kk8uGA

GET IN OUR VOICEMAIL!
CALL US: (714) 409-6396
Tell us what’s on your mind!
Give us a follow @LockedOnAngels on Twitter, and for the best Angels memes around, connect with us on Instagram and Twitter @SuperHaloBros!
Read the Super Halo Bros. NEWSLETTER: https://superhalobros.substack.com/
Super Halo Bros. MERCH is available now! https://super-halo-bros-shop.fourthwall.com

Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!

5-Hour ENERGY
Enough with boring, flavorless caffeine, it’s time to give your caffeine a flavor upgrade with 5-hour ENERGY®️ shots. Get the favorites you love or be bold and try something new in-store and online at https://www.5hourENERGY.com or Amazon today.

Nutrafol
See thicker, stronger hair with less shedding in just 3–6 months with Nutrafol. For a limited time, get $10 off your first month’s subscription and free shipping when you go to https://Nutrafol.com and enter the promo code LOCKEDONMLB.

Zippix
Go to ZippixToothpicks.com and use promo code LOCKEDON for 10% off your first order. Zippix Toothpicks—energy and focus, anytime you need it.

PrizePicks
Download the PrizePicks app today and use code LOCKEDONMLB to get $50 in lineups after you play your first $5 lineup.PrizePicks — Run Your Game.Click Link Here: https://prizepicks.onelink.me/LME0/LOCKEDONMLB

Monarch Money
Take control of your finances with Monarch Money. Use code LOCKEDONMLB at monarchmoney.com for 50% off your first year.

Gametime
Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONMLB for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime.

FanDuel
Today’s episode is brought to you by FanDuel. Football season is around the corner. Visit the FanDuel App today and start planning your futures bets now.

FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN)\

0:00 Intro: Arte Moreno’s decisions for Angels’ future

5:29 Franchise value and potential salary cap impact

21:27 Comparing Billy Eppler and Perry Minasian’s tenures

29:10 Evaluating Angels’ young core and roster needs

34:05 Outro: Preview of next episode’s topic