The October 26th, 2011 edition of daily news for the LA Angels including Halos hope to hire a GM by early next week, Friedman would be Angels GM but he probably won’t leave Tampa, Minaya joins the GM contenders and much more…
(Editor’s Note: Sorry for the lack of updates the last few days, been dealing with a sick kid and trying to talk myself into not killing myself now that the Rangers are one win away from a championship.)
The Story: The Angels hope to hire a GM by early next week.
The Monkey Says: The story suggests that they aren’t done with interviews yet though which leads me to believe that they already have a favorite in mind, assuming they don’t land Friedman. Stay tuned.
The Monkey Says: This is the first we’ve heard about Evans being a candidate, so he is yet another name to watch. I’m not crazy about what he did in his time running the Dodgers, but it would be interesting to see how having a guy who has worked in the front office and as an agent would work out, especially since he is currently Hank Conger’s agent and must have a choice thing or two to say about how Mike Scioscia handles his catchers. As for Hahn, I’m not surprised he is a top candidate, but I don’t know what that even means anymore since DiPoto, Oppenheimer, Evans and Hahn have all been called favorites thus far.
The Monkey Says: That rings true since there has been no further rumors about Friedman since the not-so-secret meeting he had with Arte Moreno and the president model makes sense, especially since Theo Epstein and the Cubs are making it trendy. I would think that if he was still thinking it over, there would be more info leaking out about it and less info on the Angels talking to other candidates.
The Story: Former Mets GM Omar Minaya either has already or will interview for the Angels GM vacancy.
The Monkey Says: This would be absolutely horrible since Minaya makes Tony Reagins look like a savvy investor by comparison. My hope here is that the interest in Minaya is really just a guise to evaluate him as an AGM should the Angels hire a fresh face to be GM, thus giving them an experienced right-hand man to turn to for advice and support. I have see some suggest that Minaya is being interviewed to comply with MLB’s requirement to interview a minority candidate, but with Kim Ng and Tory Hernandez already on the candidate list, that explanation holds no water. If he is a serious GM candidate, then I am frightened. In all seriousness, if the Angels hire him as GM, I am quitting and becoming a Mariners fan. I even have MooseWithaTrident.com already reserved, just in case.
The Story: A look back on Omar Minaya’s run with the Mets.
The Monkey Says: Just in case you weren’t sure why the mere mention of Minaya is causing such a panic.
The Monkey Says: If it is scouting types they want, that would rule out the likes of Kim Ng. For the record, Heyman is the one pushing Oppenheimer here, so don’t view it as concrete that he is a top contender for the job.
The Story: Joe Torre says Kim Ng is ready for a general manager job.
The Monkey Says: Ng has the business side of the job down pretty well, the problem that will plague her is on the player evaluation side. Working for MLB is a nice job, but it isn’t helping her resume much which makes me wonder if she might not be in the mix to become an assistant general manager for the Angels.
The Story: Scioscia once again deflects criticism that he is the de facto GM.
The Monkey Says: This is something he has done a few times this off-season and it seems pretty clear that it is a goal of the team right now to dispel this notion. I think it is a bit overblown as far as something that would scare off GM candidates, but setting the record straight can’t hurt.
The Story: Gary DiSarcina should get a shot at the general manager opening.
The Monkey Says: It is curious that he hasn’t gotten a formal interview yet, or at least not one that has been reported. I know the Angels reportedly felt Reagins failed because he was hired before he was really ready and I think that might be working against DiSarcina here since he has rather limited front office experience so far. Still, the team must think highly of him if he was able to survive the purge.
The Story: Mike Scioscia says that part of the reason the Angels traded Mike Napoli was concern over durability.
The Monkey Says: Naps did have shoulder problems a few years ago, but it seems like he was getting past those. I think the big factor being overlooked here was that Napoli was essentially a DH in Anahaim and was going to be relatively expensive this year and even more expensive this year. That still doesn’t make trading him any less of a tragedy, but at least cost concerns comes off as a more viable explanation.
The Story: OF prospect Chevez “Chevy” Clarke is a super sleeper for 2012.
The Monkey Says: Personally, I am not a believer in Chevy. He has a ton of raw tools, but he has been terrible thus far in rookie ball for two seasons. He did show signs of life late last season, but, and this is entirely predicated on the drivel that spews from his Twitter, I think he doesn’t have a good head on his shoulders and will never be able to get a grip on the mental aspect of the game (i.e. his horrible pitch selection and recognition). Needless to say, he won’t be in the MWaH-LAAI Top 30 Prospect Countdown that kicks off next week.