So, is it too early to be THIS excited about baseball?

Has anyone noticed the moves the Angels are making in the off season? Aaron Touchy-Sele and Kevin Appier for pitching, and now Brad Fullmer at DH/1st. Seems to me that some smart moves have been made.

And now apparently Troy Percival is "open to staying" at Anaheim.

And when you think about Salmon, Erstad and Glaus getting back on track, and figuring in the ever reliable and under-appreciated Garrett Anderson, I think Angel fans might have something great to look forward to!

Good times!

WJ, it's never too early to talk about baseball. Yes, it looks like the Angels have made some nice moves to improve themselves over last year...but they are still the Angels... they'll find a way to screw things up!

Troy Percival wants to stay now that Tony Tavares, the idiot that fired Ron Wilson after he took the horribly-named Mighty Ducks to the playoffs. And turned down a McGwire for Edmonds trade. And.....you get the picture.

I've been an Angels fan since 1974, due to Nolan Ryan (he's to blame!). I've had my heart broken too many times (1979, 1982, 1986, 1995) and there's been so much front office turmoil that I'm not getting THAT excited yet. But yes, they've made some really good moves in the offseason. One thing I read that sent a chill down my spine is that Brad Fullmer "has been injury free". I thought "You stupid sportswriter!" That guy guranteed that something like Mo "Good Riddance You Fat Tub of Goo" Vaughn falling in the dugout trying to catch pop up in the first inning of the first game of his first regular season game ever with the Angels and screwing up his ankle will happen to Fullmer.

I hope not. I want the Angels to do well for the players sake. Most of the fans are ghastly though--the worst fans in all of sports, in all the world IMO--and they don't deserve shit. I'm excepting myself of course!

Oh. And the new unis look good, if a little too close to the Rangers uniforms. I wish they'd kept the pinstripes but it's nice to be rid of the Angels wing logo and the periwinkle blue. Stupid freakin' Disney. Nice to have the Big A logo back.

[ January 21, 2002: Message edited by: Jim Allen ]

from Jim Allen:"Nice to have the Big A logo back"

Agreed; I always liked that logo on the unis (in fact, though a Dodger fan, my baseball cap is an Angels one) and think the Angels have made a number of good moves this off-season.

~Adam

Didn't want to create a new thread for this:

Last thing about Eckstein I read (here) is that he seems to be good to go.

I guess my questions are: Jim, do you want Eck or someone else? Is there word on the L.A. streets that he isn't back at full capacity? Is it true that he drives a beat-up pick-up, has patio furniture in his dining room, and lives with his parents during the offseason? And could he be any cuter? (And I don't even like blondes.)

Please, Jim, give us your thoughts on the Angels this year. I didn't really know them before the 2002 ALDS (I was happy they won the WS that year, since that meant the Yankees were beat by the best), but since then I've grown fond of them. How do you see them doing in '04?

I'm undecided about the cutie Eckstein at SS. If he plays consistently like he did in 2002, he'll be a great addition to the lineup. Play like last year, and he'll be a millstone. To be honest, I was disappointed they didn't go after Miguel Tejada in a stronger manner.

By all reports, Eckstein's healthy and ready to go. Yeah, all that stuff about his living circumstances are true, but I think with his new contract, he can actually afford to get his own place now! I think he's smart, actually. He knows that it's always going to be year-to-year whether he's in the big leagues, so why go out and buy the big house and car like most do? I have no "evidence" whatsoever other than a remark along the lines of "I don't have time for a girlfriend, I'm too busy working out", but I get a gay vibe from him.

I think he's adorable. They had a Fan Weekend over Valentine's weekend and a lot of the players were there for autographs/photos. I really wanted to see Eckstein and Kennedy up-close and personal but I could only go one of the days and since they wouldn't announce which day which players were going to be at, I passed.

Angels in 2004? Well, despite 2002, I'm still a longtime Angels fan, so I'm taking nothing for granted. IF, and this is a big IF, the starting lineup and especially the starting pitching stays healthy and has their normal years, they should do very well. I don't think that Seattle and Oakland improved themselves all that much--in fact, I'd say Oakland might have slightly regressed--but the Angels can't worry about them, they just have to play well and all that will take care of itself.

To be honest, I'm not happy that Moreno took the "expensive free agent" route; the team has done it in the past and it's blown up in their faces, big time (see: Mo Vaughn). That's what was so great about the 2002 team, it was a cool mixture of homegrown talent (Salmon, Anderson, Erstad, Molina, Washburn, Glaus etc.) and shrewd, low-key trades (Eckstein, Spezio). I love Adam Kennedy and was glad to see Jim Edmonds go (it was time, he'd worn out his welcome) but I wish they'd gotten more in that trade.

Apart from the Angels, I'm WAY pumped for baseball to start. It's perfect, just as football (ie soccer) is ending in Europe, baseball starts. And with all the Yankees and Red Sox fans here, it should be lively on the board too!