Angels general manager Billy Eppler took part in an online Q&A session with fans on Friday, addressing many topics about his team. Here are some of the highlights, with Eppler’s answers compiled by Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register…
- The Angels were linked to Zack Wheeler’s market over the winter, and Eppler filled in some details about the team’s interest, saying “we pursued Wheeler pretty aggressively.” That pursuit included a cross-country trip in November for Eppler, manager Joe Maddon, and team president John Carpino to meet with Wheeler in person. Despite this courtship, Wheeler ended up signing with the Phillies, though the Halos may have faced an uphill battle to sign the right-hander for geographical reasons, as Wheeler wanted to stay on the East Coast and in closer proximity to his wife’s family in New Jersey. Other suitors such as the Twins and White Sox also seemingly fell short of Wheeler’s services for the same reason, as Chicago’s offer was reportedly worth more than the $118MM Wheeler received from Philadelphia.
- Fletcher reported in February that the Angels had yet to begin extension talks with Andrelton Simmons, and Eppler confirmed that the club hadn’t held any negotiations with Simmons and his agents prior to the league shutdown. As per the GM, there had only been “internal discussions” within the front office at the start of Spring Training about a possible new deal for the defensive wizard. Simmons is set to become a free agent in the 2020-21 offseason, and the shortstop would still be eligible for the open market even if the COVID-19 pandemic wipes out the entire 2020 season. Of course, the league-wide transactions freeze also covers extension negotiations, so the Angels and other teams can’t talk contracts with any players during the shutdown.
- Shohei Ohtani threw two bullpen sessions this week, Eppler revealed, including a 15-pitch session on Friday that consisted of only fastballs. Ohtani continues to progress in his recovery from Tommy John surgery and should be ready to pitch when and if the season does get underway. The two-way star was originally slated to return to the mound in mid-May, though since games surely won’t resume by that point, Ohtani likely won’t end up missing any time in the Los Angeles rotation.
- Eppler also provided an update on Griffin Canning, saying that the young righty should start throwing off a mound within 7-10 days. “His throwing program is back to 120 to 150 feet this week, at about 70 to 80 percent intensity,” Eppler said. Canning was sidelined early in Spring Training due to elbow problems, including what the club described at the time as “chronic changes to the UCL and acute joint irritation.” While there was much speculation that Canning would need Tommy John surgery, Canning instead received a platelet-rich plasma injection, as Eppler said that “surgery wasn’t recommended in Griffin’s case…ultimately the different physicians we had him see didn’t recommend it.” The prospect of the season being canceled doesn’t have any bearing on whether Canning would eventually undergo a Tommy John procedure, as Eppler said “we would not proactively subject him to that surgery unless there was new evidence or a new injury that took place.”
so, all the trolls that said ” might as well get the tj surgery.” about canning are dumb trolls!
Not really. It is extremely common for things to start with attempting to rehab it and ultimately ending up under the knife. I mean if they were saying it maliciously then that is not cool but it isn’t too far off to think of one leading to the other.
do you or i know more than the doctors that treated him? there was no ucl tear though there was strain. why get tj when you don’t have a tear? at least 2 physicians recommended not have tj as the article states.
A strain IS a tear.
@Javia From what I understand, a strain can be a stretching OR a tear of the ligament
Open to correction if anyone knows better than I
You are correct sir.
A Strain is a stretch or tear in a muscle or tendon.
A Sprain is a stretch or tear in a ligament.
Canning’s MRI did not reveal a sprain. chronic changes to the UCL + acute joint irritation.
There is a problem with his UCL. Just because nobody has said it is torn doesn’t mean it is okay. “Chronic changes to his UCL” sounds very bad. A PRP injection in the elbow is a bad sign. Almost everyone who has ever gotten one of those has eventually needed Tommy John surgery.
“ Almost everyone who has ever gotten one of those has eventually needed Tommy John surgery.”
Do you have a source for this?
For what it’s worth, someone made a similar claim a month or two ago (about PRP not preventing TJS) and I did some Googling. I could not find a case of a pitcher receiving a PRP and not eventually getting TJS except for Bartolo Colon and I think he’s the exception to just about any rule there is
And Masahiro Tanaka also got a PRP and hasn’t needed TJ surgery yet.
I could give many examples of players who have gotten PRP injections and still needed TJ, but I can see that OntariGro does not want to listen so I will not bother.
Cool! Wasn’t looking for examples you could name. Was looking for the source data informing “almost everyone who has ever gotten [a PRP injection] has eventually needed Tommy John surgery.” A study of some kind, a spreadsheet from HITS, somethin’.
Oh, of course. You are looking for a comprehensive study, done by either medical proffesionals who have performed multiple PRP injections or by MLB. A study which tells the world that what they are doing is useless. I am sure there are as many of those as there are studies by cigarette companies which conclude that cigarettes cause cancer.
No, I’m looking for a study that tells me that your overarching statement is accurate and not the total conjecture that I’m pretty sure it is.
” A study which tells the world that what they are doing is useless.”
That’s exactly what studies are for. Tracking data to gauge the effectiveness of a treatment. If the study shows the treatment is “useless” that study is super useful…because then you stop using it and explore others.
Cigarette companies profit by obfuscating data. What incentive would there be for Major League Baseball and the Sports Medicine Community to use PRP injections if they discovered over time that they were “useless?” An incentive sooooo mutually attractive that they’d enter a weird conspiracy to falsify data/keep it a secret?
Deeeeefffffinitely seems more likely than you just being wrong.
….do cigarettes cause cancer….omg
Bartolo had stem cells though in the Biogenesis thing
Tanaka is one of the most talented pitchers in the history of the league; however he has been pitching with a busted elbow for half a decade so his results aren’t a great reflection of what his potential once was. He opted for PRP instead of TJ because he is just that fierce of a competitor and couldn’t stand to wait a year plus between starts.
Canning will need to make it at least a couple of UCL injury-free years for us to conclude this… people don’t get PRP injections with the mere hope of throwing off of a mound again, the only way it’s worth it is if he can avoid the surgery and other injury troubles for years. I think that the only PRP injection to pay off that comes to mind thus far has been Tanaka.
He won’t. The injection slows things down a bit but that is all. Tanaka is an exception. imo
stilla matter of time
Canning will have TJ surgery. Just a matter of now or August.
I wouldn’t consider myself a troll. The fact of the matter, for whatever reason, Ohtani and Richards delayed the inevitable and I don’t trust them with this injury.
Do you?
It’s not as bad as falsely pointing out racism. Wait, you do that Vizionaire. How about stop calling people out until you learn some life lessons?
wow, what so many doctors are doing on this page instead of helping their patients? do these ‘doctors’ really know more than the doctors that tested canning?
“Dr. (James) Andrews was confident that the PRP injection he administered would be enough to heal (Chris) Sale’s elbow and it turns out he was correct. Go figure, the best surgeon in the country had a better idea how his elbow would respond to treatment than a band of anxious Red Sox fans.”-November 2019
Sale says he has no UCL damage or tear. “Sale underwent a PRP injection on Monday in Pensacola Fla., where he was examined by renowned surgeon Dr. James Andrews.”-August 20, 2019
It seems that the public cannot really trust what baseball doctors say anymore.
different players and different cases.
What do baseball doctors say? There aren’t any quotes from any in your post.
Fine, you cannot trust when players or coaches SAY that doctors have told players they don’t need Tommy John surgery. Of course, if I was Dr. Andrews and Chris Sale stated publicly that his UCL was fine when I actually told him it was torn, I would sue him. Maybe that’s just me.
Sue for what?
Sale was put on the DL with elbow inflammation in August 2019, a diagnosis confirmed by Andrews, and an injury for which Tommy John would be inappropriate (no UCL damage/tear diagnosis). A PRP injection and a season-ending shutdown was the treatment. Sale was just repeating the doctor’s findings. And the treatment worked! For what he was being treated for (again, elbow inflammation). So he was greenlit in November.
“You don’t need Tommy John” was accurate in August. Don’t =/= Won’t, as Sale found out in March of 2020.
Not sure why you’re reading any of this as duplicitous.
I doubt a doctor who treats players/his customers would sue a player. It is not smart to sue your customers.
Did the White Sox offer Wheeler 60/$120m?
What an insulting offer. $2 mil/year for 60 years? No wonder he turned it down. Lol
Wheeler is the next Zimmerman. I don’t know how his agent stirred up a bidding war but hats off and kudos.
I wish the Angels had pursued Porcello instead. Their infield is going to be all-time awesome and make ground ball pitchers like Rickie look extra good.
Lol….$2 million for 60 years….final payment at 88 years old …that’s a good one….
Ohtani will be as close to 100% as anyone can be after TJ surgery by the time the 2020 season starts. He will be at least 20’ish months out at the earliest possible start date for MLB.
As for Canning, it’s hard to be optimistic after all the heartbreak Angels pitchers and fans have endured the last 4 years. We will once again prepare for the worst and expect the best.
Ohtani, Heaney, Bundy and Terhan are as competent a foursome as the Angels have had in recent years. With the benefit of the Angels infield defense and Castro’s pitch framing, they should be able to eat some innings and keep a solid bullpen fresh in a shortened season.
Rendon continuing his production is the key
Goodwin and LaStella playing like they did last year
Comeback from Upton
Trout staying healthy
If we have a season the Angels have the potential to have 3 900+ OPS guys.
Rendon
Trout
Ohtani
Especially in a shorter season you can have another guy go on a tear.
Even with all that they are most likely around a 500 ballclub or slightly higher.
Their future is if Rendon plays well and Upton still has something you can combine that with a young Jo Adell.
2021-2022 most likely.
Especially if you see the A’s start selling pieces again
I’m sure the MLB PA is geeked about not being able to extend a player.
Can’t believe they didn’t get Pederson and Stripling
agreed… would’ve added more depth and experience to roster. But I’m not complaining…
Viewed differently: If Pederson and Stripling had been traded for Rengifo and Player X, and the season is effectively canceled for 2020, then the Angels would get zero value out of Pederson and less from Stripling (who would never provide the meaningful number of innings the Angels need, and is a FA in 2023), for 5 years of control on Rengifo, plus whatever value in the extra player in the trade.
Branch Rickey famously said, some of the best trades you make are the trades you don’t make.
Agreed. Lengthens the lineup, gives a great L/R/L/R mix, and adds another 100 quality pitching innings.
You know, the things that make a low 80s win team into a high 80s win team and in the hunt for a playoff spot.
Curious to see how Wheeler lives up to his contract.
Health…
Guy has nasty stuff. Plus he is mentally strong.
Just a matter of him staying healthy and that has been a problem with almost all NY Mets pitchers like with the Angels.
The question becomes are the Phillies better at keeping him on the mound.
If he stays healthy he is a #2 pitcher for a WS caliber team
Wheeler got Cy Young candidate money. He hasn’t ever proven that level of production. Everyone who lost that bidding war essentially dodged a bullet.
Pitching cost money.
This is obvious.
As an Astros fan I would much rather have Wheeler than Greinke as our #2.
Wheeler would be a 18-20 game winner with what the Astros want from a pitcher.
Both cost the same
Pretty interesting. I figured Wheeler was doing the Teixiera and playing where his wife wanted. He would’ve been nice here.
Throwing a baseball is not a natural motion. At some point guys get hurt. Let’s hope the extra rest and rehab can help Canning, but it doesn’t look good.
everyone here is speaking truth at some level. for halos fans we wanna believe a prp injection will help. I want to believe it. I really do but I just have a hard time with it. they should specify tear from strain for dummies like me. tear sounds bad. strain doesn’t. strain makes it sound like rest will help. tear to me sounds like surgery. what I really want to know is how to prevent these type of injuries. growing up as a dodger/angel fan I cannot remember this many arm injuries. I am so disheartened at halo arm injuries the past 5 years or so. literally ruins the season. anyway prevention should be studied more or something
I was a big fan of Address Munoz of the Padres for a year or so. Then I heard he had an elbow sprain and PRP injection in 2018. I had been waiting for the Tommy John surgery ever since. It happened a month or two ago. I am sorry, but I am sure that Canning’s is coming soon too.
I’m sure it’s probably hard to book Dr Andrews during this time. That’s probably a factor too.