Angels manager Joe Maddon signed a three-year, $12MM contract when hired over the 2019-20 offseason. Headed into year three, the longtime big league skipper is in a lame duck situation. Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports, however, that the contract also contains a $4MM option for next season that would vest if the Angels reach the World Series.
That may not wind up being an especially meaningful provision. After all, if the Angels win the American League pennant, it’d stand to reason owner Arte Moreno and general manager Perry Minasian would want to keep Maddon around on a long-term deal anyhow. Nevertheless, Heyman writes that the team “deferred discussion” on a possible contract extension over this past offseason. The Angels finished below .500 in each of Maddon’s first two seasons at the helm, but they’ve gotten off to an excellent 14-7 start in 2022. The 68-year-old Maddon is amidst his 17th consecutive season as an MLB manager; he has overseen eight playoff teams, including a 2008 AL pennant winner in Tampa Bay and the Cubs’ 2016 World Series team.
In other news out of Anaheim:
- The Angels activated David Fletcher from the injured list prior to this evening’s win over the White Sox. He returned to the starting lineup, getting the nod at shortstop and hitting a pair of doubles. Fletcher went on the IL on April 12 with a left hip strain and spent a little less than three weeks on the shelf. The 27-year-old was the Angels’ primary second baseman last season, but all five of his starts this year have come at shortstop. Matt Duffy and Tyler Wade have been the top options at the keystone, and both players have gotten off to nice starts. Andrew Velazquez, who saw the bulk of the shortstop time while Fletcher was out, has struggled. The Halos optioned Jack Mayfield to Triple-A Salt Lake to create active roster space for Fletcher, seemingly leaving Duffy and Wade as the second base tandem with Velazquez as utility depth.
- Taylor Ward has been one of the league’s most surprising performers in the early going. After opening the season on the injured list due to a groin strain, the 28-year-old returned to action on April 16. Ward has tallied 58 plate appearances in the two weeks since then and has gotten off to a blistering .404/.517/.830 start. He’s connected on five home runs and has a massive 19% walk rate, and the Halos have responded by pushing him to the top of the lineup. Ward discussed his hot start with Sam Blum of the Athletic this week, pointing to a more deliberate and selective approach in the batter’s box for his excellent results. Obviously, Ward isn’t going to continue to produce at this otherworldly level, but he quietly had an above-average .250/.332/.438 showing in 65 games last season. Even before his early-season tear, Maddon had declared Ward his primary right fielder. Each of Ward, Mike Trout and Brandon Marsh have hit the ground running, and the Angels have gotten by far the best outfield production of any team in MLB through the season’s first month.
To all the Taylor Ward doubters, I’m still here if yall want to chat. Can’t say he will perform like this all year, but dude can play. Also, Mayfield sent down over Velasquez. Lol. I guess it was a choice of options being left.
A couple of weeks ago a poster here said the Angels had a terrible outfield. I know its still april but they are young, athletic and talented. Barring major injury the Angels seem to have the proper balance of talent, team chemistry and old and young players. They should be fun to watch this season.
Any OF that includes Trout is not terrible. Add in two promising prospects and now Taylor Ward, and you have a good OF.
That aside, .404/.517/.830 is not Taylor Ward’s true talent level!
Why let some random persons comment from a couple weeks ago live in your head? Its probably not as fun watching when your hoping for a little success and an article about the angels just to have a weak I told ya so.
@DT, good advice, especially as there is always someone with a wrong, even crazy, opinion.
I don’t recall any Angel fan saying the Angels have a terrible outfield.
I said this was the most talented Angel outfield ever, I got a lot of pushback, but not one Angel fan said they were terrible. A couple of trolls tossed some insults, but no one said they were terrible.
Ward was a first round pick and I’ve noticed over the years that first round picks get longer leashes. I’m glad they stuck with him. I saw glimpses of his potential throughout his stints. Changing positions from catcher and injuries slowed down his timeline. He’s one of those young players I just hoped would make it, although I was never quite sure. Developing patience is a big step for him. Now, what do they do with Jo Adell? And then if Marsh and Ward are still OF staples next year and the after, what do they do with Jordyn Adams?
Organizational Depth is a good thing.
@ryanw-2 Ward stats has been getting better each year, but I don’t think anyone saw him being another Trout. We will see how long he can keep it up for. Teams will make adjustments and we will see how he handles it.
As for me, I would keep the Marsh/Adell platoon going for a while. Marsh has put up impressive numbers against righties this years, but still hasn’t figured out lefties. Adell has been a bit lost in LF, but he was still one of the best raw power talents in all of baseball. We have seen flashes of what he is capable of. I think a platoon situation is exactly what is needed. There will be opportunities to have both in the lineup when Trout or Ward need a day off.
Adams is off to a nice start, but he is only 22 years old playing in high A. He is still a few years away from being an Angel. No need to do anything with him right now.. Let him keep getting ABs and keep him progressing through the minors.
The outfield is exactly right! Adel and Marsh should both get plenty of playing time though. If it starts to get to lop sided because of all the right-handed pitching…I hope they even it out.
I think its a great situation for both of them!
Marsh May be top 25 outfielder right now. He looks like a complete player! But Adell is just dripping with upside! LOL He looks electric when he is going good! Cant wait to see just how good they both get!
Ward came up as catcher and has improved when he plays and when healthy. He’s showed promise but wow he’s made a huge impact.
Jordyn Adams is at least three years away– if he even pans out. Injuries will happen. Someone will go down with a hamstring or groin strain. They will find ways to get everyone playing time, but Marsh is ahead of Adell.
Strongly agree with everything you said . I think he always had a good sense of the strike zone at least when he was catching. He improved his contact at some point and last he improved his launch angle. At least that is the way I remembered. One of the more surprising things when he stopped catching was the change in his running game.
His swing path is much much shorter now too.
Stay healthy…that is all.
This is the first time I’ve ever seen anyone say the Angels have a “top outfield” during Mikey Trout’s time let’s goooo
Really? The Angels have had one of the better OFs a few times simply because of Mike Trout. Dude produced 2 good players worth of value for a while there.
From 2012-2013 the Angels had the best OF by about 6 fWAR (32.4 to the Breweres 26); 20.3 of that coming from Mike Trout. In that time frame, Trout would have ranked 9th behind Tex and in front of SF. Looking into Mike Trout stats from the times when he was healthy is always fun. I’m not an Angels fan, but I do love Trout.
Welp, everything seems to be falling into place…albeit against bad teams like Cleveland and the White Sox. We have a decent schedule for May until we play the Rays and then the Jays and Yanks towards the end. Those series will be more challenging.
This was posted a couple of days ago in a MLBTR Chat
5:03
Which team, between the NYYs, Jays, M’s, or Angels, is the least likely to sustain their pace? Most likely?
Anthony Franco
5:03
Angels probably. They’re just not as deep as those other teams
I didn’t think the analysis was wrong, just bad.
That’s like saying the Angels “A” team is better, but their 6th starter, 5th outfielder, utility infielder, and 5th man out of the pen are not as strong.
Again, not wrong analysis, just bad analysis.
I also remember someone calling him out for having the worst takes on the site.
This was posted a couple of days ago on MLBTR Chat:
5:03
Which team, between the NYYs, Jays, M’s, or Angels, is the least likely to sustain their pace? Most likely?
Anthony Franco
5:03
Angels probably. They’re just not as deep as those other teams
Is it incorrect?
Go ahead and make Maddon a deal. Nobody else wants to come manage with this owner.
Extend Maddon. He’s been devoted to the organization for a long time – twenty plus before he left for Tampa. He could’ve had other managing jobs after 2019, but he chose the Angels. Not his fault that the pitching staff was crap the previous two seasons.