Q&A with Beyond The Halo
September 25, 2025 - Q&A by Jacob Firmage
Hello everyone! Today I was lucky enough to take some time of Beyond The Halo and ask some of my own questions along with some of yours. BTH is locked in on this Angels team, and often seems to represent the rest of Halo Nation. Definitely worth the follow if you find yourself on X (@BeyondTheHalo). I did start with a handful of my own questions and then dove into the ones returned by you all of you. Let us hop right on in.
JF: Do you think Perry is brought back?
BTH: I am going to say he is brought back. I think upper management already has a lot going on with the ongoing Skaggs trial and a potential managerial search. Adding a GM search to that would put even more on their plate and since Perry is already under contract for 2026, I think they take the “easy” way out and give him one more year.
JF: Would you think the trial does also increase the likelihood if cleared with doctors that Wash is back as well. Just to take easiest routes in complicated offseason?
BTH: Yeah, I think that’s fair to say it increases the likelihood. Simply picking Wash’s club option up would be simpler than going through a managerial search. But with that being said, I think this decision ultimately comes down to whatever Arte wants. Whoever he wants as manager is going to be the manager and the trial won’t get in the way of that.
JF: Spending capital? - Does the trial possibly affect this?
BTH: My early projection for the Angels 2026 payroll gives them around $30 million to spend, give or take $5 million, if they bring maintain a similar payroll next year. But as you mentioned, the trial does possibly affect this. With the team potentially having to pay hundreds of millions of dollars in damages, I’d expect them to be cautious with their spending. Payroll in 2026 may not go down because of the trial, but I think the likelihood of them giving out any big deals is significantly reduced.
JF: I think even without the trial, this team wasn't going to be big fish hunting this year, but do wonder now if this offseason is more based on retention of Jansen as well as moves similar to this year... Think IKF for 3B instead of Moncada. Maybe a upside play for a Dustin May to fill rotation spot heavy on incentives.
JF: How do you fix the lack of contact?
BTH: For starters, they need a philosophical change. They got themselves into this problem in the first place by disregarding contact as a point of emphasis. Internal improvements will be needed from the players who stick around in 2025. Especially Mike Trout, who has had a substantial drop-off in contact%. And then they need to add more players who are good at making contact. Looking at the roster, the areas to do that would be 2B, 3B, and CF. Finding a way to trade Jorge Soler would also help.
JF: Could the Braves be an option for Soler? He’s had success there in the past plus Ozuna being a FA, could the Angels eat some of payroll just to remove him from roster crunch at DH?
BTH: Given the Angels propensity to make deals with Atlanta and Ozuna being a free agent, they could definitely be an option. But how often do players have three separate stints with the same organization? Another factor is the Braves may want someone who can play the field more often than Soler can since Profar is a bad defender in left field, Acuña Jr came back from a major injury this year, and they have two good hitting catchers in Baldwin and Murphy. The Angels are probably going to have to eat money in any Soler deal, or take money back, but I’d be surprised if he goes back to Atlanta.
JF: Do you think we are inching closer to an Arte sale?
BTH: I think we are. Regardless of the outcome, the end of the Skaggs trial will remove a big obstacle that would stand in the way of any potential sale.
JF: It does make me wonder if this was a hold-up of sorts in the last sale and why they were abruptly pulled off market.
JF: What do you think is going to happen with Arte and the Angels once the Skaggs trial is over? (Question by Cory Estrella)
BTH: It’s going to depend on the end result of the trial. The trial itself is going to give the Angels some bad PR, but it’ll be even worse if they lose the trial and are found guilty. The bigger deal, though, is the potential damages the Skaggs Family may be awarded if the Angels lose the trial. If they are awarded damages anywhere close to the amount they are seeking ($785 million), I am not sure Arte/the Angels could pay them in full without taking out a loan or selling at least part of the team. So the short answer is I don’t know what’s going to happen. But if you’re asking me to guess, I’d say it brings a lot of short-term pain to the team that may push Arte to sell the team sooner than anticipated.
JF: Even if he could afford the potential damages without selling the team. Is there any scenario you can think of where the league or other owners make a group effort to force him to sell?
BTH: Unless the trial unearthed something very serious that the league or other owners don’t want out there, I find it very hard to see them forcing him to sell. Other owners would likely be afraid of the precedent it would set if another owner was forced to sell their team. They’re probably not going to be thrilled with a lot of things that come out of this trial, but I don’t think it’ll reach the point where they actually do anything about it.
JF: Who is the most realistic Angels manager and signings for 2026? (Question by x0AfterHoursx0)
BTH: The most realistic manager is probably Torii Hunter because Arte likes him, he’s been around the team more than usual lately, and I think he would take the job. That last point is a big factor because a lot of the top managerial candidates aren’t going to want to work for Arte and a potentially lame-duck GM.
The most realistic signings are probably bringing Kenley Jansen back on a one-year deal and adding a middle of the road starter who they can rely on for innings.
JF: With the Angels limited budget this offseason can they realistically be a playoff team in ‘26? If not what about ‘27 or ‘28? If yes, can they stay competitive for 5+ years or would it be best to rebuild to build sustained success long term? (Question by Arte Moreno Blows)
BTH: With a limited budget, I do not think they can realistically be a playoff team in 2026. I think they definitely can in 2027 or 2028, particularly because they are going to have a ton of money coming off the books after the 2026 and 2027 seasons. Rendon, Soler, and Stephenson come off the books after 2026. Kikuchi comes off the books after 2027.
JF: When you look at this team and how they are currently constructed, with 25-30 million estimated, is it smarter to ink more 1 year deals this year and prepare an even bigger 26-27 spending capital or if you have a guy like let's say Bregman/Bellinger/Cease willing to sign would you prefer to lock anyone from this offseason in long term?
BTH: When you sign a big name free agent, you’re paying for maximum value in the first few seasons while acknowledging the back-end of the deal is likely to be painful. Given where the Angels are in their contention cycle, you wouldn’t be getting your full money’s worth by signing a big name free agent to a deal beginning in the 2026 season. You want to sign those type of players to help push you into the playoffs or put you over the top. No one the Angels could sign this winter would single-handedly do that. Another factor is the potential 2027 lockout. If there is no 2027 season, you’d be losing a key year of that player’s deal. So I’d say one-year deals is the smart play, which would leave you tons of money to spend moving forward.
JF: What advice would you give other young fans on how to cope with disappointment? What have you learned about yourself in that regard over last couple of years? (Question by Baseball Guy)
BTH: I would advise them to be mindful of the fact that this is just a moment in time that shouldn’t last forever. The last 10 years of Angels baseball has sucked, but it shouldn’t be like that forever. Eventually, Arte isn’t going to own the team. The Angels play in a good market, draw well, and are in a desirable location. Things should eventually get better, and in the meantime, you can turn your attention elsewhere if you’re disappointed with the current product.
In that regard, what I’ve learned about myself the last couple of years is that it’s OK to be frustrated but it needs to be in the proper manner. Basically, just try to not be unhinged and approach things more level-headed.
JF: How did you first become an Angels fan, and what inspired you to start a social media account about the team? (Question by Bryan Whitfield)
BTH: My Angels fandom really picked up in the 2009 season, particularly in that year’s ALDS. I don’t really remember when I first created a social media account about the team. I think it was sometime during the 2014 season, but I can’t say for sure. It just started with me following other Angels accounts, becoming a “reply guy” in the replies of many popular Angels accounts, and then evolving from there. There was no real inspiration necessarily. I just grew up a really big baseball fan and Twitter was a popular space for baseball talk, so I joined it and eventually gained a presence of my own over the years.
JF: More active on free agent side or trades with payroll restrictions? (Question by Zac Holladay)
BTH: Even though I don’t think they’ll spend much this offseason, I’d still predict they’re more active on the free agent side than the trade side. Mainly because this team doesn’t make a ton of trades. That’s largely due to Arte’s unwillingness to trade players with multiple years of control and the team rarely being in a position to acquire the top trade targets out there due to their poor farm system.
JF: This is an area I am excited for in the future. Potential for trades. The Angels have guys with value yearly that they hold or end up letting walk.... Ohtani, yes, but in recent years Adell, Ward, Rengifo, Anderson, Jansen this year (Though this may be that they plan and he intends to resign) amongst others may not bring back a top 100 prospect could have impacted this organization pleasantly in future with added talent. In addition, minus the Marsh for O'Hoppe trade, the don't do creative moves, like considering moving Kikuchi this year at deadline or moving Soriano hypothetically to a team like Boston, loaded with young talent. Just seems like a team that could really have benefited the org.
JF: I thank you greatly BTH for taking time out of your day to answer all of our questions. Do you have any final comments?
BTH: Just wanted to say thanks for having me. I always enjoy talking Halos and I appreciate everyone who asked questions.
Want to personally thank Beyond The Halos for joining us for this special Q&A. For those of you on X looking for someone knowledgeable and informative to follow, make sure to check out @BeyondTheHalo, and drop them a follow!
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