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It has been confirmed from the multiple sources that Yankees assistant GM Billy Eppler is in fact a candidate and possible front-runner for the Angels upcoming vacancy at the position.
Eppler was a runner-up when the Halos hired now former GM Jerry Dipoto, who resigned from his seat on July 1.
And according to several of the same sources, Eppler has the right mixture of analytics, scouting, and leadership that the Angels organization will need in that spot going into this offseason.
Here are some of the reports that have been coming out in the past twenty-four hours about the Angels and Billy Eppler.
Sources: NYY assistant GM Billy Eppler expected to be a strong frontrunner for the Angels GM job, as the process plays out.
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) September 4, 2015
Yankees exec Billy Eppler made a big impression on the Angels in 2011 & will factor heavily in this year's GM search: http://t.co/AMyfOgNHmB
— Alden González (@Alden_Gonzalez) September 5, 2015
Confirmed Yankees asst GM Billy Eppler is a candidate for Angels GM job. http://t.co/BSLtW3I5EP
— Jeff Fletcher (@JeffFletcherOCR) September 4, 2015
So as you can see, this is no joke. It might be better for the Halos to hire outside of their organization, and Billy Eppler’s available may be just what was waiting to happen in the midst of the battle between Jerry Dipoto and Mike Scioscia.
Maybe this was the solution all along.
There are internal options such at current Angels assistant GM Matt Klentak, who (like Eppler) is also highly regarded in the industry.
No matter the case, it appears that the Angels are searching for a similar dynamic as was brought by Dipoto, but with some more complete intangibles that have been missing since Bill Stoneman first stepped down as GM in 2007.
The bottom line, however, is that the Angels need a GM who knows how to get what Mike Scioscia needs to win.
And Billy Eppler is probably the right man for the job.
Hopefully the outcome will lead to a bounce back for the Angels organization.
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