Game 1 Results

I'm not going to lie, its a great feeling coming to the ballpark and watching the Halos tie one on.  Weaver looked like Weaver, we need more starts like that.  Kendrick and Pujols got on base, but the real hero of the game came through in the first when he sent a ball over center field.  Kendrys Morales, you're officially back... now go hit 39 more this year.

Branyan, really?

I was very excited to hear that Russel Branyan was to be an Angel.  Then someone pointed out to me that Branyan isn't engaged to Katy Perry or even been in a movie.  As I told Jason Brennan on Angels talk yesterday, I don't like this move, but I understand it. 

When the idea was even suggested by Ken Rosenthal that the Angels may acquire journeyman Russel Branyan, I thought it was total utter bull malarkey. When someone from Yardbaker echoed the sentiment, I was even more enraged, read my comments after the column

 Trumbo ...[is] playing better than Branyan already, wasn't he released, probably a good indication his performance isn't up to the D-Backs standards. And have you looked at the offense that Callaspo is providing at 3rd. Why would Regains assume more salary to add what would essentially amount to a bench player. Plus they would either have to drop one of their catchers or drop some of their bullpen to make a spot available for either Betemit or Branyan.

--My Take on the Branyan Signing

This move seems so uninspired to me.  How long is Howie on the DL for?  How much longer will Wells be on DL?  I know Trumbo isn't Morales, but do the Halos really want to platoon 1st?  Wouldn't it make more sense to get perhaps Wilson into the line up for days when Trumbo needs off.  Or move Abreu to left and get Conger at bats at designated hitter.  Looking at this team, depth really isn't an issue, is it?  Our infield of Izturis, Callaspo, and Aybar nearly seem to be mix and match pieces.  They can easily handle 2nd base and when one of those guys needs a rest day you can mix in Armista, right?

I've read on the net and heard on the radio that Branyan has some pop in his bat and can help score runs.  What people are missing is that he was hitting .211 with 1 home run in a National League Hitters park.  How will that translate to Anaheim, a pitchers park for sure?  Yesterday it translated into a 390 ft. long out.  When Wells and Kendrick come back from the DL, where is Branyan going to find at bats?  I hope he proved me wrong, but this wasn't the right move for the Angels.

Oakland Swept

Earlier in this still fairly early season, when the World seemed upside down, Chokeland and Texas were battling for the first place spot in the American League West.  The Angels were floundering in the cellar with the Over Rated Seattle Mariners.  I said then, that the season is just too young and that things will work their way out.  I also said that the A's couldn't maintain their record and the Rangers have been fortunate to face some weaker opponents, feasting on teams like the Kansas City Royals, Chicago White Sox, and the Cleveland Indians.  

But you can see the Angels are fairly strong in their own division.  And they certainly looked fantastic against the same state rivals, the As.  Saunders and Piñeiro with shutouts and even Santana only giving up 2 runs, with a ton of run support makes me think that the Angels are heading to higher ground.  Saunders was dueling with the 19th Perfect Game thrower, Dallas Braden, and outlasted das wunderkid.  Morales and Kendrick have been hot all year.  Howie even got promoted to batting 2nd.  Which I think has helped sparked a lot of this offense.  The bullpen has been getting some rest, because the starting rotation has been going long.  This is the team we were all hoping for and with patience being a virtue that the Halo Faithful could could no longer tolerate has opened its eyes to the winning ways.  With better pitching and much better hitting, the Angels swept the hated A's. 

So Today, the Rangers come to town.  And we'll just see who the superior team is.  Lets all see how REAL the Rangers are or how rather lets see if their weaker schedule has benefited their win loss record.  Go Halos.

Even my optimism is waning.

Optimism is really the only thing I'm hanging on to at the current moment.  The great Roger Lodge, just ask him he'll tell you how great he is, said something utterly profound the other day that it nearly knocked my socks off.  I don't have the exact quote, so I'll paraphrase it.  Every team is going to win 60 games.  Every team is going to lose 60 games.  Its what you do with the other 42 games is what counts.  Outside of some flukes like the 2001 Seattle Mariners winning 116 games, that's fairly accurate.  Even the worse teams are going to win at least sixty games.  And most of the Best teams are going to lose 60 times.  But its all about those 42 games.  Hopefully for the Angels, we haven't played those 42 games just yet.

Lets focus on the positives:

Jered Weaver, even in defeat he strikes out 11.  Make no doubt about it, that game was lost last night due to bad fielding, not bad pitching.  His 4-1 record isn't really reflecting how good he's been this year.  Kendry Morales, also a bright spot.  He is fielding his position well and being a terror with a bat.  Lot of people expected his numbers to drop off for the simple fact that the league would become more familiar with him.  Lastly Howie Kendrick.  Last year he was such a mess he was sent down to AAA, because he was making as many mental errors as fielding errors.  But what a difference a year makes.  The Other Howard has kept the ball rolling and could materialize into the awesome 2nd baseman that should win a batting title we all had hoped for.  You could also make the case for Jepsen and Rodney, but as long as Fuentes is blowing saves, its kind of hard to get fired up about that bullpen.  

Ultimately these Halos will click.  Its just a matter of when, not if.  But and that's a huge but, if the Angels cannot start clicking soon, it'll be much to late.  The Rangers and unbelievably Athletics are playing good ball.  Not superior, but good.  The Angels need to rise up to the occasion.  Oakland visits the Big A this weekend.  Go Halos!

17-8 Loss for the Halos or why a good ass kicking was needed.

Old Hokey Joe wasn't just beaten last night.  He was crushed, give up seven earned runs with two homeruns.  He wasn't alone.  The tandem of Palmer and Stokes were crushed too, combining for giving two more homeruns and ten earned runs.  The Angels offense wasn't the problem last night.  They scored four runs in the first six innings.  And even scored another four runs in the 9th.

The Angels haven't played consistently all season.  But I am of the opinion of this being an ass kicking the Angels deserved.  Sometimes  you need to get  your ass handed to you to force you to straighten your self out.    Look at Howie Kendrick from last year.  His demotion to the Angel's AAA Minor League affiliate the Salt Lake Bees.  That was the ass kicking Kendrick needed to get his stuff  straighten out.  Now he's one of our best hitters and no more base running blunders or fielding errors.

The Red Sox have been a thorn in the Angels side for a long time. Not dating back to last year, or the last decade, but even back to 1986 and later. The Red Sox have been terrible this year, but so have the Angels. I am sure Mike Scioscia was embarrassed with last nights loss. I'm sure Torii Hunter was embarrassed. And I'm sure the Red Sox think of last nights victory as a payback from the 2009 ALDS ass-whoopin the Angels handed the Sox last year. What will be interested is tonight's match up of Santana versus Lester. Santana has been hot and cold, Lester hasn't looked that good all year. Will the Angels take that ass kicking like men or little boys? Will they rise up, or fall down? Ultimately, the Angels are not playing to the expectations that the Angel Faithful is used too. But perhaps, just perhaps, this ass kicking the Angels received last night, will come with a receipt. A discount, or coupon, for buy one ass kicking and get on free.

The Angels lock up Maicer Izturis

The term Utility couldn't be more represented than by Maicer Izturis.  After a few injuries and a demotion for Angels regular second baseman, Howie Kendrick, Maicer was able to get quite the amount of playing time last year.  And it wasn't a desperation move or an attempt to just keep the base warm, Maicer was actually quite effective.  With limited plate appearances, Izturis maintained a batting avg of 300.  With 8 home runs.  Izturis brings solid defense at SS, 2B, or 3B.  And with the ability to get on base, he is more than just a fill in.

Today the Angels extended Maicer's contract for 3 more years at 10MM a year.  Which breaks down to about 3.3MM which was pretty much what Maicer was petitioning for in his arbitration hearing.  This extension is a great insurance policy in case there are any injuries to Kendrick, Wood, or Aybar.  And of course, Izturis can fill in when its time to give any of the three a day off.  This was a great signing and hopefully more extensions to come, for those who are facing arbitration.

2 out of 3 in Texas, Magic Number 7.

On an afternoon that started out very shaky for Angel pitcher John Lackey, Lackey proves that like a fine wine, he gets better with time. Lackey's win on Sunday tied him for Frank Tanana's record 102 wins as an Angel. Lackey has at least one more start before the regular season ends. Hard to say now if Lackey will be back next year. His contract expires at the end of the post-season. It is said that Lackey is looking for a comparable deal to what AJ Burnett received from New York, last year. That could be quite the bargain, considering how ineffective Burnett had been this year. I hope the Angels would be willing to spend some of the saved Teixera money to make Lackey an Angel for another 4 years.

The hero of the game yesterday was Howie Kendrick. On his own, Kendrick scored 5 RBI. Which I believe is a career high. HK, has really kind of found his bat from his struggles earlier this year. And has gone from the AAA Salt Lake Bees, to platooning 2nd Base with Maicer Izturis, to flat out hitting. I'm glad that the Other Howard has found his swing.

Beating Texas in Texas is about as sweet as it gets. Now that we have a controlling 7 1/2 game lead on the Rangers, its only a matter of time that they spiral out of control. You really have to applaud the efforts of the Rangers, they really have made it a race this year in both the AL West and the Wildcard. But as John Lackey recently said in a "We try to fly flags; we don't talk. Let them do that. We win games." And with our last three opponents at home being, the New York Yankees, Oakland Athletics, and the Texas Rangers, with a few good outings, we can wrap up the AL Western Division Championship at home.