* Scot Shields: Has been an absolute workhorse out of the 'pen for Mike Scioscia ... Primarily relies on a low-90s two-seam fastball and a low-80s curve ... Gets into trouble when his two-seamer starts out over the plate ... It's very effective when he backdoors righthanded hitters ... His curveball is absolutely deadly. It's thrown hard and breaks late, like a slider -- but it drops straight down ...
* Ervin Santana: Easy windup and delivery ... His four-seamer touches 94 mph, but it's rather straight ... Pounds righthanders away and lefthanders in with it ... Tries to work down in the zone, and he gives the Molinas! a workout with balls in the dirt ... Good curve that he throws down and in on lefties ...
* Orlando Cabrera: Has been a defensive upgrade over David Eckstein, but has been fairly punchless at the plate ... Long swing but nevertheless prefers the ball in ... Does not reach the outside corner well ... Sits on fastballs and struggles with sliders and curves ... Very pleased by his move to the 2-hole in the lineup. Cabrera: "I'm hitting in the first inning every day, and that gets you going" ...
* Steve Finley: Enters play tonight just 3 for his last 28 (.107) ... Can still turn on inside heat if it's up in the zone ... Has not been disciplined at the plate lately, chasing both down and away ... Has been popping up fastballs with an uppercut swing ... Alert baserunner ... Still a solid defensive outfielder, but nowhere near a Gold Glover. He hasn't shown good defensive chemistry with Vladdy ... Hasn't earned his $6 million this season, and not looking like a good bet to earn his $7 million in 2006. He can be bought out for $1 million in 2007 ...
* Bengie Molina!: Enjoying a legitimately fine offensive season ... Homered in his last two games, and is hitting an amazing .351/.432/.676 in August ... Hacks away early in the count, especially at fastballs. He's a good high-ball hitter ... Keeps his head down on the ball, just like your little league coach told you ... Prefers the ball on the inner half. Pitch him away and get him to ground out to the right side ... 19 walks doesn't seem like much, but he's four away from tying his career high ... Extremely difficult to strike out ... Brother Jose isn't nearly the hitter Bengie is, but is an absolute defensive whiz behind the plate ...
* Vladimir Guerrero: On a big-time -- and I mean big-time -- roll. He has four homers in his last four games, and is coasting along with a cool .455/.528/1.000 line in twelve August games ... You can't get anything by him up and in. Why even try? ... Quickly opens up on fastballs and launches them, even (especially?) if eye-high ... Weaknesses? Hmm...He occasionally chases down and away, and up the ladder. But you'd better pitch him well out of the zone if you want to tempt him high ... Has stolen three bases in his last four games ... Cannon of a throwing arm, as you all know ... The A's intentionally walked him three times on Thursday, including once with the bases empty. It's not a bad idea ...
* Darin Erstad: Has not homered since the Fourth of July ... Athletic defender at first ... On pace to strike out 100 times, something he hasn't done since 2001 ... Has difficulty catching up with high heat ... Can be busted inside by lefthanded pitchers. He sometimes seems to have trouble recognizing pitches by lefties ...
* Francisco Rodriguez: By now, you've probably seen his brain cramp in casually trying to field the return throw from the catcher on Thursday afternoon. When he flubbed the toss, Jason Kendall scampered home with the winning run ... Throws a low-to-mid 90s fastball that can be driven, if you're lucky enough to recognize that it's not his legendary slider ... Sometimes takes something off the slider, throwing it in the mid-70s with more of a drop to it ... Not to jinx anything, but he has never successfully converted a save against the Jays ... Does not leave himself in good fielding position after his delivery ...
* Paul Byrd: Has been a nice addition to the Halos' rotation ... His stinginess with walks has not been a surprise. His durability has been a rather pleasant one ... Has a throwback delivery kind of halfway between Jamie Moyer's and Paul Quantrill's. He begins it by swinging both arms behind his back, '60s style. Does anybody else do that in baseball today? ... Throws a blend of sinkers and sliders, usually hovering in the low-to-mid 80s ... Also drops in an occasional low-70s curve, which he throws with the same arm action ... His slider has to stay knee-high or lower, or it can be tagged ... Anything up in the zone is hittable, but his control is good and he won't miss there often ... Nice late bite to his slider. It's almost like a 87-mph cutter ...
* Brendan Donnelly: Has struggled since the All-Star Break, posting a 5.11 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP ... His two-seam high-80s fastball has seemed flatter of late, not running in on righties' fists ... Good downward trajectory on his low-90s four-seamer, but he has to keep it in on lefties' fists ... Has been the de facto situational lefty in a 'pen without a LOOGY. It didn't work against Eric Chavez last week ... Induces righties to chase up and away ... Comfortable working up in the strike zone ...
* Chone Figgins: Despite being one of the best triples hitters in the game, Figgins lacked only a triple to complete a cycle on Saturday ... Has tremendous versatility, and it's amazing how many infield positions he can play -- and how well he can play them. He's not as good defensively in the outfield, but he's passable there ... Hard worker with a strenuous training regimen ... Very smart baserunner, and he's 40-for-51 on the basepaths ... Much better plate coverage from the left side of the plate, where he stays down on balls well ... Chases low breaking pitches from the right side ... Better fastball hitter from both sides of the plate ...
* Adam Kennedy: Very good low-ball hitter who's a pesky spoiler and a tough out at the bottom of the order ... Chokes up well and develops more of an inside-out swing with two strikes ... Chases breaking balls and splitters down in the zone. He takes his head off balls in the dirt on occasion ...
* Casey Kotchman: No, that line against righties isn't a misprint ... Effortless swing enables him to drive fastballs down in the zone for power ... Can turn on fastballs on the inner half of the plate, too ... His line could be even better but for some poor BABIP luck. You'd think a .200/.349/.543 hitter would be an all-or-nothing, high-K guy. But he's only fanned once in 43 plate appearances ... Went 0 for his first 12 at-bats ... One problem: He tends to swing at the first pitch, even if solid contact isn't possible ...
* Jarrod Washburn: Pitched decently in his return from the DL on Friday ... Works up in the zone, and has always been vulnerable to the longball against righthanded hitters ... Will hang his curve, which he throws at any time during the count ... Good fastball, but it's not overpowering ... Very tough on lefties with a sweeping slider thrown from a three-quarters arm angle ... Likes to sneak his fastball in on righties' fists ... Seems to have fun on the mound, and it's not easy to rattle him ...
* Trivia Challenge: Bartolo Colon has 15 wins this season. Can you name any four of the five Angels to have won 20 games in a season? I'll be surprised if you manage to guess four out of five without peeking ...
