Well, my pre-season pick to repeat isn't looking so hot. Every Angel not named Garret is suffering from a severe slugging slump, and the team's been reeling since the All-Star Break (when contention was still very much a possibility). The team's vaunted chemistry has broken down lately as well, although most Halos were happy not to see either a fire sale or a panic session of trading good prospects for last-ditch help.
With Kevin Appier gone, the Angels are finally rid of their financial sinkhole created by the Mo Vaughn signing that seemed like a much better idea at the time. New owner Arte Moreno has apparently given the Angels' head office the go-ahead to spend this offseason, boosted by the team's championship-fueled attendance that has blown prior team records for fan support out of the water.
(Note to Wayne Huizenga: You see? The '98 Marlins didn't even have to be good. They just had to have the possibility of being good and you would have made money.)
On to the Advance Scout!
* A four-game sweep at the hands of Baltimore -- right after the break -- sent the champs reeling, as they've gone 3-12 in their last 15, getting knocked out of playoff contention in the process ... The Angels are not in rebuilding mode, however. Ben Weber said that only a dump of Troy Percival would signal that ...
* Adam Kennedy, who has complained about his role on the Angels of late, has at least played respectably of late, hitting .367 with 3 home runs in his last nine games ... He's taken an 80-point hit in slugging this year, compared to last ... Going forward, Kennedy will probably start more often against lefthanders, as the Angels try and figure out their middle infield for next season ...
* Tonight's opponent, Ramon Ortiz, got beat up on Sunday to the tune of six runs in 2 1/3 innings ... His four previous starts, however, were all solid ... The man once dubbed "Little Pedro" has only 66 strikeouts in nearly 128 innings ... Plus, he just turned 30 ...
* Scott Spiezio has been regrettably forced into third-base duty with the injury to Troy Glaus ... Maybe his defensive struggles have affected his confidence at the plate: He's a dreadful 0 for his last 18 ...
* But the alternative is Benji Gil, whose description as a "banjo hitter" would be an insult to banjo hitters ... He's 0 for his last 11 and checks in at 192/214/272 ... Does that make him a "ukulele hitter"? ...
* Prior to a scoreless outing on Tuesday, super-intense Ben Weber had been roughed up in four straight appearances, including three home runs allowed ...
* Tomorrow's opponent, Jarrod Washburn, bounced back from a ten-run shellacking in Arlington with a gem on Monday, in which he matched Barry Zito pitch-for-pitch ... He held the A's scoreless, allowing just four hits and a walk in seven innings, striking out seven ... He regrouped after a 29-pitch first inning on Monday ... Terrence Long said that Monday was the best he had seen Washburn -- and cited his ability to keep the ball down as the reason ... Still, he's given up four or more runs on eleven occasions this season ... After a reporter mentioned his 8-10 record and Barry Zito's 8-8 mark, Washburn snapped, "It just goes to show you how stupid won-lost records are. It's the most overrated stat in baseball" ... Monday was Washburn's first homerless game since May 29; he leads the majors with 27 homers allowed ...
* Tim Salmon missed the Yankees series with discomfort in his back, but will return tonight ... Salmon drove in the winning run with a clutch single on Monday night, his last appearance ... It was a big night for Fish on Monday, as he also made a nice sliding catch on an Adam Piatt liner, and recovered quickly enough to double off Long at first ...
* Garret Anderson hasn't missed a beat since the All-Star Game, as he's now at 315/349/588 and still playing a strong left field ...
* You don't expect much power from David Eckstein, but Barry Bonds' favourite player has nevertheless seen a 60-point dip in slugging from last season ... Darin Erstad's taken a 50-point hit ...
* Brendan Donnelly coughed up a lead last week against the A's, but his last two outings have been typically excellent ... Consider this: He's allowed runs in 2 of his last 24 appearances ... He's only allowed hits in 13 of those appearances -- only four of which are less than an inning in duration ... 7 walks, 36 Ks over that span, too. He's a machine ...
* Troy Percival was also having a great month, but pitched a poor inning last night and took the loss ... Percival blamed his performance on the fact that he "didn't get the calls" against Hideki Matsui, who walked ... He did face a tight strike zone, but he also showed wildness throughout his inning; he didn't deserve the close pitches ...
* Bengie Molina is having a very fine season (insert "for a catcher" or "for Bengie Molina" here) ... He's at a more-than-acceptable 285/310/449 ...
* Shawn Wooten is just 1 for his last 10 as he continues to fill in for Brad Fullmer ...
* First baseman Robb Quinlan made his big-league debut this week, going 5 for 13 with four singles and a double ... The 26-year-old was the Halos' 10th-round pick in 1999 ...
* Sunday's opponent, Scot Shields, has been effective in his two starts, beating Boston in April and losing to the Jays in Doug Davis' debut in May ... His long relief has been essential for a club that's gotten such poor starting pitching ... In twelve long-relief appearances of 3 IP or more, Shields has allowed two runs twice, one run three times, and no runs an outstanding seven times ...
* Ex-Jays draftee Gary Glover got touched for a run in his Angels debut on Wednesday ...
* Fourth outfielder Eric Owens is hitting .130 in July ... Incredibly, the ostensible speedster hasn't stolen a base since May 4 ... He did make a great diving catch last night, though, on a Jorge Posada line drive. He easily doubled a stunned Matsui off first, as he had already rounded second ...
* Francisco "K-Rod" Rodriguez has been a quality reliever this season ... But he hasn't been inhuman like the K-Rod of 2002 ... He's allowed home runs in four of his last six appearances ...
* One of the season's huge surprises, Jeff DaVanon, is slumping -- just 2 for his last 17 (.118) ... He's still at an exceptional 310/365/518 on the season ... Problem is, he's no prospect; he'll be 30 this offseason ...
* Bill Stoneman said that the Angels would "probably" be active in the free agent market this offseason, after standing pat this past year ... Their top two targets: Japanese shortstop Kaz Matsui and arbitration-eligible Carlos Beltran ... The Angels may take runs at Kevin Millwood and/or Miguel Tejada ...
* Chris Bootcheck is pitching very well in AAA and should be promoted to the Angels rotation soon ...
* Troy Glaus is hitting off of batting tees, as he hopes to return soon ... This was his first trip to the DL ... Glaus has lost 10 pounds while on the DL: "I'm not doing anything so I can't crush pizza and burgers" ...
Probable Batting Orders
vs. LH
6 Eckstein
8 Erstad
9 Salmon
7 Anderson
DH Wooten
5 Spiezio/Gil
2 B Molina
3 Quinlan
4 Kennedy
vs. RH
6 Eckstein
8 Erstad
DH Salmon
7 Anderson
5 Spiezio
3 Quinlan/Wooten
9 DaVanon
2 B Molina
4 Kennedy
Pitching Probables
Friday: RH Ortiz vs. Halladay
Saturday: LH Washburn vs. Thurman
Sunday: RH Shields vs. Escobar
Bullpen Usage
Long: Glover R, Jones R
Short: Rodriguez R, Weber R
Setup: Donnelly R
Closer: Percival R
With Kevin Appier gone, the Angels are finally rid of their financial sinkhole created by the Mo Vaughn signing that seemed like a much better idea at the time. New owner Arte Moreno has apparently given the Angels' head office the go-ahead to spend this offseason, boosted by the team's championship-fueled attendance that has blown prior team records for fan support out of the water.
(Note to Wayne Huizenga: You see? The '98 Marlins didn't even have to be good. They just had to have the possibility of being good and you would have made money.)
On to the Advance Scout!
* A four-game sweep at the hands of Baltimore -- right after the break -- sent the champs reeling, as they've gone 3-12 in their last 15, getting knocked out of playoff contention in the process ... The Angels are not in rebuilding mode, however. Ben Weber said that only a dump of Troy Percival would signal that ...
* Adam Kennedy, who has complained about his role on the Angels of late, has at least played respectably of late, hitting .367 with 3 home runs in his last nine games ... He's taken an 80-point hit in slugging this year, compared to last ... Going forward, Kennedy will probably start more often against lefthanders, as the Angels try and figure out their middle infield for next season ...
* Tonight's opponent, Ramon Ortiz, got beat up on Sunday to the tune of six runs in 2 1/3 innings ... His four previous starts, however, were all solid ... The man once dubbed "Little Pedro" has only 66 strikeouts in nearly 128 innings ... Plus, he just turned 30 ...
* Scott Spiezio has been regrettably forced into third-base duty with the injury to Troy Glaus ... Maybe his defensive struggles have affected his confidence at the plate: He's a dreadful 0 for his last 18 ...
* But the alternative is Benji Gil, whose description as a "banjo hitter" would be an insult to banjo hitters ... He's 0 for his last 11 and checks in at 192/214/272 ... Does that make him a "ukulele hitter"? ...
* Prior to a scoreless outing on Tuesday, super-intense Ben Weber had been roughed up in four straight appearances, including three home runs allowed ...
* Tomorrow's opponent, Jarrod Washburn, bounced back from a ten-run shellacking in Arlington with a gem on Monday, in which he matched Barry Zito pitch-for-pitch ... He held the A's scoreless, allowing just four hits and a walk in seven innings, striking out seven ... He regrouped after a 29-pitch first inning on Monday ... Terrence Long said that Monday was the best he had seen Washburn -- and cited his ability to keep the ball down as the reason ... Still, he's given up four or more runs on eleven occasions this season ... After a reporter mentioned his 8-10 record and Barry Zito's 8-8 mark, Washburn snapped, "It just goes to show you how stupid won-lost records are. It's the most overrated stat in baseball" ... Monday was Washburn's first homerless game since May 29; he leads the majors with 27 homers allowed ...
* Tim Salmon missed the Yankees series with discomfort in his back, but will return tonight ... Salmon drove in the winning run with a clutch single on Monday night, his last appearance ... It was a big night for Fish on Monday, as he also made a nice sliding catch on an Adam Piatt liner, and recovered quickly enough to double off Long at first ...
* Garret Anderson hasn't missed a beat since the All-Star Game, as he's now at 315/349/588 and still playing a strong left field ...
* You don't expect much power from David Eckstein, but Barry Bonds' favourite player has nevertheless seen a 60-point dip in slugging from last season ... Darin Erstad's taken a 50-point hit ...
* Brendan Donnelly coughed up a lead last week against the A's, but his last two outings have been typically excellent ... Consider this: He's allowed runs in 2 of his last 24 appearances ... He's only allowed hits in 13 of those appearances -- only four of which are less than an inning in duration ... 7 walks, 36 Ks over that span, too. He's a machine ...
* Troy Percival was also having a great month, but pitched a poor inning last night and took the loss ... Percival blamed his performance on the fact that he "didn't get the calls" against Hideki Matsui, who walked ... He did face a tight strike zone, but he also showed wildness throughout his inning; he didn't deserve the close pitches ...
* Bengie Molina is having a very fine season (insert "for a catcher" or "for Bengie Molina" here) ... He's at a more-than-acceptable 285/310/449 ...
* Shawn Wooten is just 1 for his last 10 as he continues to fill in for Brad Fullmer ...
* First baseman Robb Quinlan made his big-league debut this week, going 5 for 13 with four singles and a double ... The 26-year-old was the Halos' 10th-round pick in 1999 ...
* Sunday's opponent, Scot Shields, has been effective in his two starts, beating Boston in April and losing to the Jays in Doug Davis' debut in May ... His long relief has been essential for a club that's gotten such poor starting pitching ... In twelve long-relief appearances of 3 IP or more, Shields has allowed two runs twice, one run three times, and no runs an outstanding seven times ...
* Ex-Jays draftee Gary Glover got touched for a run in his Angels debut on Wednesday ...
* Fourth outfielder Eric Owens is hitting .130 in July ... Incredibly, the ostensible speedster hasn't stolen a base since May 4 ... He did make a great diving catch last night, though, on a Jorge Posada line drive. He easily doubled a stunned Matsui off first, as he had already rounded second ...
* Francisco "K-Rod" Rodriguez has been a quality reliever this season ... But he hasn't been inhuman like the K-Rod of 2002 ... He's allowed home runs in four of his last six appearances ...
* One of the season's huge surprises, Jeff DaVanon, is slumping -- just 2 for his last 17 (.118) ... He's still at an exceptional 310/365/518 on the season ... Problem is, he's no prospect; he'll be 30 this offseason ...
* Bill Stoneman said that the Angels would "probably" be active in the free agent market this offseason, after standing pat this past year ... Their top two targets: Japanese shortstop Kaz Matsui and arbitration-eligible Carlos Beltran ... The Angels may take runs at Kevin Millwood and/or Miguel Tejada ...
* Chris Bootcheck is pitching very well in AAA and should be promoted to the Angels rotation soon ...
* Troy Glaus is hitting off of batting tees, as he hopes to return soon ... This was his first trip to the DL ... Glaus has lost 10 pounds while on the DL: "I'm not doing anything so I can't crush pizza and burgers" ...
Probable Batting Orders
vs. LH
6 Eckstein
8 Erstad
9 Salmon
7 Anderson
DH Wooten
5 Spiezio/Gil
2 B Molina
3 Quinlan
4 Kennedy
vs. RH
6 Eckstein
8 Erstad
DH Salmon
7 Anderson
5 Spiezio
3 Quinlan/Wooten
9 DaVanon
2 B Molina
4 Kennedy
Pitching Probables
Friday: RH Ortiz vs. Halladay
Saturday: LH Washburn vs. Thurman
Sunday: RH Shields vs. Escobar
Bullpen Usage
Long: Glover R, Jones R
Short: Rodriguez R, Weber R
Setup: Donnelly R
Closer: Percival R
