Saturday, June 30, 2007

All Star Team Predictions - Saturday June 30, 2007

Here goes nothing. I'm going to try and pick the American League All-Star Team. The real team will be announced tomorrow (Sunday) at 1:00pm on TBS. I'm picking 31 players, just like manager Jim Leyland of the Tigers. The 32nd player is voted in by the fans.

I'm planning on selecting 12 pitchers and 19 hitters and making sure that I have one player from each team.

Here's my game plan:
1. Figure out which teams will only send one player and pick that player.
2. Fill in the team based on statistics
3. Fill out the roster based on positional needs.
4. Check to see how I did.

1. Figure out which teams will only send one player and pick that player.

I think that I've narrowed it down to seven teams who will only have one player.

AL East

Boston & New York will have multiple players.

Toronto - The Blue Jays will probably only get one All Star and that will be between Roy Halladay and right fielder Alex Rios. Halladay has a shiny Win-Loss Record (9-2) but an average era (4.25). Rios leads the team in everything - avg .291, hr 17, rbi 45, runs 57, sb 7. Rios is one of the best young players in the game (only 26), but I think the choice will be Halladay due in part to his outstanding career.

Baltimore - With Miguel Tejada injured, the Orioles will be represented by second baseman Brian Roberts. Roberts is hitting .324 and has stolen 25 bags this year.

Tampa Bay - The Devil Rays will not be represented by a pitcher. That much is sure. There are three hitters which could be considered - 1B Carlos Pena, 2B BJ Upton and 3B Brendan Harris. This is a touch choice. Pena (.281 avg, 17 hr, 45 rbi) plays 1st Base and there are a few more deserving than he. Upton (.320 avg, 9 hr, 13 sb) is currently on a rehab assignment in single A. Harris (.320 avg, 8 hr, 34 rbi) might be the choice, but he is too young to be getting the benefit of the doubt. I'll regret it later, but I'm picking Pena.

Cleveland, Detroit and Minnesota - multiple players

Chicago - Wow are they having a bad year. Not one player is hitting above .270. Not one pitcher has above 5 wins. The White Sox lone representative will be relief pitcher Bobby Jenks (20 saves, 2.93 era).

Kansas City - The Royals are tough to pick. No starting pitcher has over 5 wins and their closer has only 10 saves. So, it looks like we need a hitter. The choice will be made between right fielder Mark Teahen (.289 avg, 5 hr, 42 rbi), center fielder David DeJesus (.280 avg, 58 runs) and catcher John Buck (.249 avg, 14 hr, 28 rbi). There really isn't an All-Star among this bunch, so I'm taking the Royals Vice President of Baseball Operations, George Brett and counting him as a designated hitter.

Angels & Seattle - multiple players

Oakland - Despite their winning record, the A's are a one horse town. And Dan Haren is that horse. He's 9-2 on the season with an era of 1.91.

Texas - Let me start by eliminating any pitchers. Well, despite my dislike of the Dodgers, I have to admit, Eric Gagne is having quite a season for the Rangers. In 23 appearances he is 2-0 with 8 saves and an era of 1.23. Impressive, but probably not enough for the All-Star team. Mark Teixeira is the man. He's hitting .302 with 12 home runs and 41 rbi.

After sorting through the seven teams with one selection only, here is my team.

SP TOR Roy Halladay
SP OAK Dan Haren
RP CWS Bobby Jenks

1B TB Carlos Pena
2B BAL Brian Roberts
1B TEX Mark Teixeira
DH KC George Brett (or Teahen or DeJesus)

2. Fill in the team based on statistics

Seven teams still need to be represented to fill the remaining 24 spots. To fill these spots, I'm now going to look at the statistical leaders from various categories.


AVG Top 5 (The Grand Daddy of player evaluation)
.375 M.Ordonez
.364 I.Suzuki
.340 D.Jeter
.339 O.Cabrera
.339 J.Posada

In - All 5.

OPS Top 5 (The new kid on the block)
1.127 A.Rodriguez
1.079 M.Ordonez
1.004 D.Ortiz
.988 V.Guerrero
.959 M.Teixeira

In - All 5. Would you rather have the top 5 AVG or top 5 OPS?

HR Top 5
28 A.Rodriguez
20 J.Morneau
18 G.Sheffield
17 T.Hunter
17 C.Pena
17 A.Rios

In - Right now, just the top 5. Sorry Rios. Morneau was the MVP last year so this year's .281 average is still enough to get him on the team. 60 rbis don't hurt either. Hunter is batting .308 and has 63 rbi.

RBI Top 5 (A category I don't like)
79 A.Rodriguez
71 V.Guerrero
68 M.Ordonez
63 V.Martinez
63 T.Hunter

In - All 5.

ERA Top 5
1.91 D.Haren
2.76 J.Santana
2.99 J.Lackey
3.07 J.Beckett
3.14 C.Gaudin

In - Top 4. Gaudin's win/loss record is only 6-3.


Wins Top 5 (A category I really don't like)
11-2 C.Sabathia
11-1 J.Beckett
10-5 J.Lackey
9-2 D.Haren
9-2 R.Halladay
9-3 J.Verlander
9-3 K.Escobar
9-5 D.Matsuzaka
9-6 J.Santana

In - All except Escobar. Call it the East Coast bias from a west coast fan. Or, the sad truth, there are more marketing opportunities in Boston and Japan compared to Venezuela and Los Angels of Anaheim.


Saves Top 5 (era)
23 F.Rodriguez (2.36)
23 J.Putz (0.95)
22 J.Borowski (5.70)
20 B.Jenks (2.93)
19 J.Papelbon (1.50)
19 T.Jones (6.03)

In - Those with respectable eras. Sorry Borowski and Jones.

After checking the major statistical categories, my All-Star team is taking shape. I have 12 pitchers which was my goal to start with. It could be argued that I have no love for the setup man, but neither do the All-Star managers usually. Plus, tell me who to replace on that pitching staff, it's stacked.

SP TOR Roy Halladay
SP OAK Dan Haren
SP MIN Johan Santana
SP LAA John Lackey
SP BOS Josh Beckett
SP CLE C.C. Sabathia
SP DET Justin Verlander
SP BOS Daisuke Matsuzaka
RP CWS Bobby Jenks
RP SEA J.J. Putz
RP LAA Francisco Rodriguez
RP BOS Jonathon Papelbon

C NYY Jorge Posada
C CLE Victor Martinez
1B TB Carlos Pena
1B TEX Mark Teixeira
1B MIN Justin Morneau
1B BOS David Ortiz
2B BAL Brian Roberts
SS NYY Derek Jeter
SS LAA Orlando Cabrera
3B NYY Alex Rodriguez
DH KC George Brett (or Teahen or DeJesus)

OF DET Magglio Ordonez
OF SEA Ichiro
OF LAA Vladimir Guerrero
OF DET Gary Sheffield
OF MIN Torii Hunter

I have 16 hitters and I need three more to complete my team. I wish I didn't have 4 first basemen, but they're all pretty deserving.

3. Fill out the roster based on positional needs.

I only have one second baseman and one third baseman, so there are two needs. I also only have 5 outfielders, so I could use at least one more.

Second Base - OK, I suppose the problem with my methodology so far, is that I could almost overlook players. Like Placido Polanco. He's not in the top 5 of anything but is having a really solid year with a .332 average and 55 runs scored. He might even be a better candidate to start than Brian Roberts who was picked earlier since I knew the Orioles would only get one selection.

Third Base - It could be between Brendan Harris (Tampa Bay), Mike Lowell (Boston) and Chone Figgins (Angels). I already excluded Harris due to his age. Figgins gets excluded due to the little known "Tie Goes To The Red Sox" rule. Also known as the "Tie Goes To The Yankee" rule. Also known as the "ESPN Controls Everything" rule.

Outfield - Usually the easiest position to select due to the big offensive numbers put up by outfielders. Can you believe there are only 6 AL outfielders hitting over .300? Ordonez, Ichiro, Reggie Willits, Guererro, Hunter and Kenny Lofton.

I'm a big OPS fan, so maybe that will sort my mess out. Ordonez, Guerrero, Sheffield and Hunter lead the way and they're already on the team. Next up are Curtis Granderson (.287, 10 hr, 57 runs), Ichiro, Grady Sizemore (.279, 13 hr, 66 runs), Manny Ramirez (.290, 11 hr, 43 rbi) and Rios (.291, 17hr, 57 runs). The stats narrow it down to Manny and Rios. And in a surprising repeal of the "Tie Goes To The Red Sox" rule, I'm picking Rios.

I have my 31 players (starters have an asterisk) and here they are...

SP TOR Roy Halladay
SP OAK Dan Haren*
SP MIN Johan Santana
SP LAA John Lackey
SP BOS Josh Beckett
SP CLE C.C. Sabathia
SP DET Justin Verlander
SP BOS Daisuke Matsuzaka
RP CWS Bobby Jenks
RP SEA J.J. Putz
RP LAA Francisco Rodriguez
RP BOS Jonathon Papelbon

C NYY Jorge Posada*
C CLE Victor Martinez
1B TB Carlos Pena
1B TEX Mark Teixeira
1B MIN Justin Morneau
1B BOS David Ortiz*
2B DET Placido Polanco*
2B BAL Brian Roberts
SS NYY Derek Jeter*
SS LAA Orlando Cabrera
3B NYY Alex Rodriguez*
3B BOS Mike Lowell
DH KC George Brett (or Teahen or DeJesus)

OF DET Magglio Ordonez*
OF SEA Ichiro*
OF LAA Vladimir Guerrero*
OF DET Gary Sheffield
OF MIN Torii Hunter
OF TOR Alex Rios

4. Check to see how I did.

My original plan was to go back and check to see if I made any errors. Well, I'm too tired to look at more stats. Where's my bench coach when I need him?

Friday, June 29, 2007

Angels Call Up Nick Gorneault

I just have to know what Shea Hillenbrand's reaction was when he heard that he was replaced by a guy who is hitting .220 this year at AAA.

That "guy" is Nick Gorneault and his call up came as a surprise to me. Why not call up Tommy Murphy or Terry Evans - Two guys who have Major League experience and are playing well at Salt Lake.

It's not that Gorneault (28 years old, 6'3" 220) doesn't have some talent, it's just that he's been having a lousy year so far. In 291 at-bats (78 games), he has 10 home runs and 29 runs batted in to go along with the .220 batting average and a .672 ops.

Gorneault was the Angels' 19th round pick in 2001 out of U Mass where he was an Atlantic 10 Conference All-Star his senior year. He made a quick ascent to AAA in late 2004 but has been stuck there for three years with his productivity going down each year.

In his first full season of AAA in 2005, Gorneault batted .293 with 26 home runs and 108 rbi. Last year he hit .283 with 15 home runs and 78 rbi while playing in 23 fewer games.

Gorneault had a good spring for the Angels this year and it looked like he might get the last outfield spot which eventually went to Reggie Willits. He saw action in 23 games and hit .395 (15-for-38) with one home run and an ops of 1.008.

Thursday, June 28, 2007

Down On The Farm 6/28/07 - Minor League All-Star Edition

This week, I'm taking a look at the Angels' minor league All-Stars.

AAA-Salt Lake
Terry Evans is the lone representative on the PCL All-Star Team for the Bees. He has been elected to start in the game which takes place on July 11th in Albuquerque, NM.

AA-Arkansas
Nick Adenhart was placed on the 7-day DL with soreness in his shoulder and missed the Texas League All-Star Game this past Tuesday. Representing the Travs were Adam Morrissey (2B), Freddy Sandoval (3B), Bobby Wilson (C), Sean Rodriguez (C), Jose Arredondo (P), Daniel Davidson (P) and Nick Green (P). The abundance of Travs is due to the fact that there are only 4 teams in each division of the Texas League. Wilson (2-for-2, 2 singles) and Morrissey (2-for-4, 1 home run, 1 single) each had two hits in the game which was won by the South 5-4.

A-Rancho Cucamonga
Four members of the Quakes played in last week's California League vs Carolina League All-Star Game. Shortstop Hainley Statia went 0-for-1 and right fielder Brad Coon went 0-for-2 with a walk and a run scored. Pitcher Brok Butcher pitched a 1-2-3 7th inning, but pitcher Darren O'Day gave up one run on two hits in 2/3 of an inning. After the game, the Angels promoted O'Day to AA Arkansas.

A-Cedar Rapids
The Kernels placed six players on the Midwest League West All Star Team. Outfielder Chris Pettit and DH Matt Sweeney both started the game. Sweeney was 1-for-2 with a solo shot to lead off the 2nd inning. Pettit went 0-for-4 with 2 strikeouts. Shortstop P.J. Phillips was 0-for-2 and catcher Hank Conger did not get in the game. Pitcher Doug Brandt faced two batters allowing one hit and pitcher Tim Schoeninger faced four batters, allowing one hit and striking out one.

The XM Satellite Radio All-Star Futures Game will be played Sunday, July 8 in San Francisco as part of the MLB All Star Festivities. The Angels have two players in the game both playing on the World Team. Pitcher Rich Thompson of AA Arkansas is from Hornsby Australia and Third Baseman Freddy Sandoval (also from AA Arkansas) hails from Tijuana, Mexico.


Player        Pos Age Lg  H/AB   AVG  OPS MISC
Terry Evans    OF 25 AAA 86/260 .331 .927 11-hr
Tommy Murphy   OF 27 AAA 26/97  .268 .765 5-3b
Matthew Brown  IF 24 AAA 63/241 .261 .760 6-hr
Brandon Wood   3B 22 AAA 70/263 .266 .842 13-hr
Jeff Mathis    C  24 AAA 58/242 .240 .665 5-hr
Sean Rodriguez SS 22 AA  71/278 .255 .782 10-hr
Bradley Coon   OF 24 A+  77/299 .258 .655 31-sb
Hank Conger    C  19 A   60/213 .282 .806 8-hr
Chris Pettit   OF 22 A   79/228 .346 1.008 9-hr

Player          Pos Age Lg   IP  W-L  ERA MISC
Joe Saunders     SP 25 AAA  60.1 4-5 5.02 62-k
Greg Jones       RP 30 AAA  36.0 3-0 4.75 26-k
Jason Bulger     RP 28 AAA  29.2 3-1 4.55 48-k
Kasey Olenberger SP 29 AAA 108.0 7-2 4.00 56-k
Marcus Gwyn      RP 30 AAA  37.0 1-0 1.95 10-sv
Nick Adenhart    SP 20 AA   83.2 6-2 3.44 61-k
Jose Arredondo   RP 23 AA   25.0 0-1 2.52 10-sv
Brok Butcher     SP 23 A+  100.1 5-5 2.15 3-cg
Stephen Marek    SP 23 A+   69.2 5-4 4.00 56-k
Darren O'Day     RP 24 A+   24.0 4-0 0.75 11-sv
Sean O'Sullivan  SP 19 A    75.1 4-5 2.99 56-k
Douglas Brandt   SP 22 A    61.1 3-2 2.35 64-k
Tim Schoeninger  SP 22 A    85.1 9-3 3.06 68k/6bb

Wednesday, June 27, 2007

Adios Hillenbrand

The Angels announced today that Shea Hillenbrand has been designated for assignment. The Angels now have 10 days to trade him or he will become a free agent.

He had recently voiced his displeasure with his role in an article in Wednesday's LA Times. (Link)

To be polite, Hillenbrand never found his groove with the Angels. He batted .254 with 3 home runs in over 200 plate appearances.

Coming off a career year, where he hit 21 home runs, Hillenbrand was signed to fill the void left by Juan Rivera's Winter Ball broken leg. The signing was never popular with Angels fans who were unaware at the time that their desire for a big bat would be filled (so far) by Casey Kotchman and Reggie Willits. The decision to sign Hillenbrand was defended in a post on May 5. (read here)

Hillenbrand continues the trend of the Angels acquiring off-season free agent busts. Jeff Weaver, Steve Finley, Edgardo Alfonso, etc.

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Ex-Angels Report 6/26/2007

Notes and Stats from former Angels in the Major Leagues
  • Troy Percival was called up by the St Louis Cardinals today. Percival made 6 appearances for AAA Memphis and had a 1.35 ERA in 6.2 innings. Percival last pitched in the majors on July 9, 2005.
  • Jeff Weaver is back. After starting with 6 straight losses and an era of 14.32, Weaver threw a complete game shut out against the Pirates last week. He followed it up with a win against the Red Sox last night, allowing just one earned run in 5.2 innings.
  • Orlando Palmeiro had four hits in a game for the first time since August 31, 2002.
  • J.C. Romero, who was let go by the Boston Red Sox was signed to a minor league contract with the Phillies.

EX-ANGEL         TEAM  AB   R HR RBI  BB  SO   AVG   OPS
Troy Glaus        TOR 181  34 11  35  30  41  .287  .939
Damion Easley     NYM 135  16  7  18  13  25  .252  .773
Scott Spiezio     STL 159  23  3  25  18  30  .277  .768
David Eckstein    STL 192  25  2  12   8   7  .313  .743
Bengie Molina     SF  242  17  7  38   8  26  .285  .739
Jose Guillen      SEA 251  35  9  40  18  53  .255  .739
Orlando Palmeiro  HOU  61   8  0   4   9   3  .279  .708
Jim Edmonds       STL 193  20  7  24  20  40  .238  .702
Darin Erstad      CWS 182  21  2  21  13  23  .264  .652
Alfredo Amezaga   FLA 219  24  1  18  18  26  .256  .646
Josh Paul         TB   49   4  0   5   4  14  .245  .547
Sal Fasano        TOR  45   5  1   4   2  19  .178  .540
Adam Kennedy      STL 189  15  0  12  16  18  .206  .526
Alberto Callaspo  ARI 126   9  0   5   8  11  .206  .511
Steve Finley      COL  94   9  1   2   8   4  .181  .490

EX-ANGEL         TEAM  G  W-L  SV   IP   BB   K   ERA   BAA
Kevin Gregg       FLA 37  0-2  14  42.2  19  41  2.74  .201
Russ Springer     STL 36  3-1   0  27.1  11  33  2.96  .204
Bobby Jenks       CWS 31  2-3  19  29.2  10  29  3.03  .229
Brendan Donnelly  BOS 27  2-1   0  20.2   5  15  3.05  .235
J.C. Romero       BOS 23  1-0   1  20.0  15  11  3.15  .308
Matt Wise         MIL 31  1-1   0  31.1   6  23  3.16  .224
Joel Peralta      KC  33  1-2   0  49.2  11  44  3.62  .247
Derrick Turnbow   MIL 38  1-3   1  34.2  15  43  3.89  .188
Jarrod Washburn   SEA 15  6-6   0  92.1  31  49  4.09  .268
Paul Byrd         CLE 13  6-3   0  79.2   5  46  4.74  .323
Jake Woods        SEA  3  0-0   0   8.2   5   1  5.19  .235
Aaron Sele        NYM 16  1-0   0  25.2  12  17  5.26  .346
Ramon Ortiz       MIN 16  3-4   0  72.1  12  30  5.47  .301
Scott Schoeneweis NYM 33  0-1   0  27.0  19  13  5.67  .275
Jeff Weaver       SEA 10  2-6   0  46.2  12  25  7.71  .353
Bret Prinz        CWS  4  0-0   0   3.1   2   1  8.10  .286

Let’s trade for Bonds.

Really lets look back over the last few years and see what’s he has done and then we can all come to the conclusion I have. Over the last three years Berry has had 12 hits in 2005, 99 hits in 2006 and 53 hits this year. Wow. Now let’s look at GA. He could not possibly hold a spoon to Bonds? We last three years he has 349 hits. Sure GA has only his 37 Home Runs but surely Bonds has hit a ton more…46? Ok I know Bonds can hit a lot more than GA but I would never trade even my immortal Andy Sheets whom is retired for Bonds and his inflated head and salary. But I would trade for Dunn or Griffey. And the way Griffey spoke about Seattle he would not mind coming back to the west coast.
But there is one thing we would be missing if we traded for an outfielder. Where would they play? Would it be better to trade for a Catcher or Third baseman? I would say yes. Someone from the infield would better suit our needs, which I am not really saying we have. I have come up with a list of players I think we should be after.
Alex Rodriguez (NyY- 3B,SS) He could become available if Yankees continue their awesome year. Long shot.
Miguel Cabrera (Fla - 3B) We would have to give up a lot but look what happened with the Ducks and their gamble. Long shot.
Troy Glaus (Tor - 3B,SS) Maybe the best fit out of them all.
Miguel Tejada (Bal - SS) I know he is on the DL but he is good.
Wild Card?
We don’t really need a trade in fact we will be having a few players coming off the DL soon and will have the problem of were to play them. And that is a problem that we can handle. Maybe we become sellers just because Rivera, GA and Dallas come back healthy and hammering. You ever hear of a player named Dontrelle Willis? Would make a nice addition.

Monday, June 25, 2007

Percival Nears Return With Cardinals


It has been over two weeks since the St Louis Cardinals signed Troy Percival to a minor league contract and 12 days since his first appearance with the AAA Memphis Redbirds.

In his six appearances with Memphis he has a 1.35era with 9 strikeouts in 6.2 innings of work.

When he signed with St. Louis, there was a clause in his contract that he could opt out of his contract if the Cardinals did not bring him up to the majors within 2 weeks. That time is quickly approaching and I expect to see Troy back with David Eckstein, Scott Spiezio, Adam Kennedy, Jim Edmonds and Russ Springer.

Here's a look at his six minor league appearnces:
Date   OPP  W L SV   IP  H ER BB SO
Jun 13 NAS  0 0  0  0.2  1  1  3  0
Jun 15 @IOW 0 0  0  1.0  1  0  0  2
Jun 17 @IOW 0 0  0  1.0  0  0  1  0
Jun 20 @ROU 0 0  0  2.0  0  0  1  2
Jun 22 @ROU 0 0  0  1.0  0  0  0  3
Jun 24 NOZ  0 0  0  1.0  2  0  0  2
Totals      0 0  0  6.2  4  1  5  9

Saturday, June 23, 2007

Reg-gie! Reg-gie! Reg-gie!

As an Angels fan, I'm not sure that I am supposed to put too much weight in to on base percentage, but I do. Here's a list of the major league leaders in on base percentage, followed by their salaries.

You might notice a few of the names on here. In fact they've all played in an All Star game. All of them, except for one.

RankOBPPlayerSalary
1.494 Barry Bonds$15,533,970
2.457Magglio Ordonez$13,200,000
3.449Reggie Willits$382,500
4.447Todd Helton$16,600,000
5.442David Ortiz$13,250,000
6.432Alex Rodriguez$22,708,525
7.430Vladimir Guerrero$14,500,000
8.427Derrek Lee$13,250,000
9.421Derek Jeter$21,600,000

Need I say more?

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Down On The Farm 6/20/2007

AAA- Salt Lake
The Bees are currently in 1st place of the Pacific Northern Division with a record of 37-34.  They are one game ahead of Colorado Springs.  The Bees bats have really been struggling this year.  Brandon Wood is hitting just .246 and has more strikeouts than hits.  Jeff Mathis is batting a woeful .217 with an equally sad ops of .580.  Kendry Morales is hitting .288, but has only 8 extra base hits- 7 doubles and 1 home run.

AA- Arkansas
The Travelers are 31-39 and are 6.5 games behind Springfield for the North Division lead.  The Travs are first in the league in era (3.90), but last in batting average (.249).

A-Rancho Cucamonga
The Quakes are 33-37 and 6 games out of 1st place.  Like Arkansas, the Quakes are last in the league in batting with an average of .236.

A-Cedar Rapids
Pitcher Tim Schoeninger won his 9th game last week.  In 12 starts, Schoeninger is 9-2.  He has thrown 81 innings and struck out 64 batters while walking just six.

Player        Pos Age Lg  H/AB   AVG  OPS MISC
Tommy Murphy   OF 27 AAA 26/97  .268 .765 5-3b
Kendry Morales 1B 23 AAA 40/139 .288 .682 17-rbi
Matthew Brown  IF 24 AAA 54/213 .254 .729 24-bb
Brandon Wood   3B 22 AAA 55/224 .246 .779 67-k
Jeff Mathis    C  24 AAA 45/207 .217 .580 40-k
Sean Rodriguez SS 22 AA  65/254 .256 .777 65-k
Bradley Coon   OF 24 A+  75/272 .276 .694 28-sb
Hank Conger    C  19 A   60/213 .282 .806 8-hr
Chris Pettit   OF 22 A   79/228 .346 1.008 9-hr

Player          Pos Age Lg  IP  W-L  ERA MISC
Joe Saunders     SP 25 AAA 60.1 3-5 5.22 54-k
Greg Jones       RP 30 AAA 30.0 3-0 4.80 1.70-whip
Jason Bulger     RP 28 AAA 27.1 3-1 2.96 44-k
Kasey Olenberger SP 29 AAA 94.0 6-2 3.93 1.23-whip
Marcus Gwyn      RP 30 AAA 34.0 1-0 1.85 8-sv
Nick Adenhart    SP 20 AA  83.2 6-2 3.44 61-k
Jose Arredondo   RP 23 AA  25.0 0-1 2.52 10-sv
Brok Butcher     SP 23 A+  94.1 4-5 2.10 3-cg
Stephen Marek    SP 23 A+  63.2 4-4 4.10 1.37-whip
Sean O'Sullivan  SP 19 A   67.0 4-4 2.82 1.31-whip
Douglas Brandt   SP 22 A   57.2 3-2 2.18 60-k
Tim Schoeninger  SP 22 A   81.0 9-2 2.67 6-bb

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Ex-Angels Report 6/19/07

Notes and Stats from former Angels in the Major Leagues
  • Troy Percival was signed to a minor league contract by the St Louis Cardinals.  He has pitched in 3 games and given up 1 earned run in 2.2 innings for the Memphis Redbirds.  He has struggled with control, walking 4 batters so far.
  • Scott Spiezio pitched the 9th inning in the Cardinals 14-3 loss to the A's last Friday. He didn't allow a hit, but walked one batter.  It was the first time he has pitched since high school.
  • David Eckstein went on the 15 day dl with a lower back strain.  Eckstein has been on fire the past month, raising his average from .207 to .313.
  • Jim Edmonds also went on the DL for the Cardinals this week with a pinched nerve in his lower back.
  • Brendan Donnelly went on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right forearm on Sunday.
  • J.C. Romero was released by the Red Sox, after being designated for assignment.
  • Jake Woods was sent back to AAA Tacoma by the Seattle Mariners.  Woods appeared in one relief appearance in his current major league stint retiring all three batters he faced.
  • Jarrod Washburn is having a rough June. In four starts he is 0-2 with a 8.83 era.

EX-ANGEL         TEAM  AB   R HR RBI  BB  SO   AVG   OPS
Troy Glaus        TOR 160  29 11  32  26  37  .294  .973
Damion Easley     NYM 123  16  7  16  12  22  .260  .802
Scott Spiezio     STL 142  20  3  23  13  25  .282  .784
Bengie Molina     SF  224  16  6  34   8  25  .295  .758
Jose Guillen      SEA 235  35  9  40  17  47  .260  .756
David Eckstein    STL 192  25  2  12   8   7  .313  .743
Jim Edmonds       STL 193  20  7  24  20  40  .238  .702
Darin Erstad      CWS 182  21  2  21  13  23  .264  .652
Alfredo Amezaga   FLA 201  21  1  16  18  24  .254  .649
Josh Paul         TB   49   4  0   5   4  14  .245  .547
Orlando Palmeiro  HOU  52   7  0   3   7   3  .212  .547
Adam Kennedy      STL 175  14  0  12  16  14  .211  .544
Sal Fasano        TOR  45   5  1   4   2  19  .178  .540
Alberto Callaspo  ARI 126   9  0   5   8  11  .206  .511
Steve Finley      COL  94   9  1   2   8   4  .181  .490

EX-ANGEL         TEAM  G  W-L  SV   IP   BB   K   ERA   BAA
Bobby Jenks       CWS 28  2-2  18  25.1   9  24  2.49  .216
Kevin Gregg       FLA 34  0-2  11  39.0  16  37  2.77  .211
Russ Springer     STL 33  3-0   0  25.2  11  31  2.81  .196
Brendan Donnelly  BOS 27  2-1   0  20.2   5  15  3.05  .235
J.C. Romero       BOS 23  1-0   1  20.0  15  11  3.15  .308
Matt Wise         MIL 29  1-1   0  29.2   6  20  3.34  .229
Derrick Turnbow   MIL 34  1-3   1  31.1  13  40  3.73  .191
Joel Peralta      KC  30  1-2   0  44.0  11  37  3.89  .253
Jarrod Washburn   SEA 14  5-6   0  84.1  28  44  4.38  .269
Paul Byrd         CLE 12  6-3   0  73.0   4  42  4.81  .327
Jake Woods        SEA  3  0-0   0   8.2   5   1  5.19  .235
Aaron Sele        NYM 15  1-0   0  24.0  11  17  5.25  .337
Ramon Ortiz       MIN 14  3-4   0  69.1  12  29  5.71  .300
Scott Schoeneweis NYM 30  0-1   0  24.1  19  12  6.29  .283
Bret Prinz        CWS  4  0-0   0   3.1   2   1  8.10  .286
Jeff Weaver       SEA  8  0-6   0  32.0   8  17 10.97  .413

Monday, June 18, 2007

Figgins Has Historical Game

Chone Figgins tied a club record with six hits in tonight's game including a 9th inning, 2-out walk-off double.

Garret Anderson is the only other Angel to have 6 hits in one game. He did it September 27, 1996 at Texas (Box Score) in the Angels 4-3, 15-inning victory.

Here's a look at his six at-bats.

1st inning - With one out in the bottom of the 1st, Figgins singles and goes to third on an Orlando Cabrera single. He is stranded at third as Vladimir Guerrero and Gary Matthews Jr both fly out.

2nd inning - Shea Hillenbrand is at third and Reggie Willits is at first with two outs. Figgins lines a single just out of the reach of the Astros shortstop, Mark Loretta. Hillenbrand scores and Willits advances to third. Cabrera then lined out to end the inning.

4th inning - With one out and the bases empty, Figgins singles to right field. He then scores on an Orlando Cabrera double.

6th inning - The bases are empty with two outs and Figgins doubles to right center. He is stranded at second as Cabrera flies out.

7th inning - With two outs and Erick Aybar on third base representing the tying run, Figgins bounces a big chopper between the pitcher and 1st baseman. He beats it out for an infield single.

9th inning - After making a nice grab of a line drive in the top half of the inning to keep the game tied at nine, Figgins came up with Willits on first and two outs. Surprisingly, Willits did not steal second and Figgins hit a 1-1 pitch into the right field corner for a double which scored Willits from first. Just another Halo victory 10-9.

The six hits helped raise Chone's average from .258 to .284.

Terry Evans called up

The Angels called up outfielder Terry Evans from AAA Salt Lake City to fill the spot vacated by Garret Anderson who went on the 15-day DL.

Evans was acquired by the Angels last season in a trade with the St. Louis Cardinals for Jeff Weaver. This will be Evans first trip to the show.

Evans was hitting .327 for Salt Lake with 10 home runs and 45 rbi. In 20 spring training at-bats with the Angels, Evans went 5 for 20 (.250) with 3 doubles.

Evans is 25 years of age and plays right field and center field. He is tall and lanky (6'3" 205) with surprisingly good power when looking at his frame. He also has excellent speed. He stole 37 bases last year and was only caught 8 times.

Evans is a late bloomer. He was drafted in the 47th round of the 2001 amateur draft by the Cardinals after playing two years at Middle Georgia College. By the start of his 5th professional season (2006), he was still in single A with the Palm Beach Cardinals. After hitting 15 home runs in his first 60 games, he was promoted to AA Springfield where he hit 7 more home runs in 21 games. He was then traded to the Angels and finished out the year at AA Arkansas. He totaled 33 home runs for the year and 87 rbi.

He probably won't see much action with the Angels, but the Halos are currently lacking outfielders so he may seem time as a pinch hitter and pinch runner.

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Ex-Angels Report 6/12/07

Notes and stats from former Angel players in the Major Leagues.

  • Coming off a month long stint on the disabled list, Jeff Weaver came back with a vengeance. Weaver went 4 innings allowing one run on two hits. It was Weaver's 7th start of the year and the first time he did not receive a loss. Weaver left the game with lower back stiffness.
  • Jake Woods was recalled to the Seattle Mariners from AAA Tacoma. Woods had a 7.41 ERA in nine starts and one relief appearance in AAA.
  • David Eckstein has raised his average to .301. Eckstein was hitting just .207 on May 12 when he started his tear - 36-for-75 (.480).
  • Troy Glaus is riding a 7-game hitting streak. He had 2 home runs on Saturday against the Dodgers and has raised his average to .292.
  • Bret Prinz was called up to the White Sox last week and has given up one earned run in each of his three relief appearances.
  • The Boston Red Sox designated J.C. Romero for assignment. The roster move was needed as Mike Timlin was returning from an injury. The Red Sox have 10 days to trade or release Romero.
  • Kevin Gregg is Florida's closer and on Saturday he pitched like a veteran closer. Coming in with the Marlins losing, Gregg allowed 3 runs in the 9th inning. A word of advice to all managers, do not use your closer when your team is trailing or tied.
EX-ANGEL         TEAM  AB   R HR RBI  BB  SO   AVG   OPS
Troy Glaus        TOR 144  27 10  28  22  33  .292  .946
Damion Easley     NYM 121  16  7  16  12  20  .264  .814
Bengie Molina     SF  204  16  6  33   8  24  .309  .802
Jose Guillen      SEA 214  32  7  38  14  42  .266  .755
David Eckstein    STL 186  23  2  12   8   6  .301  .719
Jim Edmonds       STL 181  19  7  24  18  38  .243  .719
Scott Spiezio     STL 122  15  2  20   9  22  .262  .695
Darin Erstad      CWS 182  21  2  21  13  23  .264  .652
Alfredo Amezaga   FLA 178  18  1  14  17  20  .253  .645
Adam Kennedy      STL 160  13  0  11  15  13  .219  .565
Orlando Palmeiro  HOU  47   6  0   2   7   3  .213  .561
Sal Fasano        TOR  44   5  1   4   2  18  .182  .552
Josh Paul         TB   49   4  0   5   4  14  .245  .547
Alberto Callaspo  ARI 125   9  0   5   8  11  .208  .515
Steve Finley      COL  94   9  1   2   8   4  .181  .490

EX-ANGEL         TEAM  G  W-L  SV   IP   BB   K   ERA   BAA
Russ Springer     STL 28  1-0   0  21.0   9  22  2.57  .187
Bobby Jenks       CWS 26  2-2  17  24.1   9  23  2.59  .212
Kevin Gregg       FLA 32  0-2   9  37.0  16  37  2.68  .207
Brendan Donnelly  BOS 27  2-1   0  20.2   5  15  3.05  .235
J.C. Romero       BOS 23  1-0   1  20.0  15  11  3.15  .308
Matt Wise         MIL 27  1-1   0  28.0   6  19  3.21  .210
Joel Peralta      KC  28  1-2   0  39.2  10  34  3.86  .253
Jarrod Washburn   SEA 12  5-5   0  75.1  20  40  3.94  .265
Derrick Turnbow   MIL 30  1-3   1  27.1  12  35  4.28  .206
Paul Byrd         CLE 11  6-2   0  68.0   4  35  4.50  .321
Aaron Sele        NYM 14  1-0   0  23.0  10  17  5.09  .333
Ramon Ortiz       MIN 13  3-4   0  65.0  12  28  5.40  .292
Jake Woods        SEA  2  0-0   0   7.2   5   1  5.87  .258
Scott Schoeneweis NYM 27  0-1   0  21.2  19   9  7.06  .280
Jeff Weaver       SEA  7  0-6   0  26.0   7  15 12.46  .423
Bret Prinz        CWS  3  0-0   0   1.1   2   1 20.25  .500

Sunday, June 10, 2007

Strange Things Are Afoot At The Big A

This has been a great week for the Angels. And a bit strange. Runs in bunches and a win from the un-likeliest of pitchers.

Sunday. Vladimir Guerrero hits a walk-off 2-run home run in the bottom of the 9th inning to give the Angels a 4-3 victory over the Baltimore Orioles. It was the Angels' first walk-off home run since September 5th of last season.

Monday. The Angels (who have been poor hitters in the late innings) score 8 runs in the 8th inning. The Angels also have 22 hits, their most since May of 2002.

Tuesday. The Angels beat the Twins 5-1. Nothing strange.

Wednesday. John Lackey gives up 4 earned runs and loses to the Minnesota Twins 8-5.

Thursday was an off day.

Friday. The Angels again have a big (late) inning, putting a six spot on the St. Louis Cardinals in the 7th inning. They connect for 17 hits and win 10-6 despite the Cards scoring in 6 different innings.

Saturday. Ervin Santana gets a road win.

For the week, the Halos went 5-1. They had 10 or more hits in 5 of their 6 games and 17 or more hits in half of their games.

If anybody knows how to bottle this up and save it for later in the year, please tell me. Or at least somebody on the Angels.

Tuesday, June 5, 2007

Where have the "fans" gone?

The Angels are playing so well, that it seems like the fans have forgotten their "national past time" - complaining.

Where are the Stoneman, Hatcher, Butcher haters?

I've listened to the radio and read the Reigster and I'm not sure what has happened.

Stoneman still hasn't traded for a big bat. He's still the guy to blame for signing Gary Matthews Jr. Please, complain.

Mickey Hatcher hasn't changed his approach as a hitting coach. Casey Kotchman is only hitting .309. He'd be an all-star if it weren't for Hatcher. Hatcher is killing Reggie Willits. Please, complain.

Imagine how much better the Angels pitching staff would be without Mike Butcher as pitching coach. C'mon, John Lackey has lost 3 games. All Mike Butcher's fault. The same can be said for Kelvim Escobar and his 3 losses. Please, complain.

Don't you wish the Angels still had Erstad? Glaus? Eckstein? Kennedy? Molina? Spiezio? Please, complain.

In any case, please complain.

Monday, June 4, 2007

Ex-Angels Report 6/4/07

Stats & Notes from former Angels in the Major Leagues.
  • Darin Erstad had a 13-game hitting streak end Wednesday and then the following day sprained his ankle. He was put on the 15-day disabled list.
  • Adam Kennedy continues to struggle. His batting average is currently .224 and he is hitting just .103 against lefties (3/29).
  • David Eckstein has hit safely in 12 of his past 13 games. During that stretch he has 4 3-hit games and has raised his average from .207 to .284.
  • After hitting just one home run in his first 37 games, Jim Edmonds has hit 5 home runs (All 5 solo shots) in his past 10 games.
  • Bengie Molina was a triple short of the cycle yesterday against the Phillies. Molina has 4 career triples including one last month.
  • Josh Paul was moved to the 60-Day DL from the 15-Day DL. Paul suffered a left elbow sprain last week..
  • Kevin Gregg is still the Florida Marlins closer. Last week the Marlins acquired Armando Benitez from the Giants and have said that Benitez (who was closing with the Giants) will set up Gregg.
  • Jeff Weaver will start Saturday against San Diego after spending 3 weeks on the DL with shoulder tendinitis.
  • Paul Byrd has won his past 4 starts and is 6-1 on the season with a 3.57 era.
  • In his first relief appearance in 3 years, Ramon Ortiz pitched a perfect 9th inning for Minnesota last Tuesday.
  • In Bobby Jenks' past 9 appearances (8.1 innings) he has not allowed a run and has given up only 2 hits.
EX-ANGEL         TEAM  AB   R HR RBI  BB  SO   AVG   OPS
Troy Glaus        TOR 118  22  8  24  18  27  .263  .884
Bengie Molina     SF  177  14  6  33   6  23  .311  .821
Jose Guillen      SEA 181  27  7  36  12  33  .282  .808
Damion Easley     NYM 113  16  7  15  10  19  .248  .778
Scott Spiezio     STL 111  14  1  17   9  20  .279  .717
Jim Edmonds       STL 159  18  6  20  16  32  .239  .697
David Eckstein    STL 162  18  2  10   8   6  .284  .691
Darin Erstad      CWS 182  21  2  21  13  23  .264  .652
Alfredo Amezaga   FLA 151  14  1  12  13  16  .252  .643
Adam Kennedy      STL 147  13  0  11  13  11  .224  .578
Josh Paul         TB   49   4  0   5   4  14  .245  .547
Sal Fasano        TOR  36   4  1   3   2  16  .167  .536
Alberto Callaspo  ARI 117   9  0   5   8  10  .214  .533
Orlando Palmeiro  HOU  40   5  0   2   7   2  .175  .513
Steve Finley      COL  94   9  1   2   8   4  .181  .490

EX-ANGEL         TEAM  G  W-L  SV   IP   BB   K   ERA   BAA
Kevin Gregg       FLA 28  0-2   7  32.2  13  35  1.93  .197
Bobby Jenks       CWS 22  2-1  15  21.0   9  21  2.57  .192
Russ Springer     STL 25  1-0   0  18.0   8  19  3.00  .175
Matt Wise         MIL 24  1-1   0  22.1   6  13  3.22  .213
J.C. Romero       BOS 22  1-0   1  18.2  13  10  3.38  .311
Jarrod Washburn   SEA 11  5-4   0  70.2  20  34  3.57  .254
Paul Byrd         CLE  9  6-1   0  58.0   3  31  3.57  .300
Brendan Donnelly  BOS 24  2-1   0  17.1   5  12  3.63  .246
Joel Peralta      KC  25  1-2   0  35.0   9  29  4.37  .267
Derrick Turnbow   MIL 27  1-3   1  24.2  11  32  4.38  .207
Aaron Sele        NYM 12  1-0   0  19.2  10  15  5.03  .329
Ramon Ortiz       MIN 11  3-4   0  57.1  11  24  5.65  .289
Jake Woods        SEA  2  0-0   0   7.2   5   1  5.87  .258
Scott Schoeneweis NYM 23  0-0   0  19.2  17   9  5.95  .257
Jeff Weaver       SEA  6  0-6   0  22.0   7  12 14.32  .459

Sunday, June 3, 2007

I Thought I Saw A Puddycat

Actually, I thought I saw an Angels come-from-behind win today.

I don't believe it, but the box score seems to confer my suspicions.

It looks like Vladimir Guerrero hit a walk-off home run.

I'm in shock and I still don't believe it.

OK, what's really shocking, is Garret Anderson. In the picture of the team piling on Vladimir at home plate, there's GA smiling and joining in on the fun.

Shocking!

Saturday, June 2, 2007

Down On The Farm 6/2/07

Here's a look at the Angels' Minor League Teams and top prospects.

AAA- Salt Lake
The Bees have a record of 30-25 and are in first place of the PCL Pacific North Division. Relief pitcher Marcus Gwyn recorded 3 saves this week while lowering his era to 1.50. Gwyn is in his 7th year of professional baseball without having played in the majors. Tommy Murphy has hit safely (9-for-26) in all 6 games he has played in since being sent down last week.

AA- Arkansas
The Travelers are in last place of the Texas League North Division with a record of 21-32. Nick Adenhart had one start this week allowing 2 earned runs in 7 2/3 innings for a no decision.

A- Rancho Cucamonga
The Quakes are 27-28, 2.5 games out of first place. Garret Anderson played three games for the Quakes this week. He went 2-for-9 with one walk and one rbi. Justin Speier also pitched one inning on a rehab assignment. Pitcher Brok Butcher had two quality starts but lost both games 3-2 and 2-1.
Player        Pos Age Lg  H/AB  AVG  OPS MISC
Nathan Haynes  OF 27 Maj
Tommy Murphy   OF 27 AAA 17/51  .333 .846 5-sb
Kendry Morales 1B 23 AAA 27/94  .287 .674 6-xbh
Terry Evans    OF 25 AAA 66/205 .322 .879 51-k
Matthew Brown  IF 24 AAA 46/165 .279 .800 3-hr
Brandon Wood   3B 22 AAA 40/170 .235 .753 7-hr
Jeff Mathis    C  24 AAA 39/163 .239 .645 29-k
Sean Rodriguez SS 22 AA  46/185 .249 .753 20-bb
Bradley Coon   OF 24 A+  62/210 .295 .734 25-sb
Hank Conger    C  19 A   46/164 .280 .812 7-hr
Chris Pettit   OF 22 A   63/174 .362 1.029 6-hr

Player          Pos Age Lg  IP  W-L  ERA MISC
Joe Saunders     SP 25 Maj
Greg Jones       RP 30 AAA 23.1 3-0 5.40 1.89-whip
Jason Bulger     RP 28 AAA 22.1 3-1 2.42 32-k
Kasey Olenberger SP 29 AAA 69.2 6-1 3.49 41-k
Marcus Gwyn      RP 30 AAA 27.2 0-0 1.30 7-sv
Nick Adenhart    SP 20 AA  57.2 3-2 3.43 43-k
Jose Arredondo   RP 23 AA  23.1 0-1 2.70 9-sv
Brok Butcher     SP 23 A+  75.0 3-4 1.80 46-k
Stephen Marek    SP 23 A+  49.2 3-3 3.62 1.31-whip
Sean O'Sullivan  SP 19 A   62.2 4-3 2.44 1.31-whip
Douglas Brandt   SP 22 A   46.0 3-1 1.17 48-k

Friday, June 1, 2007

May Statistical Review

The Angels had a great month going 18-7. Here are the Angels Team Leaders in May (April stats in parenthesis)

AVG (Nathan Haynes was 1-for-1, 1.000 and Robb Quinlan 5-for-11, .538)
.372 Orlando Cabrera (.260)
.363 Casey Kotchman (.265)
.350 Vladimir Guerrero (.366)

OPS
1.020 Vladimir Guerrero (1.165)
1.010 Casey Kotchman (.783)
.909 Orlando Cabrera (.716)

HR
5 Gary Matthews Jr (2)
4 Vladimir Guerrero (7)
4 Mike Napoli (1)

RBI
23 Vladimir Guerrero (23)
22 Gary Matthews Jr (9)
16 Orlando Cabrera (10)
16 Casey Kotchman (10)

Runs
23 Reggie Willits (3)
18 Orlando Cabrera (18)
18 Vladimir Guerrero (14)

Walks
19 Vladimir Guerrero (14)
19 Reggie Willits (4)
10 Casey Kotchman (7)

SB
9 Reggie Willits (2)
5 Chone Figgins (2)
3 Orlando Cabrera (3)

Wins
4 John Lackey (4)
4 Kelvim Escobar (2)
3 Jered Weaver (1)
3 Bartolo Colon (2)

Strikeouts
33 Jered Weaver (11)
30 Kelvim Escobar (18)
28 Ervin Santana (20)

ERA
1.46 Francisco Rodriguez (2.92)
1.69 Scott Shields (4.26)
1.98 Dustin Moseley (1.17)

Innings Pitched
41.1 Kelvim Escobar (24.2)
36.0 Ervin Santana (28.0)
35.2 Bartolo Colon (14.0)

Games
14 Scott Shields (12)
12 Francisco Rodriguez (12)
10 Darren Oliver (9)