Hamilton finally showing signs at half way point

     It's been a long time coming. However this might be the turning point for the highly paid superstar.  The sweep of the Houston Astros comes right after  he sweep of the Detroit Tigers. A 6-0 week on the road is a tremendous step for this Angels club. The next 80 games will ride heavily on the bats of Albert Pujols and Josh Hamilton. Albert has been banged up through the season with injuries to his knee and heal. Chances are he will remain the DH for most of the second half. He will never be the Albert Pujols of old who earned that $250 million dollar contract. He is still a very dangerous hitter when it comes to putting balls out of the yard. Josh Hamilton on the other hand has made Angel fans very impatient.

     Hitting just above the Mendoza Line for the season, a plethora of swings and misses has given him the worst strikeout per at-bat ratio in his career. What caused this? Hamilton has never faired well in his career against southpaws and he swings at a lot of pitches out of the zone. He has also tried to pull the ball unnaturally and uncharacteristically. This will account for even more wiffs and dinky roll overs. So what was so different in this series that made him "turn the corner?" Hitting .420 during the 6 win road trip, Josh had multiple hits to left field, going the opposite way, including two doubles in Houston. A hitter is at their best when they can see a pitch a long time and put a nice smooth swing on a ball to wherever it is pitched. Best example would be Miguel Cabrera of course. Simple, balanced, hit it where its pitched approach. To go along with his improved approach and seeing more pitches, Josh robbed a home run Saturday and circled the bases Sunday going all 360 feet on his double to left center and scoring on a throwing error. Hamilton crossed home plate after almost stumbling around 3rd with a big smile on his face.
     Hitting for Hamilton could really bring the whole offense together because right now, he's what's missing. How could it be that impacting you ask? It will provide more protection to the middle of the lineup. Pujols and Trumbo are both hitting right around .250. Watch those averages slowly improve if this Hamilton prediction is right.

    Peter Bourjos will be out yet again after getting hit on the wrist Saturday afternoon. A fractured right wrist will but Bourjos back on the DL again this season. Bourjos is having his best season statistically with a .326 average and a .385 OBP. JB Shuck will continue to be in the lineup, hitting just under .300.

  Eric Aybar continues to hit as he led the AL in multi hit games in June with 13. Trout is just behind him with 11.

Angels streak equals hope

An offensive outburst against the Seattle Mariners was exactly what the doctor ordered. A cycle by Trout seemed evitable with his speed, hitting ability, and power. It’s a rare feat that most people think he will achieve multiple times throughout his career.  He became one of the youngest players in history to do it. The last person his age to hit for the cycle was Alex Rodriguez when A-Rod was with Seattle. Trout is back to hitting right around .300. It wasn’t all Trout though, as the Angels scored 19 runs in two games versus Seattle.  The bats continued on the short road trip to Kansas City.

The bats continued to stay hot with 22 runs in the four game sweep.  Josh Hamilton had a pair of home runs and JB Shuck has continued to be a pleasant surprise, getting two RBI’s on Sunday and hitting over .350 during the winning streak. What needs to be mentioned more than the offense is the pitching. The hitters get paid the big bucks, and it was a matter of time before they started whacking the ball all around the yard.  The pitching has been the question, especially without Jered Weaver. Of the 14 pitchers who have pitched during the streak, only one has an ERA above 3.00 (Frieri).  The Halo hurlers have all stepped up from Wilson to Vargas to even Blanton who got his first win. However the most crucial has been spot starter Jerome Williams. In 14 innings, Williams has 10 strikeouts and has only given up two runs in two starts.

During the Angels winning streak, the Oakland athletics have won 9/10 but Texas has been middle of the road. Still way back in the standings, the Angels have shown fans life of winning ways. The Dodgers on the other side of town are still scratching their heads. This four game week series will be interesting as fans clash for bragging rights. Will the Dodgers be able to break the Angels streak, and then can they take more than one out of four? Dodger fans are thirsty for the streak that the Angels are on. Can they find the same watering hole? Or will the Dodgers winning column stay dry?

Angels have now become a dangerous team with Trout leading the way. The rest of the team needs to keep pulling their weight. It looks like they have figured it out for now.

Shuck & Harris filling in just fine

In order for a struggling team of all-stars to stay afloat, role players need to make strong contributions to the ball club. Both JB Shuck and Brendan Harris were two guys who came into the season with minimal responsibility. Only four active players on the Angels roster are hitting over .280, and they both have their name in that pot. Shuck is filling in for the injured Peter Borjous in left field while Harris replaces Aybar at short. They also hit back to back in the lineup in the nine and one spots, and both contributing to the win over the White Sox Friday night with each getting RBI's.

So who are these guys and where did they come from? As of right now, they look like small gifts from heaven for the Angels, as they continue to put in their two cents each night. JB Shuck came up for the first time with Houston for 37 games in 2011 and didn't get a chance in 2012. He is a career 300 hitter in the minors who held his own with a .272 average in those games with Houston. Born and raised in Ohio, Shuck did see the field a few innings in the Angels opener at Cincinnati. Shuck does a good job of putting the ball in play and has a strikeout to walk ratio of 1:1. Shuck has also been solid in the outfield with 2 assists and no errors

Brendan Harris made his major league debut in 2005 with Washington and was also a two-year starter for the Minnesota Twins where he hit .262 in 848 at-bats. After struggling in 2010, Harris was sent back down to the minors, finding his grove again in 2012 where he hit 317 in 106 games in AAA. Harris beat out Andrew Romine for the back-up middle infielder position during the spring. Romine has been up and down with the Angels since 2010 and has continued to struggle at the plate this season. Although Harris might not have the strikeout to walk ratio that Shuck has, Harris is hitting .288 in 66 at-bats with 3 home runs, which is right there with other Angels who have close to 100 at-bats.

These two guys have come in nicely for teammates who had to hit the shelf. Angel fans will be happy to see Aybar and Borjous return healthy. When they do, you can feel comfortable that if a player goes down again, there's someone to fill in right behind them and give the team 110%.

Banged up in more ways than one

The list of injuries so far for the Angels in the first month of the season is atroscious. Starters Weaver, Aybar, Pujols, Callaspo, and now Borjous have all missed time for one thing or another. Pujols continues to show up in the lineup but we all know that heel has yet to heal. Even with all these players missing time, Trout, Hamilton, and Trumbo are all still healthy and in the lineup. You would have to think it's still one of the most powerful lineups in the bigs. Additionally, Pujols is still hitting 3rd.

If the big hitters in the lineup were down and on the DL, it would be up to the scrappy end of the lineup to step up and provide the offense to support the pitching staff. But what do you say if it is the scrappy guys in the lineup who are out? Yes, they provide something the backups can't, but all four of your 30+ home run hitters are still going back to back to back to back in the lineup every day. In the three losses to Seattle, the Angels combined for a total of three runs. I can go into the percentages of RISP, strikeouts-to-walks, etc, but the one stat that made me shake my head was on Sunday, when every single man in the Angels lineup had strucken out. Not one player who came to the plate that did can not say they did not strike out. The Angels have always had an aggressive approach, but it's starting to get rediculous. Only three players have more than 10 walks in roughly 100 at-bats while five of them have more than 20 strikeouts. If you like math, go to the stat page and do the numbers for each starter. What are they on pace for if they get 550 at-bats? Here's a fun one: Hamilton strikes out six times for every time he reaches base for free. Pujols the only positive starter with more walks than strikeouts. Ianetta is okay at 11BB and 9K's. With all the career numbers, this is why Pujols is such a great hitter, even with the heel.

Wilson, Blanton, Vargas, and the bullpen pitched fabulous against the Mariners. For a team who is doing what they can to get an offense, the pitching staff for the Angels continue to show positive signs. The staff will pitch great for four days, then have two bad days and repeat. However with that supposedly being the weakness of this team, I personally will take four out of six. That's winning two three game series. No starter is completely dominating, but that is Weaver's job. They are pitching well enough to give their offense a chance to win games, which is what they are paid to do.

I am throwing Monday's game out the window because Hamilton and Trout combined for 1-16. Additionally Roth needs to go. Everyone who makes it to the bigs has talent and deserves to be commended for their efforts to get this far. However not everyone deserves to stay. 19 innings is an ugly game from both sides. The way this early season has gone, of course the Angels weren't going to come out on top. The last day of April was just as hard as the Angels had another tough loss to Oakland.

Trout continues to sink down in offense. I love Trout just as much as the next baseball fan and have nothing but respect for the next Mickey Mantle, but something is wrong at the plate. I can't quite put my finger on it because every at-bat has a different feel to it, but it's never a comfortable feel like it was in the middle of last season. Last year he was neck and neck with a triple crown winner. This weekend, Miguel Cabrera came up in the pouring rain with two runners on and had a 3-0 count when the Tigers were up 5-3. There was a feeling of "he's gunna swing, he's got this." A feeling of comfort. The next pitch he hit a home run 10 rows deep into right field. Cabrera just made it look so easy, so relaxed and confident at the plate. Easy approach, easy swing. That's an at-bat anyone can learn from. That's why he is the triple-crown and MVP champ.

Saturday Angels traded away Chris Snyder to Baltimore for LHP Rob Delaney. I completely disagree with this trade although I understand for bullpen needs. Snyder was beaten out by Conger this spring in good competitive competition. Conger more than deserving, had Snyder sent to AAA Salt Lake. Currently Snyder is hitting .342.  Rob Delaney has hardly any major league experience and has struggled so far this year. I don't like the trade because I feel like Snyder is more valuable than what they received out of the deal. I hope Delaney proves me wrong when he gets his chances.

Sunshine breaks through during weekend

It was great to see Torii Hunter back at the Big A and receive a well-derserved warm welcome by Angel fans and players. Torii had a huge smile like always. Hunter came into the series hitting over .400 and just got his 2,000th career hit in Detroit this past week. This series wasn't about Torii though, it was about the Angels playing solid baseball versus a World Series favorite.

16 hits Friday night handed Anibal Sanchez his first loss of the year.  Sanchez did not allow more than five hits in his previous three starts. The Angels aggressive approach at the plate paid off agianst a guy who is always around the plate. Zero walks were issued by Sanchez through 6 2/3 innings. The Angels were able to get a couple runs for Tommy Hanson, who pitched well through six, but even better when he got into jams. Four relievers were used for the Angels to finish off the game with the help of a five-spot put  up in the bottom half of the 8th.

Saturday night's first inning is what I've been waiting for this season. An absolute offensive outburst early in a game against a starting pitcher. NINE RUNS in the Angel's first at-bats was capped off by a Mike Trout grand slam to center field off a hanging curveball by Porcello. Although the rest of the game was fairly flat, that inning showed the potential of what this offense can do 1-9. Saturday also marked the first time the top three hitters in the Angels lineup were all over .300 for the season. Skip Hamilton and you can also include Mark Trumbo in that category.

We also witnessed the best start that Garrett Richards has had at the major league level. Whether the nine runs depleated the Tigers or not, there is still a plethora of talent in that lineup. Richards seven innings and two hits was even more impressive because he did not walk a single batter. Between Hanson and Richards this weekend, we witnessed back to back shut down starts for the first time in 2013.  With Weav on the DL, it was refreshing to see two guys step up and stop the bleeding.

With the Angels going for their first sweep of the season Sunday, the Laker game seemed irrelevant to Angel fans who enjoy the NBA. CJ Wilson had another average start with four walks, but the fifth inning was the 3rd time through the lineup and Prince hit a towering shot after Cabrera struck out. CJ did bounce back in the 6th which was good to see. The Angels had more chances to score in the 3rd inning, but you can't complain when they score three. They put the ball in play and made the defense make plays. Staying out of the air and not striking out were two big positives that came out of that inning.

Frieri scares me, but don't most closers? In a tie game in the 9th, Frieri loads the bases. With two outs and two strikes on the lefty Victor Martinez, Frieri gets Martinez to fly out on a pop-up to left field and gets out of the jam. It took more than 30 pitches in the inning, but the game remained tied. However, Angels could not figure out Tigers relief pitcher Al Alburquerque, who struck out five out of six batters with 20 pitches in the 8th and 9th. Trout leadoff with a single in the bottom of the 10th off Joaquin Benoit, then stole 2nd with Pujols up. Pujols popped up, then Hamilton struck out swinging, bringing up Mark Trumbo with two outs and Trout still on 2nd. Trumbo was intentionally walked to bring up Howie Kendrick. (That shows you the respect Hamilton has not earned yet this year.) Howie couldn't put the ball in play and the game continued into multiple extra innings. Then in the bottom of the 13th, Trumbo launched a ball deep over the left field wall to give the Angels the win and the sweep of the Tigers.

Obviously this is the best series the Angels have played this year. Starting pitching was strong, bullpen looked good, and the offense put up 21 runs and hit well with RISP. The Texas  Rangers come to the Big A next, and the Angels should be hungary for a little revenge, especially Josh Hamilton. All eyes will be on Hamilton, and I hope this is the series that Josh gets hot. He's really the only man in the lineup who hasn't gotten up to speed. He has had plenty of chances to cash in and give the Angels big innings.  What a pick-me-up it would be for the whole team to have him join the party.

My player of the Detroit series is Peter Bourjos who had seven hits in the three games and has established himself as the new leadoff hitter with Aybar out, moving Trout to the two-hole, right in front of Pujols. Bourjos went 3-4 both Friday and Saturday night in the Angels routes of the Tigers. Bourjos can bunt as good as anybody, and will do it multiple times if the situation presents itself. Trout looks as though weight has been lifted off his shoulders hitting second. With his ability to hit the ball to right field, Borjous should be at 3rd more times than not when Pujols comes up. Although Trout's bat is coming around, I would still like him to take advantage of bunting situations. In the 7th inning Sunday with the game tied 3-3, Luis Jimenez got hit to leadoff the inning. Bourjos laid down a sacrafice bunt, but was able to beat it out for a hit. With runners on first and second, no outs, and Price Fielder playing back behind Bourjos at first, Trout had a great opportunity to show his small ball skills and speed. Worst case senario would've been a sacrafice, Pujols' intentional walk would've loaded the bases, and Hamilton's lineout to center would've scored a run. Its not taking the bat out of Trouts hands, but instead using his baseball IQ and abilities. Trout grounded into a double play and the Angels did not score.

Not pretty, but we will take the wins

After getting shutout Friday night in a disappointing loss to the Astros, the Angels showed signs of light both Saturday and Sunday night. In this post we are staying all positive. It might take longer than we want for this team to start clicking on all cylinders at once, but the two wins included Trout's first homerun, Hamilton's first two homeruns, and a good start by CJ Wilson.

The Astros will finish in last place in their new division. It will be a battle between them and the Marlins for most losses this year. The Angels did what they had to do to win the series after losing the opener. Garrett Richards took the ball Saturday night and did exactly what you would expect from a spot starter; 6+ innings, four runs. Hamilton got his first dinger and the Angels had 13 hits to the Astros four, but still need Pujols to come up in the clutch to win the game. Pujols needs to be that guy like he was with the Cardinals since he came into the league in 2001. Sunday wasn't pretty but Wilson only gave up one run through six innings and both Trout and Hamilton went deep. Wilson had to throw 115 pitches to get through those six innings while walking four. Against the Astros it worked.

In the last post, I expressed my feelings that the Angels needed to blow out the American League minor league team. Offensively, it seems as though it might be a few weeks before the hits start coming in bunches, especially hits with runners in scoring position. The bullpen did not give up a run in all three games. Two of the four series thus far, the guys beyond the left field wall have been lights out. With the offense not overpowering teams, the defense 27th in fielding, and with Weaver out no other starter showing consistency, the bullpen has been the nice surprise. Winning two out of three is a positive series.  The Angels next opponent are the Twins in Minnesota. Following the quick trip to the twin city is a couple of tough weeks. To see a couple of high scoring affairs before the Tigers come to town would be nice. You know that Detroit will bring the lumber. They just scored 20 runs in three games in Oakland.

I know I said only positive in this post but I lied. Here's a fun stat so far this season: Out of the 12 games so far, the only times the Angels have two hits in a game with runners in scoring position, they were 2-14 and 2-16. One-fers have been popular, and that's not a good thing. If you don't like cringing, dont crunch the batting average with RISP.

I would like to take this time also to congratulate Roy "Doc" Halladay on win #200 today against the Miami Marlins. Even though he hasn't gotten off on the right foot this year, he has been one of the faces of MLB pitching for the last decade. Also, I would like to wish everyone a happy Jackie Robinson day. If you have not seen the movie, 42, go check it out. Not only did Jackie break the color barrier and take on the world's racism, but he also was named Rookie of the Year. Here's to one of America's greatest idols and pioneers.

What's worse than getting swept by Oakland...

     GETTING SHUT OUT BY THE ASTROS.