Angels' Matt Palmer still has a positive attitude By Mike DiGiovanna Reporting from Tempe, Ariz. - More than a month of the off-season passed between John Lackey's Dec. 17 signing with the Boston Red Sox and Joel Pineiro's Jan. 21 signing with the Angels, just long enough for Matt Palmer to get his hopes up . . . and dashed. Palmer was a savior last season, joining a rotation reeling from the death of right-hander Nick Adenhart and thinned by injuries to Lackey and Ervin Santana, and going 9-1 with a 4.66 earned-run average in 13 starts after his April 23 recall from triple-A Salt Lake. A 31-year-old right-hander who spent seven years in the minor leagues before a three-game stint with San Francisco in 2008, Palmer also pitched well in relief, closing 2009 with an 11-2 overall record and 3.93 ERA in 40 games. When weeks went by after Lackey, the former Angels ace, signed a five-year, $82.5-million deal with Boston, it appeared Pa...
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