Yardbarker: Los Angeles Angels

Your MLB Announcing Schedule For The Weekend

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 14:43:37 -0500

Here it comes folks...the weekend you've dreaded all season. It's the Sox, It's the Yanks, It's Buck and McCarver and it's on FOX.....NEXT! You'll be getting a double dip of the rivalry that people love to hate this weekend, but there is some good news as well. HR is going to be in the booth for TBS! It's been awhile Harold....welcome back.

Here's the schedule....

Saturday:

Boston Red Sox at LA Angels- Boston Red Sox at New York Yankees- Joe Buck, Tim McCarver & Ken Rosenthal (Fox, 3:55pm, 85%)

MARKETS INCLUDE: Albuquerque, Austin, Baltimore, Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dallas, Dayton, Denver, Detroit, Fort Myers, Hartford, Houston, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Louisville, Memphis, Miami, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, New Orleans, New York, Norfolk, Oklahoma City, Orlando, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Providence, Raleigh, Richmond, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis, Tampa, Tulsa, Washington, West Palm Beach

Atlanta Braves at Philadelphia Phillies- Matt Vasgersian & Mark Grace (FOX, 3:55pm, 15%)

MARKETS INCLUDE: Atlanta, Birmingham, Charlotte, Greensboro, Greenville, Jacksonville, Knoxville, Nashville, Philadelphia

Sunday:

Florida Marlins at Chicago Cubs- Chip Caray & Harold Reynolds (TBS, 1pm)

New York Yankees at Boston Red Sox- Jon Miller & Joe Morgan (ESPN, 8pm)

Teixeira Headed to Angels?

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 14:06:04 -0500

The St. Paul Pioneer Press is reporting this morning on a rumor floating around that deal is in the works between the Angels and Atlanta that would send utility player Robb Quinlan and minor leaguer 3B Brandon Wood to Atlanta for 2-month rental Teixeira.

Biggest Needs for AL Playoff Contenders

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 14:06:03 -0500

-The Red Sox are in pretty good shape, according to Perry. He points a finger at Jason Varitek's underachieving season but thinks the only real need they have is RH middle relief, assuming that Justin Masterson can settle in in the bullpen.
-The Yankees have a long list of players on the DL, with the chance that Matsui and Posada could be gone for the season. They need another bat and will likely be looking at the same players as the Mets, Holliday, Bay, Giles and Dunn.
-The Tampa Bay Rays need a RH left fielder to partner with Carl Crawford, who, with a .235 avg, can't hit lefty pitcher to save his life.
-The White Sox-With one of the worst farm systems in baseball, it's lucky for them, as Perry sees it that that so don't have a lot of holes to fill. They just need for Paul Konerko to start hitting and Jose Contreras to come off the DL in good shape.
-The Minnesota Twins need a third baseman. Perry sees Adrian Beltre as a good fit for them because he bring hitting and fine defense.
-The Angels should be on the hunt for another big bat as their production from their left fielder and their DH has been less than stellar. Third base is also a weak spot offensively.

Basebrawl: Arrests, Ejections, Fun.

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 11:25:57 -0500

Listen or read about a hilarious and entertaining brawl in a Minor League baseball game. [Video inc.]

Jay's walk-off hit in 10th a winner at Hammons Field

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 10:04:19 -0500

The St. Louis Cardinals' Double-A affiliate Springfield Cardinals did well in front of 6,600 in Missouri.

Biggest Needs for AL Playoff Contenders

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 20:44:33 -0500

Biggest Needs for AL Playoff Contenders

AccuScore Closer Report - 7/23

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 13:51:08 -0500

With the trade deadline looming and injuries to several players, bullpen situations remain in flux throughout baseball. Jonathan Lee takes a look at recent moves and ranks all of MLB's closers.

Mark Shapiro should go nuts.... GO GET K-ROD

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 10:20:50 -0500

Why Cleveland Indians General Manager Mark Shapiro should take a chance this off-season and make a run at Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez.

MLB Players with dreads

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 09:08:10 -0500

In baseball there aren't that many players with dreads. But we found some and here is a list of them. Vladimir Guerrero OF Angels Manny Ramirez OF Red Sox Andrew Mccutchen OF Pirates Lastings Milledge OF Nationals Desmond Jennings OF Rays Ervin Santana SP Angels Brian Barton OF Cardinals Jose Arredondo RP Angels

Mets Owner Says He A"Screwed UpA" on Randolph Firing

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 09:00:18 -0500

Fred Wilpon, the owner of the New York Mets said yesterday that he “screwed up” by allowing general manager Omar Minaya to fire manager Willie Randolph after a West Coast game against the Angels, instead of waiting until the next day where the New York press would have been able to cover the story. With the three hour time difference, Randolph’s firing occurred after 3am on the East Coast. As reported by Bloomberg News (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601079 sid=a9aggCxw_ba8 refer=amsports): “I know I screwed up,'' Wilpon told reporters at SportsNet New York's Manhattan studios. ``I should have said, `wait a second.'''[…]Minaya told Wilpon of his decision on Randolph after the Mets' doubleheader against the Texas Rangers in New York on June 15. Wilpon said he told Minaya that he couldn't let Randolph go on Fathers Day and that they should talk about it again early the following day.[...-``I wasn't smart enough to say, `you are going to cut the New York press out?''' Wilpon said. ``I didn't even think of it.'' Since the Randolph firing, his replacement Jerry Manuel has moved the Mets from being 6.5 games out of first, into a tie for the NL East lead. As an aside, don’t think that any regretful decisions on Wilpon’s part has him considering selling the Mets. Everything has a price, but not the Mets,'' Wilpon said. ``I'm never going to sell, my family is going to have this asset.''Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network (http://www.businessofsportsnetwork.com/), which includes The Biz of Baseball (http://www.bizofbasketball.com/), The Biz of Football (http://www.bizoffootball.com/), The Biz of Basketball (http://www.bizofbasketball.com/) and The Biz of Hockey (http://bizofhockey.com/). He is contributor to Baseball Prospectus (http://baseballprospectus.com/news/?author=124), and is available as a freelance writer.Brown's full bio is here. (http://www.businessofsportsnetwork.com/index.php?option=com_content view=article id=47 Itemid=18) He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network (http://www.businessofsportsnetwork.com/index.php?option=com_contact view=contact id=2 Itemid=29).

Indians-11 Angels-14

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 08:56:25 -0500

Cle 11 FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E Indians 2 0 0 2 2 0 1 3 1 11 14 0 Angels 0 2 0 3 5 2 2 0 x 14 19 2 TV: FSN West LAA 14 Recap | Game Trax | Box Score | Play by Play | Depth Chart | Head-to-Head | Cleveland Indians BATTER GAME SEASON AB R H RBI 2B 3B HR SB CS TB BB K LOB AVG OBP SLG G Sizemore CF 5 2 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 4 1 2 3 .272 .377 .544 D Dellucci DH 5 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 3 .225 .293 .386 B Francisco RF 5 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 .284 .346 .459 J Peralta SS 5 3 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 1 1 .267 .311 .488 S Choo LF 4 1 2 2 1 0 0 0 0 3 1 0 1 .252 .349 .449 R Garko 1B 5 2 3 4 0 0 1 0 0 6 0 1 3 .243 .317 .359 A Marte 3B 3 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 3 .186 .233 .278 a-C Blake PH-3B 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .287 .364 .464 S Fasano C 3 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 .300 .391 .350 b-J Carroll PH 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 .274 .351 .345 A Cabrera 2B 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 3 .186 .282 .249 Totals 41 11 14 11 3 0 2 0 0 23 3 9 21 - - - a-flied out for A.Marte in 8th b-singled for Fasano in 9th BATTING 2B: D Dellucci (14), B Francisco (21), S Choo (11) HR: G Sizemore (25, 8th inning off O'Day 0 on, 1 out), R Garko (8, 4th inning off Lackey 1 on, 0 out) RBI: G Sizemore (56), D Dellucci (33), J Peralta (52), S Choo 2 (23), R Garko 4 (49), A Marte (4), S Fasano (1) 2-out RBI: D Dellucci, R Garko 2, A Marte, S Fasano Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: D Dellucci, B Francisco, A Marte, C Blake, S Fasano, A Cabrera Team LOB: 10 Scoring Opportunities: 5/17 FIELDING DP: A.Marte to A.Cabrera to Garko PITCHER GAME SEASON IP H R ER BB K HR PIT B-S BFP ERA Opp AVG A Laffey (L, 5-7) 4.0 12 8 8 2 2 0 77 31-46 25 4.23 .281 T Mastny 1.1 3 4 4 2 2 1 34 17-17 9 14.90 .348 J Lewis 1.2 4 2 2 0 2 0 35 14-21 9 4.71 .288 J Rincon 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 0 15 7-8 3 6.15 .284 Wild Pitches: A Laffey Hit by Pitch: A Cabrera (by J Lackey), D Dellucci (by D O'Day), B Francisco (by D O'Day) Ground Balls: A Laffey 11, T Mastny 1, J Lewis 3, J Rincon 1 Fly Balls: A Laffey 4, T Mastny 3, J Lewis 2, J Rincon 1 Los Angeles Angels BATTER GAME SEASON AB R H RBI 2B 3B HR SB CS TB BB K LOB AVG OBP SLG C Figgins 3B 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 .269 .368 .317 C Kotchman 1B 5 1 5 1 1 0 0 0 0 6 0 0 0 .289 .331 .433 E Aybar SS 5 1 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 3 0 1 2 .286 .315 .402 V Guerrero DH 5 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 6 .283 .342 .484 J Rivera RF 4 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 3 .248 .313 .376 R Willits RF 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .185 .308 .231 H Kendrick 2B 5 3 4 3 3 0 0 0 0 7 0 1 1 .341 .361 .514 G Anderson LF 4 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 1 .266 .305 .398 G Matthews Jr. CF 3 2 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 2 2 .233 .311 .346 J Mathis C 5 2 4 6 1 0 1 0 0 8 0 0 0 .228 .304 .389 Totals 42 14 19 13 7 0 1 0 0 29 4 7 20 - - - BATTING 2B: C Kotchman (24), E Aybar (11), H Kendrick 3 (23), G Anderson (15), J Mathis (5) HR: J Mathis (8, 5th inning off Mastny 3 on, 0 out) RBI: C Kotchman (48), E Aybar (25), H Kendrick 3 (32), G Matthews Jr. 2 (36), J Mathis 6 (34) Runners moved up: E Aybar, J Rivera, G Anderson2 2-out RBI: C Kotchman, E Aybar, H Kendrick 2, J Mathis 2 Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: C Figgins 2, V Guerrero, J Rivera GIDP: E Aybar Team LOB: 8 Scoring Opportunities: 7/19 FIELDING E: J Lackey (3), J Rivera (3) DP: PITCHER GAME SEASON IP H R ER BB K HR PIT B-S BFP ERA Opp AVG J Lackey (W, 8-2) 5.0 8 6 6 2 5 1 99 32-67 27 3.02 .245 J Speier 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 0 12 4-8 3 5.09 .248 D O'Day 1.1 3 4 4 0 1 1 30 12-18 9 3.89 .285 J Arredondo 1.1 3 1 1 1 2 0 27 9-18 8 1.33 .186 F Rodriguez (S, 42) 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0-1 1 2.18 .176 Intentional Walks: G Anderson (by A Laffey) Ground Balls: J Lackey 5, J Speier 0, D O'Day 2, J Arredondo 1, F Rodriguez 1 Fly Balls: J Lackey 7, J Speier 2, D O'Day 3, J Arredondo 1, F Rodriguez 0

Futures Watch: Week 17

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 01:17:32 -0500

Oakland, 100:1 (VIP, Matchbook)
Current Record: 52-48
PECOTA Playoff Odds: 18.4%
Tampa Bay, 11.5:1 (5Dimes)
Current Record: 58-41
PECOTA: 78.6%

Tampa beat Oakland today, 4-3.

I think it's time to stop including Oakland every week. PECOTA still thinks they have a shot, but that's not particularly meaningful at this point. Not only have they traded away 2/5 of their rotation, but PECOTA was seemingly overrating their chances to begin with. The A's are available at 18-1 to win the division at Matchbook right now, and nobody is biting.

That's not to say that PECOTA was wrong about Oakland, or that their preseason odds (17-1 to win the division, at BetUS at least) weren't worth betting on. Their 4.5 game lead on the Angels in the Adjusted Standings indicates that things simply haven't broken their way; they could very easily be a few games up in the division, rather than 10 out. And if that were true, it's likely that Harden and Blanton would still be in their rotation right now. Things just didn't quite work out. It happens.

Milwaukee, +300 to win the NL Central (Carib)
+250 to win the NL Central (BetUS, Sportsbook)

These are just ridiculous. The Brewers are -180 to not win the division at Matchbook right now. They're one game back of the Cubs (assuming Chicago doesn't blow their current 10-3 lead against Arizona). Milwaukee's chances of winning the division are probably closer to 50-50 than 1 in 4.

How this discrepancy came to be is pretty obvious. A week ago, Milwaukee was five out, and in third place. They've since won six in a row, including three against the Cardinals (they've actually won seven straight overall, but they started the streak before the ASB). They're now three games ahead of an inferior St. Louis team in the loss column, with Sheets going against Wellemeyer on Thursday night.

What's up with Aaron Laffey?

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 21:41:25 -0500

Tribe fans talk about next year's starting rotation and how thin it is. "We got Lee, Carmona and Laffey" they say. "After that who knows." Better put Aaron Laffey in the "who knows" category. On June 24, after holding the Giants to a run on four hits in 6 1/3 innings at the Jake, Laffey's ERA was 2.83. Five starts later, his ERA is 4.23, and he is 1-3 in those five starts. It's pretty difficult to add a run and a half to your ERA in five starts, but Laffey managed. Here's how: In the past five starts, Laffey has pitched 23 2/3 innings and allowed 22 earned runs. I don't even need my calculator to know that is darned near a 9.00 ERA. He has given up 38 hits and 12 walks during that stretch. Again, I don't need to my calculator to know that comes out to a WHIP of just over 2.00 and nearly 5 walks per 9 innings. Is his confidence rattled? Are his mechanics off? Has the league figured him out? That's hard to say sitting in my living room in suburban NY, but something is clearly out of kilter. So much so, that Tribe manager Eric Wedge wouldn't make any promises when asked whether Laffey might not be the guy to go down to Buffalo to get straightened out when Fausto Carmona comes back at the end of the week. After Laffey gave up 8 runs on 12 hits in just four innings plus in today's game in Anaheim, Wedge was non-committal when asked about the roster move coming up Friday - telling MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince: "We're not going to decide anything right now," manager Eric Wedge said. "We don't need to do anything until Friday night after the game, at the earliest. We haven't made any decisions just yet." Matt Ginter is the presumed odd-man-out, but he's put up two quality starts in two tries since joining the Tribe's rotation in what was supposed to be a cameo role. Jeremy Sowers, who has been a major disappointment this season could also go, but it is likely (at least I think so) that the Tribe - which has already farmed out Sowers this year for retooling - will want to keep him up in the hopes he can work things out on the big-league level between now and the end of September. Which brings us to the bullpen. I had planned to do a piece tonight about how the pen seems to be coming around and how it has been central to the Tribe's recent run of victories. An then today - and Tom Mastny and Jensen Lewis - happened. The duo combined to give up 6 runs over three innings in relief of Mastny, rendering moot any effort the Tribe's offense made to make a game of it. And that doesn't even count the 3 runs of Laffey's that Mastny gave up on a grand slam by Angel's catcher Jeff Mathis. In Mastny's defense, he last pitched 10 days ago. I've said it time and again this year and in the past, I don't know how Wedge expects his 4-7 relievers to be of any value whatsoever when he pitches them once every leap year or so. But still, Mastny was awful and Lewis wasn't much better. But the bullpen has been strong in the past 9 games before today - a stretch which saw the Tribe go 7-2. During that run, the pen has tossed 28 innings allowed 6 earned runs, 17 hits and 7 walks. That's an ERA of 1.92 and a WHIP of 0.86 (I'm not going to let the stats I dug up go top waste). Exclude one 4-run blowup by Juan Rincon, and the Tribe's bullpen ERA during the 9-game run is 0.64. Masa Kobayashi has 2 saves and Mastny, of all people, has the pen's lone win during the Tribe's recent hot streak. More importantly, a few key pitchers seem to be settling into roles. Raffy Perez, back firmly in the set-up role where he excelled last year, threw 7 innings in four appearances over the 9 games and did not allow a run. Kobayashi had the 2 saves and has pitched well in general since taking over the closer's role. Edward Mujica threw 4 2/3 scoreless innings during the stretch as he has begun to make a move toward the latter innings of games. The roles being established now though appear to be nothing more than an attempt to wrestle this season under control. While impressions will be made the rest of the way, it's doesn't appear as though anyone will be locking up their role for next season. In another piece for MLB.com, Castrovince reports that Wedge sees the bullpen situation as - shall we say - fluid. "The roles are wide open," Wedge said. "But I do see signs. We've got plenty of time to continue to look at these guys. They're going to have an opportunity to step up and figure out if they can play a prominent role in this thing." Still, in the same piece, Castrovince reports the Tribe doesn't think it will find its 2009 closer on its 2008 club, again quoting Wedge: "A lot would have to happen with the people we have down there now for us to not go out and get somebody," Wedge said. "Somebody would have to grab the role, really lock into it and prove that we can count on them. That's a lot to happen in two and a half months."

Boom goes the dynamite... Tribe Lose Barnburner

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:27:00 -0500

The Cleveland Indians lost a good old fashioned offensive battle against the Los Angeles Angels. Ryan Garko's big day wasn't enough to overcome the struggles of the Tribe pitching staff and starter Aaron Laffey.

Olney on Washburn

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:07:20 -0500

So, here I am yesterday, innocently reading Buster Olney's chat. Just interested in the latest trade rumors and such. But then he says this:

Sal (Connecticut): Hey Buster, why all the hate on the Yankees staff and bullpen when they have been very good especially the bullpen which has been exceptional and the Yankees have only lost 1 game when handing the ball over to the bullpen with a lead after 6 innings. 1!

Buster Olney: Sal: I have no idea what you are talking about. I haven't been critical of the Yankees' staff lately; it's the offense that I've been critical of. BTW: The Yankees are taking a look at Jarrod Washburn, who has a career ERA of 2.82 ERA in Yankee Stadium. He'd fit them perfectly, for 2008 and 2009 -- he had a sub-3.00 ERA in June and has similar numbers in July. We'll see what happens.

I'll get to the Yankee Stadium thing in a second. The June/July thing has been covered at USS Mariner, but it's worth going over again:

Rapidly improving 33-year old pitcher, or guy whose ERA has bounced around because five starts is a really small sample? You decide.

As for the other issue:

Jacob (Brooklyn): Do you really think Washburn is a good fit with the Yankees because he has a good ERA in 38.1 innings at Yankee Stadium?

Buster Olney: Jacob: I think it's a factor they will look at -- he's a lefty flyball pitcher who changes speeds well and has a nice post-season history. To me, he's a perfect fit for them, the way that George Sherrill makes complete sense for the Brewers or the Angels.

For the record, Washburn career @NYY: 38.1 IP, 5HR, 9BB, 16K, 2.82 ERA. 1-4 record.

So now we're switching the argument. It's not because he's pitched well in New York, it's because he's a good fit for the ballpark. Okay, I'll buy that. But we can't just stop there, of course.

Jarrod Washburn, career postseason: 36.2 IP, 8HR (yikes), 14BB, 21K, 4.91 ERA. 1-3 record. So what we're really saying here is that he "has a ~~nice~~ post-season history."

I just don't understand why people insist on complicating things. The Yankees are considering trading for Washburn. Why? Because Sidney Ponson is currently the #5 starter. Jarrod Washburn is better than Sidney Ponson. That's it. That's the reason. It's really not necessary to whip out all this meaningless, anecdotal evidence to explain their interest. It only serves to weaken the argument, by drawing attention away from what actually matters.