Manager Mike Scioscia manages the way he played….with aggression. He led the Angels to a 97-65 (59.9%) record last season before bowing out in the A.L. Championship Series to the Yankees. Scioscia has compiled a 10-year record with the Angels of 900-720 (55.6%) as the manager. He has won 1 A.L. Pennant with the Angels and he also won the World Series that year. Scioscia is the right man to get the most out of the Angels once again in 2010.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE MANAGER IN 2010: A

The Angels will likely use both lefty Brian Fuentes and righty Fernando Rodney to save games in 2010. Fuentes pitched in 65 games (0 starts) for the Angels last season and he was 1-5 with 48 saves, a 3.93 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP. In his 9 years in the majors, Fuentes has pitched in 503 games (0 starts) in which he is 18-32 with 163 saves, a 3.47 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. Fuentes has only allowed 396 hits while whiffing 526 batters in 477 major league innings showing how truly nasty he can be. Manager Mike Scioscia’s faith in Fuentes teetered at times last season hence the signing of Fernando Rodney.

33-year old righty Fernando Rodney will likely get his fair share of save opportunities in 2010. He pitched in 73 games (0 starts) for the Tigers last season and he was 2-5 with 37 saves, a 4.40 ERA and a 1.47 WHIP. Rodney walked 41 batters in only 75 2/3 innings so he will have to improve his control before Scioscia truly trusts him late in games.

34-year old righty Scot Shields is healthy this spring and he could give the Angels a huge boost in 2010. Shields pitched in 20 games (0 starts) for the Angels last season and he was 1-3 with 1 save, a 6.82 ERA and a 1.76 WHIP. He has now pitched 9 years for the Angels appearing in 448 games (14 starts) in which he is 46-41 with 21 saves, a 3.03 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP. If Shields stays healthy in 2010 the Angels will have a very deep pen.

31-year old righty Jason Bulger really stepped up last season for the Angels. He pitched in 64 games (0 starts) in which he was 6-1 with 1 save, a 3.56 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP. He only gave up 46 hits last season in 65 2/3 innings while whiffing 68 batters showing just how nasty he was last year. The Angels need him to keep up the good work in 2010.

30-year old righty Brian Stokes also has a really good arm. He pitched in 69 games (0 starts) for the Mets last season and he was 2-4 with a 3.97 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP. Stokes needs to tighten up his control to be effective in the American League as he walked 38 batters in only 70 1/3 innings and that is way too many.

25-year old righty Kevin Jepsen will be the kid of this pen. He pitched in 54 games (0 starts) for the Angels last season and he was 6-4 with 1 save, a 4.94 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. Jepsen has a good arm so he has the upside to help the Angels’ pen in 2010 and beyond.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BULLPEN IN 2010: B

#1 through #5 the Angels have solid starting pitchers which should give them an advantage in 2010. 27-year old righty Jered Weaver will be the #1 starter for the Angels in 2010. He started 33 games for the Angels last season and he was 16-8 with a 3.75 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP. He only gave up 196 hits in 211 innings last season while whiffing 174 batters showing what kind of stuff he has. In his four years with the Angels, Weaver has started 110 games in which he is 51-27 with a 3.73 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP. Expect another solid season out of Weaver in 2010.

26-year old lefty Scott Kazmir will likely be slotted as the #2 starter for the Angels in 2010. Kazmir started 6 games for the Angels last season after coming over in a trade with the Rays and he was 2-2 with a 1.73 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP. He started 26 games overall for the Angels & Rays last season in which he was 10-9 with 4.89 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP. Kazmir has won in double figures in the last five years and he will make it six in a row as long as he can stay healthy.

31-year old righty Joel Pineiro had a breakout year for the Cardinals in 2010. He started 32 games for the Cardinals last season and he was 15-12 with a 3.49 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP. Pineiro only walked 24 batters in 214 innings last season as he pounded the strike zone a lot in 2009. I just don’t see Pineiro putting up the same kind of numbers that he did in 2010 as the A.L. is a much tougher hitting league than the N.L. But, I do think that Pineiro will give the Angels a lot of quality innings in 2010.

28-year old lefty Joe Saunders started 31 games last season for the Angels and he was 16-7 with a 4.60 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP. Saunders has really been solid the last two years for the Angels as he has compiled a 34-14 record. I see no reason to think that Saunders won’t turn in another solid year for the Angels in 2010.

27-year old Ervin Santana had a off year in 2010 as he dealt with shoulder and elbow problems. Santana pitched in 24 games (23 starts) for the Angels last season and he was 8-8 with a 5.03 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. In his five years with the Angels, Santana has pitched in 140 games (137 starts) in which he is 59-45 with a 4.52 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. If Santana is right this could be a big year for him as he probably has the best stuff of all of the Angels’ starting pitchers.

30-year old righty Matt Palmer was a lifesaver for the Angels last season working in both the rotation and as a long reliever. Palmer pitched in 40 games (13 starts) for the Angels last season and he was 11-2 with a 3.93 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. Palmer only gave up 105 hits in 121 1/2 innings last season for the Angels but his control got him into some trouble as he walked 55 batters. Look for Palmer to be the Angels’ first starter in if something happens to one of their top five starting pitchers.

22-year old righty Sean O’Sullivan was not too impressive anywhere in 2009. He pitched in 12 games (10 starts) for the Angels last year and he was 4-2 with a 5.92 ERA and a 1.47 WHIP. O’Sullivan last pitched in 17 games (16 starts) in AA+AAA-ball last year where he was 7-6 with a 5.44 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP. The Angels probably have their fingers crossed hoping that they won’t need O’Sullivan to start any games for them in 2010.

23-year old righty Trevor Bell got a rude awakening in his first taste of the majors last year. Bell pitched in 8 games (4 starts) for the Angels last year and he was 1-2 with a 9.74 ERA and a 2.51 WHIP. Bell gave up 40 hits in 20 1/3 innings last season for the Angels which is pretty shocking. Bell also started 22 games in AA+AAA-ball last year and he was 7-7 with a 2.70 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP. Bell is the Angels’ #10 prospect heading into the 2010 season according to Baseball America so he will likely get another chance with the Angels soon.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE ROTATION IN 2010: A-

The Oakland A’s have returned 24-year old righty reliever Bobby Cassevah to the Angels. He was a Rule 5 Draft Pick so the Angels made a cool $25,000 bucks by letting the A’s borrow him for a couple of months. Cassevah pitched in 57 games (0 starts) in AA-ball last season in which he was 3-7 with 4 saves, a 3.68 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. He has now pitched in 156 games (14 starts) in his 5 years in the minors in which he is 11-21 with 6 saves, a 4.33 ERA and a 1.58 WHIP. The Angels will likely start him out in AAA this season.

36-year old lefty swinging Bobby Abreu played in 152 games for the Angels last season and he was 165 of 563 (.293 avg, .825 OPS) with 96 runs scored, 15 homers, 103 RBIs and 30 stolen bases. Abreu made 8 errors in 126 games in RF last season while showing slightly above average range. Abreu had 10 assists last season out of RF as he still has a strong throwing arm. Look for Abreu to have another solid year in 2010 as he has shown no signs of slowing down.

28-year old switch hitting Reggie Willits played in 10 error-free games in RF last season while showing average range. Look for him to get in a few games in RF for the Angels in 2010.

31-year old righty swinging Juan Rivera didn’t have any errors in 7 games in RF last season but he showed poor range. He did have 1 assist while in RF showing off his cannon attached to his right shoulder. Rivera will be the starting LF for the Angels in 2010 so he won’t get much P.T. in RF this year.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE RF IN 2010: B+