The Angels finished the first half of the 2011 season on a four game winning streak as they have vaulted past the Mariners into second place. They are 50-42 on the season which has them 1 game behind the Rangers in the A.L. West and 5 games behind the Yankees for the Wild Card. The Angels could be looking for some offensive firepower and bullpen help in the coming weeks as they are going to need reinforcements to deal with the Rangers in the second half. Here is a look at the players who made the biggest impacts for the Angels in the first half:

Team MVP: 28-year old righty starting pitcher Jered Weaver gets this honor. The Angels feel like they are going to win every time he takes the mound…..and for good reason. Weaver has started 19 games for the Angels so far this year and he is 11-4 with a 1.86 ERA and a 0.91 WHIP. He has only given up 97 hits and 31 walks in his first 140 1/3 innings this year and he has 120 whiffs, proving just how nasty he has been. The Cy Young Award is within reach if he has a strong second half.

Biggest Surprise: This is a tie between 23-year old righty closer Jordan Walden and 25-year old righty swinging 1B Mark Trumbo who are two of the best rookies in baseball right now. When the season started, Fernando Rodney was the Angels’ closer. Mike Scioscia tired of Rodney’s escapades in the 9th inning so he turned to Walden. Walden has pitched in 39 games (0 starts) so far this year for the Angels and he is 2-2 with 20 saves, a 2.84 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. He has only given up 28 hits while whiffing 41 batters in his first 38 innings this year as he reminds me of a young Troy Percival. Kendry Morales was supposed to come back this season but his ankle was never right. The Angels turned to Mark Trumbo and he has responded well to the challenge. Trumbo has played in 84 games for the Angels so far this year and he is 77 for 296 (.260 avg, .788 OPS) with 35 runs scored, 17 homers, 41 RBIs and 8 stolen bases.

Biggest Disappointment: When the Angels dealt for 32-year old righty swinging Vernon Wells over the winter, they were expecting him to add juice to the lineup. He has not done that to this point in the season. Wells has played in 65 games for the Angels so far this year and he is 57 for 257 (.222 avg, .657 OPS) with 36 runs scored, 13 homers, 34 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. The Angels need Wells to have a big second half with the bat.

The Los Angeles Angels were only 1-3 against the Royals over the weekend including two losses by walkoff homers! They were outscored 21-18 by the Royals as they had big time bullpen issues. The Angels hit .302 with 9 homers against the Royals but it just didn’t matter in the end because of the pitching staff. The Angels hope the bats start to get hot this week, while the pitching staff gets back on the right track.

The Angels are in second place in the A.L. West with a 47-44 record which has them 4.5 games behind the Rangers. The Angels have had a lot of players not playing up to their ability which gives them hope as far as catching the Rangers in the 2nd half. Here is a closer look as the surprises and disappointments this year:

Pleasant Surprises: C/1B Mike Napoli has really done a solid job filling in for the injured Kendry Morales. Napoli has played in 80 games this season for the Angels and he is 64 of 260 (.246 avg, .786 OPS) with 33 runs scored, 14 homers, 37 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. 2B Howie Kendrick has been healthy all year which has been a pleasant surprise. Kendrick has played in 89 games for the Angels this season and he is 97 of 355 (.273 avg, .708 OPS) with 39 runs scored, 7 homers, 52 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. The Angels have had a lot of problems at 3B but Kevin Frandsen has played decent. He has played in 38 games for the Angels this year and he is 34 of 119 (.286 avg, .700 OPS) with 21 runs scored, 9 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. 27-year old starting pitcher Ervin Santana is having a good year for the Angels. He has started 18 games for the Angels this year and he is 8-7 with a 3.76 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP.

Disappointments: 25-year old 3B Brandon Wood had a good spring and the Angels had him starting early this season. Wood has failed miserably so far this year. Wood has played in 55 games for the Angels this year and he is 29 of 170 (.171 avg, .418 OPS) with 17 runs scored, 3 homers and 12 RBIs. Wood has whiffed 50 times already this season and walked only 4 times showing awful plate discipline. 26-year old lefty starting pitcher Scott Kazmir has also been pathetic this season for the Angels. He has started 17 games for the Angels this year and he is 7-9 with a 6.92 ERA and a 1.64 WHIP. Kazmir has walked 49 batters and has given up 17 homers in only 92 1/3 innings this year. Joe Saunders has also been disappointing this year. He has started 18 games for the Angels this year and he is 6-9 with a 4.76 ERA and a 1.51 WHIP. 31-year old righty starter/reliever Matt Palmer was a staff saver in 2009 for the Angels, but, he’s in the minors already. Palmer has pitched in 9 games (1 start) for the Angels this year and he is 0-1 with a 6.26 ERA and a 2.04 WHIP.

The Angels have won three games in a row (a sweep over the Jays in Toronto) and they are now 6-7 on the season which has them tied for 2nd place in the A.L. West with the Mariners, 2.5 games behind the surprising A’s. The Angels have been outscored 69-52 this season so there problems have been both of the hitting and pitching variety. It looks like they are starting to get things together and it will be interesting to see how they do this week as the Tigers come to Anaheim for 4 games followed by a 3 game visit from the Yankees this coming weekend.

The Angels got battered in the first week of the season as they finished up with a 2-5 record which has them tied for last place in the A.L. West with the Mariners, 3 games behind the Oakland A’s. The Angels were outscored 44-24 last week as they played all around bad baseball. Things don’t get any easier for the Angels as they travel to Yankee Stadium for a three game series starting tomorrow and then they fly to Toronto for a three game series over the weekend against the super hot Blue Jays.