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.

The Angels are glad to see the Twins leaving Anaheim. The Angels started off 1-3 against the Twins as they were outscored 22-12! The Twins whacked 9 homers in the four game series! It doesn’t get much easier for the Angels as the hot starting Oakland A’s (3-1) come to town this weekend. The Angels need to get back to the basics as they are a better team than they showed against the Twins.

The Angels have signed outfielders Dee Brown and Chad Hermansen to minor league contracts. 29 year old Dee Brown played in 8 games last season for the A’s and he was 0 for 3 with 2 whiffs. Brown has now played in 271 games in his major league career and he is 190 for 814 (.233 avg, .613 OPS) with 86 runs scored, 14 homers and 89 RBIs. 30-year old Chad Hermansen hasn’t played in the majors since 2004 with the Blue Jays. Hermansen has played in 189 games in his major league career and he is 96 for 492 (.195 avg, .584 OPS) with 49 runs scored, 13 homers, 34 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. Hopefully, the Angels won’t need either of these guys next season.