Los Angeles Angels

The Los Angeles Angels place Mike Napoli on the D.L.

chinmusic — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 14:04:42 +0000

The Angels have placed catcher Mike Napoli on the 15-day disabled list with right shoulder inflammation. He has played in 47 games for the Angels this season and he is 29 for 142 (.204 avg, .780 OPS) with 17 runs scored, 12 homers, 29 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Napoli has also whiffed an alarming 46 times already this season. Jeff Mathis will take over as the full time starter with Napoli out due to injury. Mathis has played in 47 games this season for the Angels and he is 33 for 144 (.229 avg, .691 OPS) with 19 runs scored, 6 homers and 25 RBIs. The Angels have recalled 28-year old righty swinging catcher Ryan Budde to replace Napoli on the roster. He has played in 37 games in AAA ball this season and he is 27 for 135 (.200 avg, .579 OPS) with 15 runs scored, 2 homers and 19 RBIs.

Darren Oliver continues to revive his career with the Los Angeles Angels

chinmusic — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 14:17:09 +0000

Darren Oliver has been very solid since winning a job in the Angels’ bullpen last season after being a sub par starting pitcher most of his career. Before he became an Angel he had pitched in 351 games (228 starts) in his major league career and he was 91-79 with 2 saves, a 4.98 ERA and a 1.52 WHIP. Since Oliver has come to the Angels he has pitched in 93 games (0 starts) and he is 5-2 with a 3.54 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. He has really been solid this season as he has worked in 32 games (0 starts) and he is 2-1 with a 3.13 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. Oliver has been a workhorse out of the pen for the Angels this season as he has worked more innings than any other reliever on the team.

Jose Arredondo has been great so far this season for the Los Angeles Angels

chinmusic — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 01:37:51 +0000

24-year old righty reliever Jose Arredondo has been a lifesaver this season for the Angels. He filled in as the primary set up man in the Angels’ bullpen while Scot Shields was injured and he did a great job. He has pitched in 17 games (0 starts) for the Angels this season and he is 2-0 with a 1.40 ERA and a 0.72 WHIP. Arredondo has been throwing bullets as evidenced by his 19 whiffs in 19.1 innings. The Angels’ bullpen is devastating now that it’s at full strength essentially making you have to beat them in the first six innings of the game.

The Los Angeles Angels could be in the market for a lefty relief pitcher

chinmusic — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 14:01:05 +0000

The Angels’ bullpen could use a second lefty in it behind Darren Oliver and they have a couple of extra players (Juan Rivera, Reggie Willits) to get a minor trade done. A perfect fit would be with the Mets. They need outfielders due to massive injuries they have suffered there. The thinking here is that the Angels could get either Scott Schoeneweis or Pedro Feliciano for Rivera. The Angels would probably prefer Feliciano because they have already had Schoeneweis in the past and he did not pitch well for them. Both teams would be happy with this kind of trade as they would both be dealing for a need from a position that they have depth.

Matt Brown is scorching the ball in AAA for the Los Angeles Angels

chinmusic — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 20:52:16 +0000

The Angels should seriously consider calling up 3B Matt Brown when they need an infielder next time instead of Brandon Wood who is clearly overmatched at the major league level right now. The 25-year old righty swinging Brown did get a cup of coffee in the majors this season as he played in 5 games for the Angels and he was 1 for 13 (.077 avg, .231 OPS) with 2 RBIs. But, he has been on fire in AAA ball this season as his stats jump right off the page. He has played in 54 games in AAA this season and he is 79 for 222 (.356 avg, 1.102 OPS) with 51 runs scored, 16 homers and 45 RBIs. Brown could also be a nice trading chip for the Angels if they need something at the trade deadline.

The catchers of the Los Angeles Angels are all or nothing when batting

chinmusic — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 05:34:14 +0000

Mike Napoli and Jeff Mathis have been splitting time behind the plate this season and they have produced a lot of runs from the bottom of the batting order, but it’s all or nothing for both of them. Napoli has played in 39 games this season for the Angels and he is 25 for 122 (.205 avg, .758 OPS) with 14 runs scored, 10 homers and 24 RBIs. Napoli often looks helpless at the plate as he has already whiffed 38 times this season. Jeff Mathis was once one of the Angels’ brightest prospects but he has been a huge disappointment for them in his career so far. Mathis has played in 31 games for the Angels this season and he is 20 for 96 (.208 avg, .665 OPS) with 14 runs scored, 4 homers and 13 RBIs. Mathis also whiffs a lot as he has went down on strikes 27 times this season. The Angels probably can live with the all or nothing hitting as long as Napoli and Mathis play good defense.

The Los Angeles Angels place Chris Bootcheck on the D.L.

chinmusic — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 21:59:04 +0000

The Angels have placed righty reliever Chris Bootcheck on the 15-day disabled list with a right elbow injury. He has pitched in 10 games (0 starts) for the Angels this season and he is 0-1 with a 10.13 ERA and a 2.63 WHIP. The Angels should make Bootcheck pitch well in the minors after he gets off the D.L. to earn his spot back in the bullpen. After all, he has allowed 30 hits in only 16 innings. The Angels have recalled rookie righty Darren O’Day from AAA to replace Bootcheck both in the bullpen and on the roster. O’Day has pitched in 17 games (0 starts) this season for the Angels and he is 0-1 with a 4.30 ERA and a 1.83 WHIP. O’Day needs to start missing bats in the majors as he has allowed 31 hits in only 23 innings this season.

The Los Angeles Angels place Chone Figgins back on the D.L.

chinmusic — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 01:37:45 +0000

Chone Figgins’ last stay on the active roster lasted exactly one game as he reinjured his hamstring in his first game back to action. Figgins has played in 33 games for the Angels this season and he is 38 for 124 (.306 avg, .778 OPS) with 19 runs scored, 7 RBIs and 11 stolen bases. Luckily for the Angels, starting 2B Howie Kendrick was ready to be activated off the D.L. to replace Figgins on the roster. Kendrick has played in 13 games this season for the Angels and he is an amazing 19 for 44 (.432 avg, 1.072 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 7 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. The Angels will likely let Robb Quinlan and Brandon Wood share 3B until Figgins’ is ready to return. Wood has had big issues with major league pitching thus far this season. He has played in 20 games for the Angels this season and he is 6 for 50 (.120 avg, .350 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 1 homer and 1 RBI. Wood has also whiffed an amazing 17 times this season as he has looked totally overmatched in the majors this season. Quinlan is not nearly as good as Wood is defensively at 3B but he’s been a much better hitter so far this season. Quinlan has played in 25 games for the Angels this season and he is 16 for 63 (.254 avg, .621 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 1 homer and 4 RBIs. The Angels really miss Chone Figgins at the top of their batting order.

The Los Angeles Angels should think of cutting Gary Matthews’ playing time

chinmusic — Wed, 28 May 2008 22:25:53 +0000

Gary Matthews just isn’t hitting enough to justify the playing time he has been getting this season. The Angels are playing him because they gave him a lot of money but he is proving that he wasn’t worth it. Matthews has played in 52 games this season for the Angels and he is 43 for 198 (.217 avg, .662 OPS) with 24 runs scored, 6 homers, 28 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. My idea would be to platoon Matthews & Juan Rivera. Rivera hasn’t played enough to get into a groove at the plate this season. He has played in 20 games for the Angels this year and he is 7 for 42 (.167 avg, .436 OPS) with 5 runs scored and 1 RBI. But, Rivera has been a much better hitter over his career than Matthews. Rivera has a .287 career batting average with a .803 OPS while Matthews is a .259 career hitter with a .748 OPS). The Angels need some help on offense and I think making this move in the lineup would help them.

John Lackey looks like he’s in perfect form for the Los Angeles Angels

chinmusic — Fri, 23 May 2008 03:58:10 +0000

You would never know that John Lackey has missed most of the season with the way he has pitched in his first two games of the 2008 season. Lackey has started 2 games for the Angels this season and he is 1-0 with a 1.29 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP. His velocity is there and he has whiffed 10 batters while only walking 4 in 14 innings. This is a good sign for the Angels as the rotation is very deep and talented.