Halos Heaven

Another group effort adds up to easy victory - Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel
The Angels were coming off an 11-3 road trip, but the Brewers have doused them back to reality by outscoring them, 19-3, in two victories. Manager Ken Macha reminisced to Monday's victory and talked about how during that blowout win he looked at infielder Craig Counsell and said, "We haven't had a game like this in a long time." Macha was referring to the offense producing and the pitchers shutting down the opposition in the same game. Howie Kendrick doubled in the second at-bat against Bush, who also hit a batter in the first inning, but he didn't allow anyone to score. From that point, the Angels managed just two singles from the third through the sixth inning, and one of them was erased on a double play.  Bush put away 13 consecutive batters, including that double-play ball in the fifth, at one point before Torii Hunter broke up the string by leading off the seventh with an infield single and going to second on a throwing error by second baseman Counsell. Hunter tried to steal third with his team down six runs and nobody out but was caught by Lucroy, who threw a strike to third baseman Casey McGehee, who had the tag waiting for Hunter's foot.

Really?  Trying to steal third with your team down by 6 runs?  Although I doubt the play had any effect on the outcome of this game, it was still a stupid play.  Video highlights:  Izturis makes a play on a tough grounder - Maicer Izturis comes up with Corey Hart's hard-hit grounder on a tricky hop, Izturis doubles in the Angels' first run - Maicer Izturis rips a double into the gap in left field, bringing Kevin Frandsen around to score.

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Brewers-Angels Preview -  FOX Sports on MSN
Los Angeles looks to avoid getting swept at home for the first time in nearly three years Wednesday night when it faces a Milwaukee Brewers team that hasn't swept the Angels in California since 1988.  Joel Pineiro (5-6, 4.77 ERA) takes the ball for Los Angeles in the series finale, looking to win his third straight start while helping the team avoid a series sweep at home for the first time since June 25-27, 2007, versus Kansas City.  Last season with St. Louis, the veteran right-hander was 2-0 with a 3.43 ERA in three starts versus Milwaukee. Pineiro looks to build off his second complete-game victory of the season, Friday's 10-1 win over Dodgers. He matched a season high with seven strikeouts and allowed five hits. "I felt good all the way," Pineiro said after retiring the final 14 batters. "I was able to relax and (Mike) Napoli called a great game." Milwaukee closes out the first half of its six-game trip with Chris Narveson (5-3, 5.46) on the mound. Making his first career interleague start, the left-hander gave up two runs and six hits in Friday's 6-2 win over Texas.

Angels suffer another insult to add to injury - latimes.com
Aybar was diagnosed with "meniscal damage" after an MRI examination Tuesday, but the Angels said nothing else except that he would be re-evaluated Friday. Scioscia said he is optimistic because Aybar felt better Tuesday. He said Lewis Yocum, the Angels' medical director, had not broached the subject of surgery.

And here's the typical Scioscia quote that contains words, but no substance..."Sometimes these things just hit a wall," Scioscia said. "Then you have to go in and do something. Sometimes you breeze by, and you're ready to go out and play in four or five days."  Amazing insight.  It's almost like he does that on purpose, like he's thinking "let's see how many words I can speak without actually saying anything."  I want to give it a try, "I create these daily link posts in order to put forth the effort of creating a venue of linking to relevant news as it relates to baseball in general, the Angels in particular.  Sometimes the links are on point, and sometimes they don't get the job done.  However, I do take it one day at a time and focus on the intangibles in a day-to-day scenario."

Oswalt, Berkman ponder their uncertain futures -  Yahoo! Sports
Teams that need a first baseman, like the Angels, would have to weigh not only Berkman’s salary but also whether his lost production would return. Berkman likewise would evaluate the team. Even though the Angels are within two games of first-place Texas in the American League West, he is unsure whether he would accept a deal there. "That wouldn’t be an automatic yes," Berkman said. "That would be a long, hard thought. Especially because I’d rather go east than west."

That's okay Berkman, the Angels would rather have Oswalt.

Why more pitchers are flirting with no-no's - FOX Sports on MSN
Already this year, 16 pitchers have taken a no-hitter into the seventh inning, according to STATS LLC. Since 1974, that’s tied for the second most, at this point in a season. The most on that list? Last year, with 18. After so many no-hit bids – some completed, others not – we can say that a trend has developed. And if you're looking for a tidy explanation, you've come to the wrong sport. Ironically, MLB witnessed seven no-hitters in 1991, during the early days of the Steroid Era. That year, Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire both took 0-for-3's in a combined no-hitter by the Orioles. So it was still possible to dominate hitters who were cheating. That being said, the effects of current drug testing are undeniable. Home runs have become fly outs. Batters feel less invincible. Swings have more holes. And in many afternoon games, hitters who played nine innings the night before drag their bats to the plate and face a pitcher who has been resting and preparing for four days.

This seems to be a typical thought process when people write about the effect of PED's and other substances in baseball; that only hitters took advantage of performance enhancers.  I would wager that just as many pitchers were juicing, but all we hear about are theories about how the hitting has been changed due to the elimination of PED's relative to the offensive side of the game.  In fact, I'd also wager that PED's have more effect on a pitcher's performance than it does on a hitter's.

angels&aimee: home sweet home?
The ironic thing is that in the preseason, many talking heads and bloggers (like me!) noted the lack of the usual Angels depth. They just figured the weak point was in the aging outfield, rather than the young, homegrown infield. But while none of the outfielders (including Matsui!) have hit the DL, five infielders have (Wilson, Mathis, BWood, Izzy, KMo). Just goes to show the unpredictability of a season.

Good point about how the old guys are holding up better than the young.

The Complexity Of Articles Is Pushing Fans From Sabermetrics " The Bravesologist
The problem, I am beginning to realize, isn’t the difficulty of understanding the statistics, but the difficulty in the read itself. People reading about sports don’t want to take time to read long-winded articles with numbers, explanations, and comparisons spread throughout them. They want their information, and they want it quickly. The reason for the ignorance we see from the "old school" is the smug nature of the "new school."

This article hits the nail on the head for me.  I'm very interested in the sabermetric-side of baseball, but it does seem to me that some of the more popular writers come across as pompous know-it-alls who are so closed minded to their way of thinking they refuse to even enter into a discussion without saying, "I'm right, you're wrong because my stats tell me so and there's nothing you can say to change my mind."

Rahmatulla lost for CWS - Inside UCLA with Jon Gold
The UCLA baseball team was dealt a devastating blow on Monday night, when it was discovered that starting second baseman and three-hole hitter Tyler Rahmatulla suffered a broken right wrist and would be lost for the College World Series. Rahmatulla injured the wrist during the team's post-game celebration following an 8-1 win over Cal State Fullerton in the deciding game of the Los Angeles Super Regional at Jackie Robinson Stadium on Sunday night.

The Angels, In Order: #55 Billy Consolo
Billy Consolo grew up in Los Angeles, California, graduating from from Dorsey High School where he played baseball with Sparky Anderson. After his playing days ended in 1962, Consolo returned to Los Angeles and like his father before him he became a barber at the old Statler Hilton Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.

From the major leagues to the barber shop.  You never hear about what happens to guys, especially players from earlier eras, after they leave the game. 

June 16 - BR Bullpen
1907 - In the Pacific Coast League, Bob Groom pitches a no-hitter as Portland beats Los Angeles, 3 - 0.
Happy b-day (two of my favorite players on the same day!):
1962 - Wally Joyner, infielder; All-Star
1981 - Joe Saunders, pitcher; All-Star

Cory Hart is ugly: