Recap: Red Sox 7, Angels 5 - BostonHerald.com
TURNING POINT - It all began with Victor Martinez’ infield single, but Mike Lowell’s ability to draw a one-out walk was equally essential to the Red Sox’ winning rally in the seventh inning. Lowell’s walk loaded the bases and put additional pressure on Angels reliever Kevin Jepsen to throw strikes. He was unable to do so. Jepsen’s wild pitch allowed Martinez to score the tying run, and after intentionally walking pinch-hitter J.D. Drew to reload the bases, Jepsen hit pinch-hitting Daniel Nava to force home the go-ahead run.
Jepsen had done nothing up to the point where he threw a pitch about 6 feet in front of home plate allowing the tying run to score, so why was he still in the game to face Nava? One of the shortcomings of the Halo bullpen is the lack of a lefty specialist, which is probably the reason Jepsen was still in the game to bounce a pitch to left-hander Drew. So, where was Rodney? The same place he always is during innings one through seven, sitting on his ass in the pen. I realize it might be sacrilegious to question Scioscia's set-in-stone relief pitcher usage chart, but seriously, what's the point of saving Rodney to protect the lead in the 8th inning if the game gets lost in the seventh? Highlights - Good: Napoli blasts his 20th homer of the season - Mike Napoli launches a solo shot over the Green Monster to tie the game at 1 in the third, Callaspo jacks a three-run shot in the fifth - Alberto Callaspo belts a three-run homer just over the right-field wall to give the Angels a 5-2 lead in the fifth, and the Bad: Oritz scores after Nava is hit by a pitch - Daniel Nava is a hit by a pitch, which allows David Ortiz to score to give the Red Sox a 6-5 lead in the seventh, Nava makes a great grab to end the eighth - Daniel Nava races in to take a hit and an RBI away from Maicer Izturis with a great diving grab to end the eighth.
Angels-Red Sox Preview - FOX Sports on MSN
The Angels, meanwhile, will now try to avoid their fifth losing streak this season of at least four games. Two of the previous four skids concluded with sweeps at the hands of Boston. "Anytime when a team's struggling, less is more,'' said Los Angeles manager Mike Scioscia, who had his team skip batting practice Wednesday. "If anything, our guys are working too hard.'' Scioscia will give the ball to Ervin Santana (12-8, 3.99 ERA) in an attempt to cool off the Boston bats. The right-hander pitched well at Fenway on May 4, limiting the Red Sox to one run over seven innings, but wound up without a decision in a 5-1 loss. He is 1-2 with a 4.61 ERA in seven starts versus Boston. The Red Sox will counter with Josh Beckett (3-2, 6.51), who will make another attempt to reverse course in his disappointing season. The right-hander appeared to be doing just that in his first three starts following a two-month DL stint due to a back strain, going 2-0 with a 2.18 ERA, but has gotten pounded for 13 runs and 21 hits over 9 2-3 innings while losing his last two outings.
Peter Bourjos' offense is a work in progress - latimes.com
Bourjos hit .122 in his first 12 big league games, with five hits, 10 strikeouts and three walks in 41 at-bats, and he was on the bench for Wednesday night's game against the Boston Red Sox. The big concern is that Bourjos struggles for an extended period, loses confidence and starts drawing comparisons to Brandon Wood, who failed to emerge from a three-month slump and lost his third base job in July.
Forty-one at-bats. I think we need to wait just a bit longer before questioning Bourjos' hitting ability.
Tigers lose game, Jim Leyland loses mind - Bless You Boys
Miguel Cabrera, who hit his 29th and 30th home runs earlier in the game, was nailed high in the ribs with a fastball from Yankees' reliever Chad Gaudin. You'd expect Cooper to come out from behind the plate, and toss Gaudin. After all, warnings were issued. Standard procedure, right? Wrong. There was no ejection. Gaudin remained in the game. Yankees manager Joe Girardi wasn't ejected. Cabrera looked stunned that there was no ejection, then took his base. Absolutely nothing happened at all...save for Jim Leyland losing his mind. When it was obvious there would be no repercussions for hitting the Tigers' meal ticket, Leyland ran onto the field to give Cooper a long piece of his mind. After somehow not getting tossed, Leyland's berating of Cooper continued from the bench. The commentary from Leyland was a string of F-bombs interspersed with his saying someone was going to get hurt, and this prime nugget.caught by Fox Sports Detroit's microphones... "They're going to the ******* playoffs, I ain't going anywhere."
There's really not much being written about last night's Yankee/Tiger game. As you can read above, both teams were warned after Gardner was hit, but there were no ejections later in the game after Cabrera was hit and Jeter was thrown at. What happened? Here's the video from the game: No pitchers ejected after benches are warned - The only ejection after benches are warned in the first is Jim Leyland, who protests the non-ejection of Chad Gaudin
MLBPA challenges Mets' actions in K-Rod case - CBSSports.com
The Major League Baseball Players Association is challenging the Mets' decision to place the record-setting closer on the disqualified list and their effort to convert his contract to a non-guaranteed deal. If the case isn't settled, arbitrator Shyam Das would decide whether the team's actions were justified. No hearing date has been set. "We disagree with the position of the Players Association," the Mets said in a statement. "We believe our action was justified and appropriate." By going on the disqualified list, Rodriguez will lose $3,016,393 of his $11.5 million salary this year. Added to the $125,683 he lost when the Mets put him on the restricted list for two days last week, the altercation already has cost him $3,142,076.
No big news here, just wanted to point out the fact that K-Rod makes $125,683 per game.
Derrek Lee's move to Atlanta the right one - ESPN
The first proposed trade that the Cubs brought to Derrek Lee was to the Angels, and by the time Lee mulled that over in the third week of July, the Angels -- in spite of their extraordinary history -- were buried deep in the AL West standings. For Lee, at age 34, it was not the kind of sure thing he needed to justify uprooting his family and moving in the middle of the season.
From the last two weeks of July, the Angels were anywhere from 3 to 7 games out of first. I'm not too sure that's "buried deep", and with the right acquisition, not an impossible gap to close. Lee must have felt he wasn't good enough to help a team get to the play-offs, but just good enough to keep a first place team out of second. Thanks for doing the Angels a favor.
Unidentified man injured in fall at Fenway Park on Wednesday night - ESPN Boston
It was at that point, the former policeman said, that he first observed the victim. "His chest was heaving, so he was breathing, but he definitely had a good deal of blood on his forehead. "I saw him lying face up. He'd lost a shoe. Security kept his shoe."
Damn security stealing injured people's shoes.
Cincinnati Reds vs. Arizona Diamondbacks - August 18, 2010 - ESPN
Jim Edmonds showed some hustle scoring from third base on pinch-hitter Chris Heisey's perfectly executed bunt that scored the go-ahead run as the Cincinnati Reds rallied from a four-run deficit to beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 11-7 on Wednesday night. Heisey plates the go-ahead run on a bunt hit - Video
I like keeping up with former Angels, especially when they're doing well. Oh, and he also homered: Edmonds lifts a solo home run to left - Video
This has got to be one of the worst things I've ever seen...
Now we know where Roger Lodge was. "Game on!" Did they really steal a line from "Wayne's World"?
Angels " Win Probability " Wednesday, August 18, 2010 - FanGraphs Baseball
Texas vs. Tampa Bay - Recap - August 18, 2010
This was one nice series for Evan Longoria and the Tampa Bay Rays . Longoria hit a solo homer and drove in four runs to help the Rays beat the Texas Rangers 8-6 on Wednesday, completing a sweep of the three-game set between potential playoff opponents.
| American League West | |||||||||||
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | |||||||
| Texas | 67 | 52 | .563 | - | |||||||
| L.A. Angels | 60 | 61 | .496 | 8 | |||||||
| Oakland | 59 | 60 | .496 | 8 | |||||||
| Seattle | 48 | 73 | .397 | 20 | |||||||
August 19 - BR Bullpen
Happy b-day:
1892 - Rags Faircloth, pitcher (d. 1953) Which is it, rags or faircloth?
1956 - Ron Roenicke, outfielder And Angels bench coach.
1982 - J.J. Hardy, infielder; All-Star For some reason, J.J. Hardy is one of my favorite players.
Zero and nine:
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0 recs | 131 comments
This game was a microcosm of everything bad about this team.
I hope the organization remembers this utterly forgettable season.
If significant changes do not occur this offseason, “consequences will never be the same.”
sheisalovelyladyandmyapologiestoher - August 19, 2010
We've back-traced your post
WiHaloFan - August 19, 2010
I guessed I dun goofed!
sheisalovelyladyandmyapologiestoher - August 19, 2010
this season should be reported to the cyberpolice
daze - August 19, 2010
Just ride it off........
norcaliangelsfan - August 19, 2010
This is the kind of season where you just let Bourjos play and see what he can do.
Then in spring training he either has it or he doesn’t. But as far as I’m concerned, he has a free pass till then.
Monkeyspanked - August 19, 2010
Agreed
Sethy - August 19, 2010
with that logic
it’s hard not to play Wood.
I think Scioscia is still seeing what that kid named Mathis can do.
Quinlan's Goofy Swing - August 19, 2010
Mathis, premium player..
great glove, still waiting on his bat, looks great in a uniform. he’s had some hiccups but he should be turning it around soon… nothing to worry about.
clover_black - August 19, 2010
Take it one game at a time...
and turn the page
Downing Rules - August 19, 2010
Not the same.
We got Callaspo to play at 3B. He’s not going to be happy being benched so that our .100 hitting bust of a prospect can keep up his deer-in-headlights act in the batter’s box. Bourjos is getting to play because we had a defensive need in the OF.
Rally Manatee - August 19, 2010
Of course it's not bad to question Soth's use of the bullpen
A) he only uses roles which means the only way he gets a matchup advantage is if the baseball gods see fit that their batters come up in the right situation.
B) since everyone knows Soth doesn’t do matchups, that means opposing managers are free to get the matchups they do want.
C) most importantly in my mind is the fact that Soth will not pull a reliever whether it be Shields, Jeps, Rodney, or Fuentes until they have in fact coughed up the lead regardless of how bad they are pitching. Jeps just walked a few guys and showed absolutely no control for 20 some pitches….. who cares he still hasn’t given up the lead…..
D) a corollary to C is that regardless of how well a pitcher is pitching he will only let his main relievers pitch/finish one inning. Rodney just showed he has control for 3 batters and strikes them all out, who cares bench….. Jeps just broke three bats with 3 sick cutters, who cares bench….. Fuentes has been pitching crazy good lately, maybe he could finish off the 8th inning against a lefty in a tight spot and then still come in and pitch the 9th…..who cares stick your ass on the bullpen bench until the 9th comes.
All of it is absurd, I watch a ton of games on MLB.TV he’s the only one that manages anything close to that.
MH252525 - August 19, 2010
also another reason I don't worry about Bourjous as I did with wood
is that He actually makes contact with the ball. He is just making outs. Also his defense is a huge upgrade and has helped out the pitchers and corner OF’s. He has another thing going for him which is speed and bunting. Things Wood isn’t known for.
Sinatrasratpack - August 19, 2010
Someday he will make a fantastic reggie willits.
clover_black - August 19, 2010
Reggie Willits w/o the walks
but with 7 homers a year.
MH252525 - August 19, 2010
Bourjos is far better in centerfield than Willits.
And it’s a far more critical position than leftfield. It’s fine to have light hitters up the middle.
And after 100 innings of Fleet Pete in CF, the numbers confirm what we’ve already seen:
1. The positional defensive value he adds with his glove is greater than what he has subtracted at the plate. He’s been worth 1.6 runs above replacement, equal to $700k thusfar, just on the strength of his position and his glove.
2. At his current rate, he is the best defensive centerfielder in all of baseball. At 96.9, he has a UZR/150 more than twice as high as the next candidate who has played at least 100 innings at the position.
These are very small samples, and it’s a friggin’ sin for me even to talk this way — no way does he sustain this nosebleed ecstatic excellence over a full season — but it does confirm what the eyes say: his glove is for real, it’s really valuable, and it makes his fate at at the plate easier to swallow.
Turks Teeth - August 19, 2010
what's he hitting now?
at least he has a batting average.
Wally's World - August 19, 2010
Daniel Simpson Day... has no grade point average
red floyd - August 19, 2010
Or maybe a half way decent rendition of Gary Pettis
righteous halo - August 19, 2010
On Baseball-reference
Bourjos is 6 runs below average with the bat, which is a lot for only 41 AB. But 6 runs above average with the glove. Think what you will about defensive metrics, but that seems about right. I can easily think back and find at least 6 catches Bourjos has made that other CF’s (even gold glove ones like our buddy T) just would not get to.
A guy who can hit .314 in AAA, even in a great hitters park, is not a .122 hitter. The question on Bourjos is whether he’s a .240 hitter, or has the potential to get to .280. For a guy who did what he did at AAA and continue to fail this miserably, Brandon Wood is pretty much the only precedent to fail for that long – near 400 major league AB now.
That might be a case for getting Wood as far away from Bourjos as possible.
RallyMonkey5 - August 19, 2010
The early defensive metrics seem to all be in relative consensus on Bourjos.
Of the first 38 plays Bourjos has made in the field, 12 of them have been out-of-zone.
That says a little something about how much he’s compensating for the other rangeless rovers on the field. Hunter was attempting to do that as well — 23% of the plays he made were out of zone — but Bourjos, with 32% of his plays OOZ, is doing it better, as well as covering his own zone far better too.
Turks Teeth - August 19, 2010
play bourjos, play wood
just play everyone that would benefit from time in some major league games. consider this an early start on winter ball, or spring training, or whatever. we’re not making the playoffs, but we can build towards next year.
Kernel - August 19, 2010
wait till call ups, i think some players will get some good playing time
however, we have seen that Callaspo has a pretty good glove at 3b and has been hitting for us.
Also remember that this season, Trevor Bell has gotten time Kohn, Wood, Bourjos, Michael Ryan, Frandsen, and Wilson have all gotten time. We have given some decent time to some guys.
Sinatrasratpack - August 19, 2010
Why wait?
In September, many teams are playing their own call-ups. I think you’ll get a better indication of a player’s staying power by playing them now before September.
sheisalovelyladyandmyapologiestoher - August 19, 2010
whats sad that it does appear Callaspo has been hitting for us
but I think it’s a case of him just being surrounded by ineptitude because Callaspo’s OPS + with the Angels is slightly below average at 96.
MH252525 - August 19, 2010
you forgot McFatty
stuck in Romania - August 19, 2010
Call up the kids
Ive been an Angels fan since the late 70’s, so ive seen all the horrors that this team can put u through. This team is a nice reminder of those bygone days. The days when we’d trade Dante Bichette for Dave Parker…the very old Dave Parker. Letting Wally Joyner go and watching Lee Stevens struggle,etc,etc. Dont need to hear the complaints about Sosh leaving struggling pitchers in, hes done that since day one. Not gonna change. What can change is getting those waste of time vets off the field. I dont calre how thick your rose colored glasses are, u have to see this season is over. The Rangers just got swept and what have we done? NOTHING! Get those kids up there. The ones wholl be excited to be in the bigs, wholl hustle, who wont look like theyre running in mud. Lets see what weve got. This team is not the team that u just knew was going to win, this team is the team that u know is going to find a way to lose
aces666high - August 19, 2010
Sorry
Dont know why i brought up Bichette and Joyner, guess im still pissed after all these years.
aces666high - August 19, 2010
It's ok - I'm still pissed about 1995
I took that one personally.
Commander_Nate - August 19, 2010
I'm still pissed about 1986
Friggin’ bawston.
halofolife - August 19, 2010
I'm angry about 1982
Bloody Milwaukee
red floyd - August 19, 2010
I'm angry about 1979 ...
doggone Orioles.
Downing Rules - August 19, 2010
I'm also angry about 1962
Damned Yankees.
red floyd - August 19, 2010
I'm still angry about 1776
Damn revolutionaries
TheQuestforMerlin - August 19, 2010
Me too
Worst part of trading for Dave Parker is that the Angels then released their current DH – Brian Downing. Worst fail ever.
RallyMonkey5 - August 19, 2010
silver lining
protectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpick protectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpick protectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpick protectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpick
protectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpickprotectedpick
2pintsofbooze - August 19, 2010
after every loss ^^this^^ is what I say to myself. over and over and over and over and over
2pintsofbooze - August 19, 2010
agree, this is the gold at the end of the season.
We’ve been out of it for over a month.
Wally's World - August 19, 2010
Angels Need To Trade...
Mathis and Wood in some deals with Rivera next year .. Bobby Wilson is a better catcher by far and a better hitter i mean he only plays every blue moon and hits 2 hrs in a game thats the angels future and he needs to play, they need to pick up another hitter and PLZ bring in some arms in the bullpen im tired of watching people take turns losing the game for the starting pitchers, i love the angles but lets be real without morales and a strong bullpen there going nowhere fast lets do this GM get to work.
Peter1011 - August 19, 2010
and what would they trade them for,
a bag of magic beans? these guys have little to no trade value, so Mathis and Rivera probably aren’t going anywhere, unless they’re DFA. and I doubt they’re willing to give away Wood after investing so much into him. If Wood can get some playing time and perform with less pressure, perhaps he can raise his trade value. thats the only way I see them trading him away at the moment.
but what do I know? I’m just a lowly Angels fan writing my opnions on a blog.
2pintsofbooze - August 19, 2010
Rivera is perfect for KC.
Heck, they gave Guillen 30 + million, and he isn’t even as good. They would be backflippng to get Jaun for only 4.
Wally's World - August 19, 2010
Trade them to the Pirates
The Pirates love to buy low (ie. Lastings Milledge). These guys are about as low as you can go.
righteous halo - August 19, 2010
read this.
LiteUpThatHalo - August 19, 2010
whoops forgot the link.
http://theoatmeal.com/comics/ie
LiteUpThatHalo - August 19, 2010
You know...
that bag of magic beans worked out pretty good.
Stirrups - August 19, 2010
I agree on most points.
But like 2pints says below, nobody’s going to be chomping at the bit for any of those guys. Rivera has the most trade value because he has power and a cheap contract. He could DH for the Royals or something.
But since Sosh is in love with Mathis, and the rest of the baseball world can see that Mathis is utterly useless, I think we’re stuck with him.
Nobody’s going to give up a player for Wood. He’s worse than unproven, he’s proven that he can’t hit MLB pitching. Plus, he’s out of options. So, everyone knows we will have to release him if we want another roster spot. I think Wood is doomed to have to show what he can do in a few late-inning pinch hits, and maybe 2 or 3 starts. If that is nothing, then we’ll let him go after this season, wish him well with some other team, and get a few cheap years out of Callaspo until Cowert is ready.
Rally Manatee - August 19, 2010
Never going to happen
Wood’s trade value: Zero. No one is going to waste their time with him except on a minor-league deal, and that can’t happen until he becomes a free agent via release or non-tender.
Mathis’s trade value: Less than zero. He’s an utterly useless at everything that matters at his position, but he has a $1.3 million salary and he’s going in to his second year of arbitration. Like Wood, other teams will not even think twice about him unless he becomes a free agent via release, non-tender, or (could Scioscia really be so blind?) accruing six years of service time with the Angels.
Rivera’s trade value: Slight. He’s really only useful as the right-handed half of an outfield platoon, but his $5.5 million salary next year is a pretty steep price to pay for 200-250 PA. The Angels would have to eat a significant amount of money to get even a marginal return on Rivera. They’re probably better off just keeping him themselves to platoon with Abreu.
Suboptimal - August 19, 2010
I think Soth's management as a whole should be questioned this season.
I get the no-kneejerk reactions, give guys time to show you have confidence, but after a few months the team has shown you what they are doing this time around and it is Soth’s responsibility to adjust (something that maybe separates him from the greats, look at Torre not being afraid to bench/move big names).
How, after basepath fail #452 by Hunter this season that have taken momentum away, he hasn’t benched him midgame to maybe light a fire under Torii is beyond me. Really the Angels have been horrendous on the paths all year and if he hasn’t had an hour long discussion on the basics and described the difference between “aggressive” and stupid I’d be deeply alarmed in the coaches abilities.
On top of that, he needs to stop sending these rotting corpses to steal bases. Maybe he is stuck in a timewarp and still thinks he is in 2002, but these guys have no speed, so stop sending them.
The “frenzied” hitting has been a joke, it’s now become “impatient” swinging and basically looks like a bunch of older guys just there to collect a check and nothing more.
And holy shit the different lineups every night, sitting a fair amount of guys every other night and expecting them to still play at a high level is not possible. Stick with one catcher, one first baseman, one set of outfield, and one DH and let them see if they can get ANY steam under them. Instead your lineup scores 10 runs and the next night your sitting 3 of the guys responsible for most the runs and plugging Mathis and Rivera back in the lineup.
This season of fail is largely on the coaching staff, and mainly Soth himself. He should have adjusted and tried some different things by now, but instead he is staying in a rigid position that is continuing to cost the team games.
Dontbatvlad4th - August 19, 2010
Soth needs to have back to back bad seasons before I even start thinking about him being bad..
But he’s led this team to the best decade in team history. So I think he’s entitled to a shit season every once in a while.
And I don’t count ‘00 and ’01 as back to back. It was his 1st year and I’ll count 82-80 as good for that…
Monkeyspanked - August 19, 2010
Amen
It’s got to be 2 back to back bad seasons before we really start questioning Sosh. But I REALLY hate the pitching “roles.” His insistence on showing “confidence” is his players has just become laughable. To me, he’s not exuding confidence, it’s exasperation. When he leaves a guy in to sink or swim, I imagine Sosh saying, “I don’t have any better options, so screw it.”
Rally Manatee - August 19, 2010
That's true.
We all saw Kaz hangin’ like a mother out there. That was bad. But he deserved it. He needed to find his sac out there.
Maybe he’s found it?
Monkeyspanked - August 19, 2010
Pitching roles
Jepsen blew it yesterday, but it’s not like we had other options. I laugh at anyone who thinks Rodney could have rescued him. How quickly we forget how badly Rodney blew the game last time we played this hateful wretched masshole team.
RallyMonkey5 - August 19, 2010
Stop laughing at me
Rodney may not be better than Jepsen, but he might have been better than Jepsen last night.
WiHaloFan - August 19, 2010
So you're the guy who says
“Never tell me the odds.”
Suboptimal - August 19, 2010
Odds are for Strat-o-matic
WiHaloFan - August 19, 2010
If Scioscia has given up this team, why shouldn't we
When Scioscia leaves a pitcher in to get absolutely pummeled, or when a reliever shows absolutely no command and Scioscia just leaves him in there, it does feel like he’s giving up. This is why I honestly, have stopped paying attention to this season. Why should I pay attention, when Scioscia’s metaphorically picking out his toe jam in the dugout, while his team is going up in flames.
righteous halo - August 19, 2010
The problem
Scioscia doesn’t have anyone else in the bullpen with better command. No one in the bullpen has a BB/9 lower than 4.0, except for Bell, who’s been bad in other ways. League average is 3.3. Rodney’s control is worse than Jepsen’s. His only better option at that point was to put in Fuentes. Yeah, maybe he should have, but what manager makes that call? Almost every single one has a defined closer and uses him in that role. EVERY manager does this. I wish just as much as you that Scioscia would be the one to break this convention, but it shouldn’t be at all surprising that he won’t.
The fact is that the tools Scioscia has in his bullpen are pretty damn poor. Jepsen, as bad as he’s been, is probably his second best reliever outside of Fuentes. And even as Jepsen crapped the bed last night, one of those guys should never have been on base except for a lucky chop infield hit.
Scioscia hasn’t given up. He’s trying different lineups (although Callaspo in the three hole? Ummm). He’s trying to put his relievers in spots where they can succeed (remember that we don’t have a lefty in the pen either, outside of Fuentes). But this team is just mediocre. Nothing else to it.
Gorbachav5 - August 19, 2010
the thing is
yea Rodney has worse control than Jepsen, but that’s overall and not on a given night. The thing is Soth KNEW that YESTERDAY Jeps was having major control issues and yet he’s still in the game. There are plenty of times Rodney doesn’t have control issues, but he throws 12 pitches and is then out of the game.
Soth needs to base his pitching decisions based on how well his pitchers are pitching in a particular game instead of something completely uncorrelated to that, like did the inning just end. He should leave in his pitches when they do have good control longer, and have a quicker hook when it’s obvious they don’t.
When pitchers are pitching bad and you take them out quick then you have a greater liklihood of finding a pitcher that will pitch well on that night. Likewise when you leave in pitchers who are pitching well, you run less of a risk of running into a guy on his “off night”. The way Soth does his bullpen he’s playing Russian Roulette each time he takes a pitcher out because he finished his inning because he doesn’t know what he’s going to get from the next guy.
MH252525 - August 19, 2010
I've said this all year.
Why not treat pitching more like hitting? Play the HOT players. If someone obviously doesn’t “have it” on a particular night, get him the hell out of there before he does irreparable damage, and try someone else. I don’t think that’s showing a lack of confidence in an individual, that’s showing a desire to win the damn game!
Rally Manatee - August 20, 2010
I don't think Scioscia is a terrible manager
He does seem to go against every statistic and trend in just about every loss. Maybe it happens during the wins too, but I just remember all the apparent mistakes, from my admittedly unprofessional eye.
If Dusty Baker wasn’t so terrible, Scioscia’s recent playoff failures might have cost him a job. He’s pulled some stupid shit in just about every playoff game since 2002. Some of those teams were better than they appeared in the playoffs, and it falls on Scioscia when he isn’t putting his best on the field in particular situations or for entire games.
Quinlan's Goofy Swing - August 19, 2010
Scioscia's Gut Feeling=Too Many All You Can Eat Pasta Buffets
righteous halo - August 19, 2010
1995
God Commander, almost had that blocked out. Now all i can see is Langston laying flat on his back at home plate after the M’s took the lead and ran away with it.
aces666high - August 19, 2010
the eternal image
of a 13 year-old’s crushed dreams. i will never forget that day. or that play. or my favorite player, my absolute FAVORITE PLAYER, lying on his back as he blew the game.
he also served up some dinner plates for the padres against the yanks a few years later.
i just hope my son never has to hold on for nearly 15 years between playoff appearances, with an historic collapse in the middle. i hope he gets tos ee mroe continued playoff appearnces and wins under sosh.
Kernel - August 19, 2010
Langston with the Pads
I seem to remember him getting squeezed pretty good by the home plate ump before serving up those dinner plates. Or am I just imagining that?
dmhead - August 19, 2010
yea there was one call in particular against Tino Martinez
that couldn’t have been a fatter pitch. It was a fastball RIGHT down the middle and I mean absolute has to be a strike 100 times out of a 100. I even remember ESPN showing the highlites and pausing the pitch going WTF where was that.
MH252525 - August 19, 2010
Sosh
It wasnt Sosh’s fault that during the playoffs Chone Figgins looked like a little leaguer on the field and in the box nearly every playoff series. Or the fact that Vlad disappeared, or Colon was basically average. This list could go on and on. I agree that Mike has made some big mistakes like putting Washburn in to face Ortiz,lefty vs. lefty even though all season that matchup didnt matter to him and we all know what happend there. But i think most of the blame lies w/your lil blurb about Mr. Hatcher. This team hits well for 1-2 months out of the year and the rest of the year is pray for a shutout.
aces666high - August 19, 2010
too bad
Hatcher is under contract through 2018
2pintsofbooze - August 19, 2010
before anyone berates me
I meant this as an extension of Scioscia’s contract and his undying loyalty to his guys. Unless Arte or Tony basically tell Scioscia that he has to make a change, Hatcher ain’t going anywhere while Scioscia is there.
thank you and have a pleasant day
2pintsofbooze - August 19, 2010
Arte maybe
but Reagins can’t tell Sosh to do anything.
Rally Manatee - August 19, 2010
Yes, he can
I’m so sick of hearing this stuff about Scioscia running the team. Tony is the general manager. In every profession – including sports – the general manager makes the final call on personnel decisions. He can’t tell Sosh what pitcher to bring in from the pen or when to lay down a bunt, but he sure as hell can fire an inept coach if he feels the need to.
dmhead - August 19, 2010
Tony got his degree
in puppetology from the College of the Desert. Yea I’m sure he’s the guy initiating a lot of stuff with other GM’s and agents during FA signing times, but I’m pretty sure every decision runs through Soth to get his approval more so than any other manager in baseball.
MH252525 - August 19, 2010
Sosh would pimp slap reagins so hard and make him wear a dress
if tony ever thought he could pull rank.
clover_black - August 19, 2010
Pretty sure I'm right
I’m not going to be able to back this up, but I’m pretty sure I remember hearing something about Sosh getting more power and authority when Stoneman left and/or when they renewed his contract. He’s definitely got more sway than many managers.
Rally Manatee - August 20, 2010
nice cherry pickin.
revise it!@ revise it!
Wally's World - August 19, 2010
There are some serious problems with our offense
A team that spends the kind of payroll we have should not be so inept in getting people on base. Every player we bring up is a hacker. Some who have shown patience (Napoli) are going backwards, even though the general trend is that players become more patient as they get older.
The only guys on the team who can lay off a bad pitch are Izturis, and older guys we sign as free agents like Abreu, Matsui, and Hunter. Maybe it’s not Hatcher’s fault, but he clearly isn’t any help in the matter either. It’s time to try something new.
RallyMonkey5 - August 19, 2010
Thanks Rally
I forgot about us letting go of Downing! Good good that trade sucked! Oh lets not forget Parker didnt even make it through the SEASON for us. Big congrats to Naps for his 20hr and 22RBI for the year. Someday he’ll figure out that its ok to knock one out when theres someone on. At least 10 have been solo shots. Still, at least he’s hitting them. Whatever,this season sucks.
aces666high - August 19, 2010
defending Naps
20 HR 53 RBI is not bad. I’ll take that from a catcher any day. Vernon Wells is at 22/60. Ortiz is at 26/77. Just sayin, if we’re choosing what to complain about this season, Naps lack of RBI would not be my top choice.
Rally Manatee - August 19, 2010
+1
Monkeyspanked - August 19, 2010
I'm pleasantly surprised with napoli's production this year
I just hate how he goes into such terrible slumps, his production is perfect for the 6-8 (maybe just 7-8) spots in a lineup but he’ll never provide the consistency needed from a middle of the order guy. He’s also 2nd in WAR on the Angels, w/ a 1.3 while Mathis is -0.7 (First time using WAR as a metric but it seems to work comparing our own catchers).
Question for the Sabrematricians, if Napoli’s WAR is 1.3 and Mathis’s is -0.7, does that mean that Napoli is worth 2 Wins over Mathis or is WAR comparing players against an imaginary replacement-level player?
jtkelly86 - August 19, 2010
Napoli
Say what you will about Napoli’s slumps, but at least he has hot streaks. Much better than putting a player in the lineup whose entire career consists of one long slump.
Yes, Napoli has been 2 wins better than Mathis for the playing time each has received this year. Prorate that out to a full season to appreciate the true difference between them.
RallyMonkey5 - August 19, 2010
Noodle arm aside, I'm definitely a Napoli fan over the rest of our catchers.
jtkelly86 - August 19, 2010
He's thrown out runners at a higher % than Mathis this year
and he’s above league avg. this season.
Rally Manatee - August 20, 2010
Yes, it means playing Napoli has been worth two wins more than Mathis over the course of the season. The Angels would be about a win better by playing a replacement player (Bobby Wilson) over Mathis.
So yeah, WAR is derived from subtracting estimated replacement level production from actual production, but you can still use it to compare players.
Gorbachav5 - August 19, 2010
So it's Mike Napoli's fault the rest of the team has a .317 OBP?
The logic is back-asswards. It’s the other players’ fault for not getting on base before Napoli hits a long ball. In truth, 50% of Napoli’s homers have been with men on base. The average across all of MLB is just 42%. He’s doing more than his share to help drive in runs. It’s pretty much everyone else who fails.
Suboptimal - August 19, 2010
Rec'd.
This.
+1
Dittos.
Turks Teeth - August 19, 2010
not to mention
offense is usually a bonus coming from a catcher (see: Mathis, Jeff). anyone who has ever played fantasy baseball can atone to that.
2pintsofbooze - August 19, 2010
yea plus
with him DH’ing and playing 1B this year it seems like he’s found himself in front of Maffis in the lineup far too much. Who is going to give Naps a pitch to hit when everyone knows they can pitch Jeff like Lackey did lastnight (1 strike in 5 pitches for example) and get the guy out. With the Angels struggling to score runs and knowing Mathis is behind him or another weak ass hitter, I’m not shocked that Naps walk rate is down.
MH252525 - August 19, 2010
And last season, you would not have found a single fan member on this site that liked Napoli
over Mathis except me.
44FAN - August 19, 2010
are you serious?
anyone with even a basic understanding of WAR or OPS have been saying Naps should start 2/3 of the time at C.
MH252525 - August 19, 2010
this cannot be accurate
sorry man, but I find this very hard to believe. I wasnt on this site last year, so i can’t argue from a personal standpoint, but there are a lot of people on this site. no way did every single one of them prefer Mathis over Nap.
no offense, but you really make yourself sound like an idiot with that post
2pintsofbooze - August 19, 2010
You are creepy.
clover_black - August 19, 2010
Oh get over yourself.
This site in particular has been mostly pro Napoli since this whole catcher debate started.
dmhead - August 20, 2010
Insulting.
I’ve been pro-Naps from day one. If you don’t believe, check my posts history.
Rally Manatee - August 20, 2010
I dunno Rally
the post by 44fan seems like he did a lot of research on this topic. I mean, why would someone make such an insane claim if they hadn’t gone back through the thousands of posts from last season to make sure what he was saying was correct?
I thinks its time we all faced the facts, 44fan was right, and every other Angel fan was wrong.
2pintsofbooze - August 20, 2010
touche!
Rally Manatee - August 21, 2010
Mike Napoli is one of the few bright spots of this year
Not just for his bat over basically a full season – we all pretty much knew he could do that. His willingness and ability to step in at 1st base and be an asset instead of a liability there while continuing to put up good power numbers means he should be a guy we factor into our long-term plans without a doubt.
Commander_Nate - August 19, 2010
Glass half full,but cracked
True, half his homers have come w/men on, but like i said,at least hes hitting them,just feel like ripping on everyone. Bad teams do that to you. On the bright side he will set a new career high in HR’s…and strikeouts! Solid .195 BA w/RISP too! Man i’m negative today! Must be the heat. Lemme think up some more horrid personnel moves from the past!
aces666high - August 19, 2010
Your posts are fine, but please use the reply button.
Gorbachav5 - August 19, 2010
Sorry Gorby
Forgot the button was there as i wallowed in my depression
aces666high - August 19, 2010
A mark of bad teams
Is that they start blaming their best players for things they can’t do. That is wrong. Appreciate them for what they can do and surround them with more good players.
Hunter – can’t play CF or run the bases anymore but best hitter on team and gracious move to right, where he is a plus defender
Napoli – Homerun power. Somebody has to provide it. And throws out runners better than Mathis or Wilson.
Aybar – Usually good defense and an acceptable bat if he’s playing SS and hitting at the end of the order.
Morales – What could have been. Get well soon.
Abreu – gets on base, OK defender if played at DH
Bourjos – Defensive specialist
Izturis – nice utility player
The rest? Good riddance.
RallyMonkey5 - August 19, 2010
nice
2pintsofbooze - August 19, 2010
I agree with all this.
I also think Willits is a fine 25th man. Good defense and speed off the bench. Eminently replaceable, but he doesn’t hurt the team.
Turks Teeth - August 19, 2010
yea he's probably the 2nd fastest runner on the team
and that’s only because Bourjos just came up. He’s 3rd in the team I believe in OBP, and he’s under utilized because the guy hits LHP pretty dang well (think Figgins that got the fact contract) but who does he start against??? Grienke and Lackey, but when we faced 3 straight Blue Jay lefties he was on the bench the entire series.
MH252525 - August 19, 2010
This is so true
you want to GM!!!
MH252525 - August 19, 2010
Throwing out runners
Whatever happened to the catcher that could actually throw out a runner??? Mathis…forget about it,Naps is average at best and Wilson is just a fill in. Cant remember who we were playing but there was a play at the plate, guys beat the throw(of course) and Mathis,on the infield grass fired back to 2nd to get a BR who has strayed too far. If the ball had been somwhat on target easy out,but nope! He fires it almost to where the SS lines up and the guy stands up at 2nd. I know that this is pretty much a lost art, the days when Boone and Parrish at least seemed to give us a fighting chance are gone,but Sosh was one of the best, you would think he had tips, technique,something! Very deflating when the ball is just getting there and the runner is already standing.
aces666high - August 19, 2010
His name was Jose Molina
Suboptimal - August 19, 2010
While I am pretty sure Naps and Mathis suck...
I am not sure how much of the blame can be on the pitcher’s ability to hold the runners as well.
Weaver has an exceptionally long delivery that is helpful to a running game.
Downing Rules - August 19, 2010
yea Weaver is very slow
Lackey was just a tad faster.
Santana is below average IMO and not such a great move.
Kaz isn’t all that slow to the plate but isn’t very good at holding runners (esp for a lefty)
Saunders was good at both but he’s gone.
Pinero is quick home and can hold runners.
Also Jose Molina was great, but it IIRC he also seemed to catch a lot of Colon starts who was probably the quickest to the plate during his playing career.
MH252525 - August 19, 2010
Slow delivery
I agree slow delivery is a problem w/our staff but even w/pitchouts its still unbelievably close at times.
aces666high - August 19, 2010
We were spoiled with the Molinas.
League avg. is 24%. Napoli is at 28% this season. That’s about as good as we can get without having a Molina or Bob Boone.
Rally Manatee - August 20, 2010
Molinas
Forgot the Molinas. They had some pop too.
aces666high - August 19, 2010
reply fail
Downing Rules - August 19, 2010
I’ll take
Jose or Bengie, even though they might not be stealing 20 bags over Mathis. They can hit, and more importantly, not airmail half the throws to 2nd.
phoenix15 - August 19, 2010
Angels held a "player's only meeting" today...
…AGAIN. Led by Torii and Abrew…
Per Terry Smith
K3YEROUT - August 19, 2010
Again?
They’ve had more team meetings than a …….(insert a witty comparison of your choice that only you and two other people will understand) Lindsey Lohan!
sheisalovelyladyandmyapologiestoher - August 19, 2010
lemme guess
Torii talked to the guys about the base running deficiencies while Abrew emphasized defense.
I expect some good baseball tonight.
2pintsofbooze - August 19, 2010
Or,
perhaps they lectured the pitchers about holding a lead?
K3YEROUT - August 19, 2010
then
the pitchers lectured about scoring runs.
this is how I imagine it went;
“great taste!” “less filling!” “great taste!” “less filling!”
2pintsofbooze - August 19, 2010
They lectured Mark Gubicza ...
on trusting his stuff and staying within his mechanics.
Downing Rules - August 19, 2010
+1
red floyd - August 19, 2010
Torii said, "The reality is..."
To which Abreu replied, “No question…”
Rally Manatee - August 20, 2010
You very funny!
sheisalovelyladyandmyapologiestoher - August 19, 2010
Angels are 17-7 in games started by C's Wilson (15-6) and Budde (2-1)
hmmmm
K3YEROUT - August 19, 2010
small sample size
;)
Downing Rules - August 19, 2010
Scot Shields .194 vs LH and .349 vs RH
more small sample sizes ;)
K3YEROUT - August 19, 2010
When they score 3 runs or fewer = 8-43; Score 4 or more and they are 52-18; Trail after 8 = 1-55
Last time we won a game 1-0 was 7/19/09 @ Oak (Lackey, Fuentes) and it was done twice last season.
Just shitty baseball
K3YEROUT - August 19, 2010
Compelling but not surprising numbers.
I wonder how many teams have bad records when scoring 3 runs or less? I bet that all of them do. I’d look up the records but am not sure where to do that. Could you direct me to a site to do that?
sheisalovelyladyandmyapologiestoher - August 19, 2010
the Ralley Monkey
should be ashamed of himself. I wonder if he feels a little like GMJ when he picks up his paycheck every other week?
2pintsofbooze - August 19, 2010
Just for kicks...Last season
When they score 3 runs or fewer = 17-38
Score 4 or more and they are 79-27;
Trail after 8 = 2-55
K3YEROUT - August 19, 2010
All right fellas, What time is it?
Game Tiiime!
Hoo!
sheisalovelyladyandmyapologiestoher - August 19, 2010
Not sure how Bourjos could be another Wood
Wood was rated as high as #2 on some people’s minor league prospect rankings for the entire minors. Bourjos never received similar acclaims
hauldog - August 19, 2010
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