I'm standing by my pick of the Angels

Back in March, I picked the California Angels (yes, I still call them that) to win not only the American League West but also make it all the way to the World Series.

I thought they had the best pitching to win the West. I thought the weight of Toronto being taken off Vernon Wells' shoulders would have led to a resurgence in his bat. And with Kendry Morales due back at mid season, they would get a nice jolt.

And I also figured in a short playoff series, the combination of Jered Weaver, Dan Haren and Ervin Santana would have them win both the Division Series and the ALCS.

Well that pick looks... well... not so good now.
But unlike my out of the blue picking of Oakland in 2009, I am standing by my pick.

Yes their offense is awful. They keep grounding into double plays and they've been shutout as many time this year as they had all last year.

Morales isn't coming back, Wells has been a total bust and here we are in Mid June with the Angels 5 games under .500.

But here's the thing. There is talent in the lineup. Mark Trumbo has shown some pop, Howie Kendrick is a decent hitter and Torii Hunter, Bobby Abreu and Maicer Izturis all have ability. They are in a funk.

Hitting is easier to fix than pitching, and this Angels team CAN pitch. Weaver and Haren are still pitching well, even if their win loss record doesn't reflect it. Young Jordan Walden has stepped into the closer role.

The Angels need to make a move and they need to make it sooner rather than later.

If they could bring in a player to give the team an offensive spark, the effect could be felt up and down the line up.

Imagine a player like Carlos Beltran plugged into the lineup. Remove him from the purgatory of Flushing and have him play in an outfield with Torii Hunter and Peter Bourjos (would there be a better defensive outfield in the game?)

And having him go on one last contract run could mean the likes of Abreu and Hunter and Trumbo could see more fastballs.

And also remember the Angels are only 5 games back of the Rangers with about 2/3 of the season to play. AND the Rangers always have a tough time of it in August.

(Even last year, the Rangers had a losing August. They just had such a big lead that none of the other AL West teams could take advantage of it.)

Give this lineup a new spark and the Angels could start scoring more runs and getting on a roll. Just take a look at the Red Sox to see how quickly things can turn around for a talented club.

But Arte Moreno and the management have to make a deal involving some prospects too.

Last year they made the right move, realizing that they got the best of what they could out of Joe Saunders and packaged him off for Dan Haren.

In the past the Angels have held on to players long before they have any worth in the majors or as trade bait.

(Dallas McPherson? Robb Quinlan? Brandon Wood?)

Bring Beltran to Anaheim and see the line up click.
Then see that 5 game deficit crumble.
Then see one of my picks look pretty good.

Yup. I'm standing by my pick.

32 pitchers have as many or more wins than the Red Sox

Look, I thought Dan Haren was going to be a Cy Young contender. And his teammate Jered Weaver should have a great year too.

And A. J. Burnett always starts off well.

All three have MORE wins than the Red Sox at this point.

It's mid April and the Red Sox have barely plural wins.

And there are 29 other pitchers who have tied the Red Sox in wins.
Some I can accept.

Roy Oswalt, Clayton Kershaw, Roy Halladay, Josh Johnson and Tim Hudson were supposed to be good.

But Matt Belisle? Justin Masterson? Logan Ondrusek?

For God sake, Kevin Correia has as many wins as the Red Sox! NO PIRATES pitcher should be out winning the Red Sox.

The others? Max Scherzer, Matt Harrison, Carlos Zambrano, Hiroki Kuroda, Derek Hollan, Aaron Harand, Edwin Jackson, Shaun Marcum, Edinson Volquez, Jhoulys Chacin, Rafael Perez, Jose Valverde, Armando Galarraga, Gio Gonzalez, Chris Sale, Josh Tomlin, Alexi Ogando, Zach Britton and Esmil Rogers all have matched the Red Sox.

And oh yeah... Bronson Arroyo.
(Can we still get Wily Mo Pena in the lineup?)

Who picked Dan Haren to win the Cy Young?

In my official picks for 2011, I had Dan Haren taking home the Cy Young.
My predictions are so often so terrible that one starts to look good, I need to gloat.

4 games in, a 3-0 record with a 0.73 ERA.
Tonight he threw a 1 hitter tonight. No doubt some number cruncher will tell me why he actually sucked in this game, but I'll give him credit.

And while he got a tough no decision in his first start of the season, he picked up a vulture win as a reliever 3 days ago... and then took the mound tonight and went 9.

Sounds like an ace to me.

Maybe the Angels should trade Dan Haren

Yesterday's win against the Rangers not withstanding, the Angels are in trouble.

If EVERYTHING goes right today and they get a win against the Rangers, they will be just 2 games over .500 and 7 games back.

Their bullpen stinks, their lineup is inconsistent and the chances of their winning a 4th straight Division title, 5th in 6 years and make the playoffs for the 7th time in 9 years seems to be slipping away.

It has slipped so much so that the L.A. Times actually started kicking around the idea of the Angels dealing away veterans like Hideki Matsui and Bobby Abreu.

And they had the humiliation of having Derek Lee turn down a trade to Anaheim. (Why should he leave one underachieving team for another?)

Well if they are going to make a deal, why not trade Danny Haren?
Seriously, if they are waving the white flag, why not send off one of the prized chips in the trading deadline season?

All the teams that lost out on Cliff Lee or Roy Oswalt (or Dan Haren for that matter) could see Haren as a shot to win in October.

And if the Angels could trade him for a better bounty than Joe Saunders, Pat Corbin, Rafael Rodriguez and Tyler Skaggs, then they win out!

They didn't give up a legit prospects for Haren, so if they get a can't miss player and some other potential players, then guess what? They finish on the plus column.

And we will have the memories of Dan Haren's lone game as an Angel.

I guess it would be similar to Rasheed Wallace spending one day with the Hawks in 2004. Atlanta fans will always have those memories.

Now THAT'S a lousy debut for your new team!

Far be it for me to feel sorry for the Angels, one of my least favorite teams. But you never want to see another player get hurt.

And the Angels, who went into tonight a full week behind the Rangers, thought they matched Texas' move for Cliff Lee when they got Dan Haren for some young players and former All Star Joe Saunders. And with the Rangers historical tendency to fall apart in August, it seemed like a great move.

Then Kevin Youkilis lined a ball off his arm, he was taken out and the Angels were at the mercy of their erratic bullpen.

2 Papi homers and a decent Buchholz pitching performance later, the Sox pulled out a win even though they gave the Angels every opportunity to win.

So now the Angels are more than a week out of first... and if the Red Sox sweep them, they will be at even .500 in late July.

Sounds good to me!

Let's update the tally.

DODGED A BULLET GAMES - 31

April 4 - 9-7 win against Yankees (On Opening Night, the Red Sox overcome a 5-1 Yankee lead with a game tying HR by Pedroia and a go ahead passed ball.)
April 10 - 8-3 win against Kansas City (Beckett out pitches Zack Greinke and nearly gets decapitated by a line drive.)
April 14 - 6-3 win in Minnesota. (Okajima gets Morneau to pop up with the bases loaded in the 7th and Papelbon wiggled out of a 9th inning jam.)
April 20 - 7-6 win against Texas. (Darnell McDonald introduces himself to Boston with an 8th inning game tying homer and a walk off hit in the 9th.)
April 21 - 8-7 win against Texas. (The Red Sox were down 4-0 early only to win it on Youk's 2 out 11th inning double.)
April 23 - 4-3 win against Baltimore. (The Sox blow a 3-0 lead but win it on Adrian Beltre's bases loaded walk.)

April 24 - 7-6 win against Baltimore. (The Red Sox score 6 in the 7th and hold off a late Baltimore comeback attempt.)
April 26 - 13-12 win at Toronto. (The Sox blow an early 5-0 lead but hang on for dear life in a slugfest.)
April 27 - 2-1 win at Toronto. (Buchholz holds the Jays down for 8 but it takes a bases loaded walk in the 8th to go ahead.)
April 28 - 2-0 win at Toronto. (Daniel Bard wiggles out of trouble in the 8th to help Lester shut down the Blue Jays and finish the sweep.)
May 4 - 5-1 win against the Angels. (Juan Rivera misplays Jeremy Hermedia's 2 out flyball into a 3 run game winning double)
May 5 - 3-1 win against the Angels. (Papi and Beltre homer and the Sox hang on despite squandering many potential rallies.)
May 6 - 11-6 win against the Angels. (Dice-K puts the Red Sox in a 4-0 hole before they even bat. The Sox bats respond.)
May 10 - 7-6 win against the Blue Jays. (Sox blow an early 2-0 lead, take advantage of some errors and hang on.)
May 18 - 7-5 win in New York. (Sox climb back from a 5-1 hole. A day after hitting a walk off homer, Marcus Thames drops a fly ball to start the winning rally for the Sox.)
May 25 - 2-0 win in Tampa. (Big Papi supplies all the offense as Papelbon wiggles out of a 9th inning jam.)
May 29 - 1-0 win against Kansas City. (Zack Greinke holds the Sox to one run, but they make it stick)

June 1 - 9-4 win against Oakland. (Lackey puts the Sox in a 4-0 hole but Victor Martinez goes 5-5 and the Sox score 9 runs late.)
June 2 - 6-4 win against Oakland. (Dice-K puts the Sox in a 3-0 hole before they come to bat, but come back thanks to Papi's homer.)

June 8 - 3-2 win at Cleveland. (With Papelbon unavailable, Okajima, Ramirez and Bard hang on to make a winner out of Wakefield.)

June 19 - 5-4 win against the Dodgers. (Sox make 4 errors, blow a late lead and let Manny homer, but they win it in the bottom of the 9th on a Pedroia single.)
June 20 - 2-0 win against the Dodgers. (Dodgers blow an early bases loaded scoring opportunity and allow Buchholz to settle down for the win.)

June 24 - 13-11 win in Colorado. (The bullpen lets up 9 runs in 5 innings, but Pedroia homers 3 times including with 2 outs in the 10th to win a wild and stupid game.)
June 26 - 4-2 win in San Francisco. (An injury running the bases takes Buchholz out in the second, but the bullpen and Mike Cameron's bat and glove win the game.)
July 2 - 3-2 win against the Orioles. (Wakefield gets the win and J.D. Drew homers twice, but it is Nava's 2 out 8th inning bloop that landed between three fielders that breaks the tie.)

July 11 - 3-2 win in Toronto. (Jesse Litch took a no hitter into the 6th but back to back homers by McDonald and Big Papi win the game.)
July 17 - 3-2 win against Texas. (Youk ties the game in the 9th off of Cliff Lee and wins it in the 11th with a sacrifuce fly)
July 19 - 2-1 win at Oakland. (Beltre homers and Dice-K holds on to the win.)
July 22 - 8-6 win at Seattle. (Lackey lost a no hit bid in the 8th and the Mariners scored 5 in the 9th to tie before the Sox won in 13)
July 23 - 2-1 win at Seattle. (Bill Hall's barely fair homer gives the Sox the win on Beckett's return.)

July 26 - 6-3 win in Anaheim. (Papi homers twice and Buccholz and Papelbon each wiggle out of jams to get the win.)

TEETH GRINDER GAMES - 31

April 6 - 6-4 loss against the Yankees. (Scutaro's error leads to the winning run.)
April 7 - 3-1 loss against the Yankees. (Sox leave the winning run on in the 9th only to lose on Granderson's 10th inning homer)
April 9 - 4-3 loss in Kansas City. (Bard coughs up the lead, denying Wakefield a win.)
April 17 - 3-1 loss to Tampa Bay. (The Sox can't score with the bases loaded and nobody out in the 11th... lost it in the 12th.)
April 17 - 6-5 loss to Tampa Bay. (The Red Sox comeback falls a run short, leaving two on in the 8th)
April 25 - 7-6 loss to Baltimore. (The Sox blow a 4-1 lead, leave the winning run on second in the 9th, let up 3 in the 10th and could only score 2 in the bottom of the 10th)
April 30 - 5-4 loss in Baltimore. (Tejada ties the game with a 2 out 8th inning homer and wins it with a bloop in the 10th)
May 1 - 12-9 loss in Baltimore. (Dice-K and Wakes get pounded, wasting 2 homers from Ortiz and an early 4-1 lead.)
May 2 - 3-2 loss in Baltimore. (Varitek is thrown at home trying to score with 2 outs in the 8th. Sox get swept in the 10th.
May 12 - 3-2 loss against the Blue Jays. (The Sox rally in the 9th comes up a run short and Kevin Gregg gets an ugly save.)
May 15 - 7-6 loss in Detroit. (The Sox blow a 6-1 lead and lose it on a 2 out bases loaded walk in the 12th.)
May 17 - 11-9 loss in New York. (The Sox come all the way back from a 5-0 first inning hole to take a 9-7 lead in the 9th... but Papelbon lets up a 2 run game tying shot to A-Rod and a 2 run walk off shot to Marcus Thames.)
May 21 - 5-1 loss in Philadelphia. (Big Papi's bid for a game tying 9th inning grand slam is caught at the warning track.)
May 27 - 4-3 loss to Kansas City. (Dice-K walks the go ahead run in and lets another score on a wild pitch as the Royals no name bullpen shut down the Hot Sox.)
May 28 - 12-5 loss to Kansas City. (Sox blow a 3-0 first inning lead to be blown out in Fenway.)
June 3 - 9-8 loss to Oakland. (Sox lose a slugfest where two Boston runners are thrown out at home.)

June 6 - 4-3 loss in Baltimore. (Sox rally to tie the game in the 9th only to lose it on a small ball rally in the 11th.)
June 10 - 8-7 loss in Cleveland. (Sox blow an early 5-0 lead and then after rallying in the 9th to take the lead coughed it up with 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th)
June 13 - 5-3 loss to Philadelphia. (Sox 9th inning rally comes up short)
June 22 - 2-1 loss in Colorado. (The Sox waste a solid Lester start and twice leave the bases loaded.)
June 23 - 8-6 loss in Colorado. (The Sox batter Ubaldo Jimenez around but Papelbon lets up 2 homers in the 9th to lose it.)
June 25 - 5-4 loss in San Francisco. (The Sox strand 11 runners in the last 4 innings wasting a solid Wakefield performance.)
July 5 - 6-5 loss in Tampa Bay. (Sox spoil a 5-1 lead and 2 homers by Eric Patterson when Dice-K and the bullpen couldn't hold down the Rays.)
July 6 - 3-2 loss in Tampa Bay. (Sox bats go dead and Kevin Youkilis goes down to injury.)
July 7 - 6-4 loss in Tampa Bay. (Matt Garza comes out of the pen, shuts down a late rally as the Rays sweep the Sox.)
July 10 - 9-5 loss in Toronto. (The Sox give Lackey an early 5-3 lead that he couldn't hold.)
July 18 - 4-2 loss to the Rangers. (Lester loses a rare game at home that included a Rangers steal of home.)

July 20 - 5-4 loss in Oakland. (The Sox go up 4-0 after 2 but don't score again and lose it in the 10th)
July 21 - 6-4 loss in Oakland. (Buchholz can't hold on to an early lead as the Sox lose the series.)
July 24 - 5-1 loss in Seattle. (Lester's perfect game is foiled and the Red Sox bats die.)
July 25 - 4-2 loss in Seattle. (Okajima misplays a sacrifice bunt and the Mariners rally in the 8th to win.)

Back to break even.

All the Red Sox can do now is win games... the Yankees won and the Rays pulled off a no hitter. But if the Sox continue to win, who knows what will happen?

Lackey returns to Anaheim tomorrow.

Maybe he'll be amped up. Either way, I want a series win.

Nice to see you Mr. President. Thanks for building a stadium without a roof in Texas!

The Rangers won the series against the Angels and still have a 7 game lead in the AL West.

Call me crazy, but I am standing by "Wake me when it is Labor Day and the Rangers are in first place" stance when it comes to Texas.

The heat is going to be murder and the Angels essentially swapped out Joe Saunders and his mediocre numbers for Dan Haren and his potential All Star numbers.

Don't count out the Angels yet.

They'll make the Rangers sweat... as if they won't be sweating enough as it is.

Who is Dan Haren laughing at? THE GIANTS?

Why?

Because the Diamondback pitcher drove in 3 runs on Friday... which was THREE TIMES as many runs as the Giants scored all weekend against the A's.

Hey Giants... why not try to get Haren? AS A HITTER?

Seriously, bring up Buster Posey!

THE CY YOUNG DOZEN

I know I have written about the NL Cy Young race a bit, but I truly find it to be fascinating. Yeah, it is early, but I don’t recall the last time I have seen this many legit candidates all get out of the gate so quickly. And as someone who loves dominating stud pitchers, this year in the NL seems to be a bumper crop!

Nobody in the AL is dominating like the top NL pitchers, and the usual suspects (Verlander, Sabathia, Lester, Beckett, Hernadnez, Greinke) aren’t putting up numbers the way that the NL’s top 12 are.

2006 wasn’t that long ago that the National League honored Brandon Webb with the Cy Young award for his solid but not exactly eye popping season.

This year? I doubt if Webb had the same season in 2010 that he would crack the top 5 when all is said and done.

I’ve counted 12 pitchers who are either former Cy Young winners off to solid starts, true aces who are dominating and a few guys whose careers looked over by the end of last year who are coming out blazing.

And this list of 12 doesn’t even include former Cy Young winner Chris Carpenter, nor dark horse candidate Ricky NolascoBoth have shown moments of brilliance, as has reliever Matt Capps. But this top 12 is a hard party to crack.


Let’s list them…


Tim Lincecum

I truly believe if he can deliver a World Series title to San Francisco he will be the third biggest star in San Francisco sports history. He seems hellbent to make it 3 Cy Young Awards before his 27th birthday. He would have win #5 this afternoon if Brian Wilson could have held onto the 9th inning lead. Yet he still has a 1.27 ERA and leads the league in strikeouts. I guess that whole pot thing really slowed him down.


Ubaldo Jimenez

He is the first pitcher since Jack Morris in 1984 to start the season 5-0 with a no hitter. He is second in the league in innings pitched and has held opponents to a 0.79 ERA and a .186 average against. Oh yeah, he’s doing all of that in COLORADO!


Roy Halladay

Even with a loss the other day, Halladay is throwing like he wants Cy Young #2. Nobody has pitched more innings in the NL. He has 2 complete games and a shutout and his ERA is 1.80. And 5 of his 8 earned runs came in one start. I think it is safe to say it was a good pick up for Philadelphia.


Adam Wainwright

He has the second lowest WHIP in the league and been an innings eater with a pair of complete games. He also has a tiny 1.69 ERA and a .187 batting average against to go with his 3 wins.



Johan Santana

Santana had one truly lousy game against the Washington Nationals in early April where he let up 5 runs, 4 on a grand slam by Josh Willingham. He has let up a grand total of 3 other earned runs all season. He has a 3-1 record and even with the rocky start against Washington, has a more than respectable 2.08 ERA and has not let up more than 1 run in 4 of his 5 starts.

Mike Pelfrey

With all of these great performances out of the gate, do you know who LEADS the NL in ERA? That would by Pelfry, whose ERA is impressive (and snicker worthy) at 0.69. Throw in his 4-0 record and coming out of the bullpen to save the Mets 20 inning marathon and he deserves at least entry to the dance.



Dan Haren

Who is second in the league for strikeouts behind Lincecum? Surprise! It’s Haren who has 38 in 34 innings of work. His ERA is a mediocre 4.50 but he’s been winning games (3-1 record), been eating up innings (third in IP behind Jimenez and Halladay) and has only 8 walks in 5 starts.


Josh Johnson

The Marlins well paid ace got out of the gate slowly but has been showing his ace stuff lately, especially after a complete game 3 hitter with 12 strikeouts and one walk against the Padres on April 26th. He is now third in the league in strikeouts.



Barry Zito

Remember when Barry Zito was on everyone’s short list for worst free agent contracts? Well now he is off to a 3-0 start and is averaging nearly 7 innings a start while posting a 1.32 ERA. Oh, by the way… his .161 batting average against is the lowest in the National League! Not bad for a crummy contract.


Livan Hernandez

Yes. It’s the same Livan Hernandez. An after thought starting pitcher on a potentially god awful Nationals team, the beneficiary of the Late Eric Gregg’s strike zone has won 3 of his first 4 decisions including a complete game shutout. His 0.87 ERA and .176 Batting Average Against are both third best in the league and his WHIP is 4th best. Will he keep that up? Who am I to say?


Brad Penny

The same Brad Penny who was run out of Boston on a rail is 3-0 in St. Louis this year. His 0.94 ERA is 4th best in the league. He has gone at least 7 innings in all 4 of his starts and has yet to let up more than 2 runs in any of them.

Another headcase solved by Dave Duncan!


Carlos Silva

One team’s garbage is another team’s treasure. Dumped into Chicago from Seattle in exchange for lunatic Milton Bradley, the Cubs may have stolen a winner…or least rejuvenated a talented pitcher with a fresh start. In 4 starts and 26 innings, Silva has the lowest WHIP in the league, plus a tiny 1.73 ERA and the fourth lowest Batting Average Against in the NL. Throw in a 2-0 record and a 5-1 strikeout to walk ratio and the Cubs may have more than coffee grounds from Seattle. Meanwhile Bradley is flopping as a .204 hitter flipping off fans with the Mariners.


So it will be interesting to see how many of these dozen remain Cy Young contenders month to month... I am guessing pitchers like Santana and Johnson will see their numbers improve and the Pennys and the Silvas would come back to Earth.

But who knows? I guess YOU picked Zack Greinke to win the Cy Young last year!