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August 2008
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Angels: August 2008 ArchivesI just talked with Angels GM Tony Reagins and he said that something could still be done even though shortstop David Eckstein was traded to Arizona. The Angels were believed to be interested in re-acquiring the fan favorite to provide middle infield depth, but now their focus could be on Toronto infielders John McDonald or Marco Scutaro. The Angels' pursuit of David Eckstein ended Sunday when the shortstop was traded to Arizona for minor league pitcher Chad Beck. Eckstein, who played for the Angels from 2001-04 and remains a fan favorite, could have provided middle infield depth for the Angels, playing without Erick Aybar and Howie Kendrick. Each is suffering from left hamstring strains. Manager Mike Scioscia was just ejected from the game for arguing with home plate umpire Bill Hohn about balls and strikes. That's usually a no-no. Scioscia appeared upset that Hohn did not appeal on Hank Blalock's check swing in the fifth inning and was thrown out for the fourth time this season. Vladimir Guerrero and Torii Hunter were both given Sunday off, to coincide with Monday's off day, but also to rest each player. Hunter made two incredible catches the previous two games and was a little stiff. He said Sunday was his "spa day" where he was just going to relax and get treatment. Guerrero missed two games earlier in the week to rest his legs and that was the case again Sunday. With an 18-game lead starting the day, the Angels can afford to give both players a day off. "It's a luxury we're doing it on the same day," Manager Mike Scioscia said. Facing RHP Kevin Millwood: Willits - RF Lackey - RHP The Angels conclude their series with Texas looking for a four-game sweep. Lackey gave up six runs in 5 2/3 innings earlier this season against Texas but earned a no-decision. For the second straight night, Angels center fielder Torii Hunter reached over the fence and robbed a Texas hitter of a home run. Saturday it was Hank Blalock who stood at first base with a look of shock after Hunter took away an apparent two-run homer in the seventh. "That's exciting ... two days in a row," said Hunter. "I'm just happy to be able to use that glove. That's what (owner) Arte (Moreno) got me over here for." Hunter, who also finished 2 for 4 with a run and RBI in the 4-3 win, said he enjoys taking away homers over hitting them. Angels manager Mike Scioscia has said he liked the new replay system as long as it was applied only to home runs and not to base-running calls. That sentiment was put to the test Saturday as replays showed (to the viewing public, not the umpires) two close calls. The following inning Texas' Chris Davis grounded to first where Mark Teixeira appeared to start a double play. Davis however was ruled safe at first and a run scored, putting the Rangers up 3-2. Both manager argued their respective cases and the game resumed. "Those plays have no place ever to be looked at by instant replay," Scioscia said. "That would be an extreme disservice to the game." Francisco Rodriguez picked up his 53rd save as the Angels rallied to beat Texas. Figgins 3B The Angels' pursuit of a middle infielder is apparently going down to the deadline. General manager Tony Reagins said before Saturday's game that the team is still looking, but "There's been no movement in any direction. Status quo." For a player to be eligible for the postseason, a trade would have to be done by 9 p.m. Sunday. The Angels' pursuit of a middle infielder is apparently going down to the deadline. General manager Tony Reagins said before Saturday's game that the team is still looking, but "There's been no movement in any direction. Status quo." For a player to be eligible for the postseason, a trade would have to be done by 9 p.m. Sunday. Frankie Rodriguez notches his 52nd save. Ervin Santana goes eight strong innings. Rangers Angels Probable starters for the second game of this four-game set... RHP Dustin Nippert (1-3, 7.83) vs. RHP Ervin Santana (13-5, 3.41) Gametime is 7:05 Juan Rivera's bases clearing double in the eighth inning gave the Angels their first lead of the night. Frankie Rodriguez notched his 51st save. Angels extend their lead to 16 games. Rangers Angels Instant replay will be in use today when the Angels take on Texas, and the first noticeable sign is the two grey orbs atop each foul pole. Only series' that begin today will implement replay -- Philadelphia at Chicago (NL), Minnesota at Oakland and Texas at LAA. So, he gets to use the technology first? The Angels put second baseman Howie Kendrick on the 15-day disabled list due to a tight left hamstring, an injury which forced him to miss time in April and May. In his place, the Angels recalled Brandon Wood from Triple-A Salt Lake. General Manager Tony Reagins said before the game he's looking to make a deal for some infield depth, which became a priority after last night, when Kendrick and shortstop Erick Aybar went out within a matter of innings. Welcome to Angel Stadium for the beginning of a four-game set with the Texas Rangers, second place in the West but currently 15 games out. Players from both teams have trickled onto the field here, and it's always interesting to see how teams warm up. While the Angels are taking a little early BP, three guys from the Rangers are tossing around a football, a fitting pastime for the start of college football season. So, who you got: Oregon State or Stanford? Here are your probable starters for tonight's game... Brandon McCarthy (0-0, 2.25 ERA) vs. Jon Garland (11-8, 4.49) Top storyline: The health of Erick Aybar and Howie Kendrick, both of whom left last night's game with hamstring injuries. The news is especially troubling for Kendrick, who missed time in April and May due to a similar injury. Oakland snuffed a ninth inning rally by the Angels, who left 13 runners on base during the game. More pressing, however, were hamstring injuries to Erick Aybar and Howie Kendrick, who are listed as day-to-day but will likely miss Thursday's opener against Texas. Angels second baseman Howie Kendrick left the game in the fourth inning after reaching second base following a single by Mark Teixeira. He was pulled for pinch runner Sean Rodriguez, who stayed in the game to play second. Not sure if it was because of an injury, but that seems the most likely case. More info to follow. Athletics Angels Garret Anderson and Vladimir Guerrero are in the starting lineup tonight against the A's, in the sixth and fourth spots, respectively. Anderson had been out with tendinitis in his left knee. Guerrero missed the first two games of the Oakland series to rest his legs. Third baseman Chone Figgins won't play tonight against the A's after hurting his left big toe in a rundown last night in the seventh inning. While it's not debilitating, manager Mike Scioscia decided to give Figgins the night off. "It's tough for him to push off," Scioscia said, "and if Figgie can't run there's a big part out of what he can bring." X-rays taken at the Kerlan-Jobe Clinic looked normal, an Angels spokesman said, adding Figgins is day-to-day. "We're going to give him today and see if it doesn't respond," Scioscia said. "We anticipate he'll be able to play tomorrow or the next day." Angels reliever Shane Loux was named pitcher of the year by the Pacific Coast League Wednesday. Loux was 12-6 with a 3.98 ERA for the Salt Lake Bees, the Angels' AAA affiliate. In four relief appearances with the Angels, Loux is 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA. LHP Joe Saunders (14-6, 3.37) vs. Oakland LHP Gio Gonzalez (1-2, 6.52) Saunders is 2-0 with a 1.26 ERA against Oakland this season and is 4-1 lifetime. John Lackey improved to 11-2 and lowered his ERA to 2.95 with a complete game win Tuesday. Lackey needed just 98 pitches and nearly had a shutout. Jack Cust hit a solo homer with two out in the ninth. An MRI revealed Garret Anderson has tendinitis in his left knee. He is day to day. Vladimir Guerrero, who has rested the past two games, is expected to be in the lineup Wednesday. Figgins 3B Mike Napoli's sixth inning solo home run last night made him just the third Angels catcher to hit at least 40 home runs for the club. Bengie Molina and Lance Parrish share the record of 61. John Lackey (10-2, 3.09) looks for his 11th win as the Angels face another Oakland lefty in Greg Smith (6-12, 3.75). Lackey has been tough on Oakland hitters, going 13-3 with a 2.77 ERA in his career against the A's. His 13 wins are the most against any opponent. Oakland had just four hits, but one was a homer by Daric Barton and the A's added another run on a wild pitch for the win. Then Angels have dropped eight of their past 12 games. What do Vida Blue, Ken Holtzman, Darold Knowles and Paul Lindblad have in common with the 2008 A's? Oakland has an all lefty pitching rotation for the first time since 1973. The current team actually has the edge with five left-handed starters. Figgins 3B Francisco Rodriguez became the fastest to 50 saves, both in terms of calendar date (Aug. 24) and game number (129), according to the Elias Sports Bureau. At 26 years, seven months and 17 days, he's also the youngest pitcher in history to earn 50 saves. Eric Gagne earned 50 saves at the age of 26 years, eight months and 14 days. Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez has been named AL Player of the Week after notching his 50th save. The 26-year old is on pace for 63 saves, which would break Bobby Thigpen's record of 57 set in 1990. --Michael Becker Gary Matthews Jr., only in Sunday's game because Garret Anderson was injured in the first inning, hit a go-ahead triple during a three-run eighth inning to propel the Angels to a come-from-behind win over the Twins, 5-3, earning a split of the four-game series. Moments after making a nice play in the first inning, Garret Anderson had to leave Sunday's game with a sore left knee. Fielding Alexi Casilla's ball down the line, Anderson spun and threw to second, causing Casilla to halt his progress and eventually was tagged out in a rundown. When Anderson's spot came up in the order at the bottom of the inning, Gary Matthews Jr. came out on deck. Juan Rivera moved from right field to left and Matthews is now in right. Anderson is listed as day-to-day and will be re-evaluated tomorrow. Angels' lineup vs. Twins RHP Kevin Slowey: Figgins - 3B Santana - P The Angels will be seeking a split of their four-game series this afternoon when they meet the Twins for the final time this season. Ervin Santana (13-5, 3.39) will pitch for the Angels, while right-hander Kevin Slowey (10-8, 3.78 ERA) goes for the Twins. Looking to bolster a depleted bullpen that has been overworked in recent days, the Angels recalled right-handed reliever Jason Bulger after Saturday's game, making room for him by optioning outfielder Kendry Morales to Class AAA Salt Lake. Bulger has a 7.94 ERA in five games with the Angels this season. A revived Angels offense led by Mark Teixeira battered Twins pitching early and often en route to a 7-5 victory. The win is much needed for the Angels, who scored just one run in the first two games of the series and had dropped seven of nine entering Saturday night's game. Catcher Jeff Mathis has been given the day off for tonight's game against the Twins. He had a lengthy pre-game heart-to-heart with manager Mike Scioscia and hitting coach Mickey Hatcher, who said he felt the struggling catcher needed a day off and a morale boost. We'll soon see if the team meeting worked... RHP Nick Blackburn (9-7, 3.71 ERA) and RHP Jon Garland (11-8, 4.33) are your probable pitchers tonight when the Twins and Angels meet for the third game in their four-game series. Obvious storylines: a struggling offense that hasn't scored in 20 straight innings, a closed-door meeting between Scioscia and his players after the loss last night, a 9-0 drubbing that took just 2 hours, 32 minutes. Game time 6:05 p.m. --Michael Becker The Angels offensive woes continue as they're shutout, 9-0, Friday night at Angel Stadium. That brings their scoreless innings streak to 20. Credit Glen Perkins, making only his 20th career start, for a pristine performance. He allowed just five hits in eight innings. After Erick Aybar reached third base in the first inning, the Angels couldn't get a runner past second base. They were 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position. --Michael Becker 11+6=17. Innings that is, of scoreless baseball for the Angels -- who haven't scored since Mark Teixeira's home run in the first inning yesterday. --Michael Becker Garret Anderson hit streak: 1. A day after snapping his 23-game hit streak, Anderson begins another. He notched an infield single in the fifth inning when he barely beat out a throw by Twins third baseman Nick Punto. --Michael Becker Don't call them Old-Timers. The Angels will host their annual Alumni Day, Sunday, Aug. 24, before their game against the Twins. Players scheduled to attend this year's Angels Alumni Day include: Jim Anderson, Don Aase, Dan Ardell, Ralph Botting, Billy Cowan, Paul Doyle, Mike Fitzgerald, Kevin Flora, Bobby Grich, Ike Hampton, Russ Herman, Ed Herrmann, Donnie Hill, Ruppert Jones, Scott Lewis, Matt Luke, Fred Martinez, Kirk McCaskill, Rudi Meoli, Bob Oliver, Albie Pearson, Roger Repoz, Buck Rodgers, Merv Rettenmund, Don Rose, Gary Ross, Dick Simpson Moose Stubing, John Verhoeven, Dave Winfield, Mike Witt, Wally Wolf and Clyde Wright. --Michael Becker The Angels face left-hander Glen Perkins tonight in a battle of southpaws - Joe Saunders pitches for the Angels. Here is the lineup: Figgins - 3B Joe Saunders will pitch for the suddenly sinking Angels tonight, the team having lost six of its past eight games. Saunders is 14-5 with a 3.14 ERA this year and will be making his third career start vs. Minnesota. He is 2-0 with a 1.20 ERA lifetime including throwing eight shutout innings in a start this season. The Angels lost, 2-1 in 12 innings to the Twins on Thursday. The Angels have hit just .225 as a team over their past seven games - losing five - and averaged just three runs per game. That's not a far cry from when they hit .242 and averaged 3.7 runs per game combined in May and June this year. "I think this is different than what we saw through May and June," Manager Mike Scioscia said. "Some guys have been a little off this last week. We need to do more things, no doubt about it." Justin Speier allowed a run in the 12th inning - Denard Span's single knocking in Nick Punto who led off with a triple - for his seventh loss of the season. It was the fifth loss by a reliever in the team's past six defeats, yet Torii Hunter took the blame for not catching Punto's triple. The ball was hit deep into the right-center field gap and Hunter jumped at the wall, the ball bounding off his glove. "I've got to catch that and make that play for him to get his confidence back," Hunter said about Speier. "That's my bad. I lost that game." Scioscia disagreed, saying "That would have been an amazing catch." A Mark Teixeira home run in the first inning and Nick Punto scoring on Carlos Gomez's single in the fifth inning were all the offense the Angels and Twins could muster through 11 innings on Thursday. Stay tuned. Justin Speier just entered the game. Obviously things can change. Radio broadcaster Terry Smith collapsed on the team plane on the way back from Tampa Bay and was not at Angel Stadium for Thursday's game. Smith, who suffered a similar episode earlier this season, was scheduled to meet with doctors over the next two days. "He wasn't feeling real good last night," team spokesman Tim Mead said. "We anticipate him returning to work Saturday." Because of Scot Shields' problems and Jose Arredondo's recent struggles, it doesn't mean the Angels are trying to add a reliever by the August 31 waiver deadline. "I think we have plenty of depth there," Manager Mike Scioscia said. "I don't think an outside arm is available or anything we would heavily pursue right now. We've got some young power arms in the minor leagues that are throwing the ball real well that are things we could look at in September. You've got (Jason) Bulger, you've got (Kevin) Jepson. We've got Arredondo throwing well. Shields, outside of a couple of outings, has been having a terrific year and Frankie." Angels' lineup vs. Twins RHP Scott Baker: Figgins - 3B Lackey - RHP Jered Weaver started out strong for the Angels, striking out the side in the first inning. Then he gave up four consecutive two-out hits in the second inning that turned into three runs and a 3-0 deficit for the Angels. But Weaver settled back down, striking out the Rays in order in the third. Weaver pitched six innings, allowed five hits, three runs and tied his career high in strikeouts with nine. Weaver left after the sixth with a 4-3 lead.
Angels second baseman Howie Kendrick was given Wednesday night off. Angels manager Mike Scioscia said he just wanted to get Kendrick some rest. Sean Rodriguez started in Kendrick's place. -- Broderick Turner A press release sent out by the Angels, saying they have extended their affiliation with Class AA Arkansas through 2010: ANAHEIM, CA - The double-A Arkansas Travelers and Angels Baseball today announced a two-year extension to their affiliation that will now continue through the 2010 season. The agreement was announced by Arkansas Executive Vice President/COO Bill Valentine and Angels' Director of Player Development Abe Flores. "The Angels are pleased to continue our relationship with the front office and fans of the Arkansas Travelers for the next two years" said Flores. "As an added bonus, our players have the opportunity to play in one of the finest facilities (Dickey-Stephens Park) in all of minor league baseball. It has truly been a positive working partnership with the entire Travelers' organization since 2001 and we look forward to more success in the future." "I'm proud to extend our affiliation with the Angels," Valentine said. "They've been a great partner over the past eight years and have provided our fans with some memorable moments. It's also been great to watch the success of so many of our former players in the big leagues." The second-longest affiliation in Travelers' history began in 2001 with a Texas League title. Although the club hasn't won a championship since the first season, Arkansas has qualified for post season play three times since originally signing with the Angels, including the 2008 season. Currently 14 players on the active Angels roster played for the Travelers while 12 others are on the Angels' 40-man roster. Figgins, 2b
The Angels and Tampa Bay Rays will finish out their three-game |