Cloud #9
Pirates - Astros - Dodgers - Reds - Cardinals - Twins - Orioles - Mariners - Yankees
The Angels have won 9 series in a row and and 12 of 13, the only loss coming against the Tigers (1-2) and that series included a 7-8 loss in which the Angels had the tying run on base in the ninth. The Halos also have more wins than any other team in baseball at 49 right now and are currently on pace for a whopping 104-58 record. Good times indeed.
However, none of the teams above are really elite teams (except for the Dodgers maybe, at least record wise) and there have been a few less pleasant sights lately, like giving up 22 runs in three games against the Astros, homer-serving Bartolo Colon (although his start yesterday was ok), John Lackey giving up 15 runs in his last three starts (although only 11 were earned), Jered Weaver missing a start with a bruised shoulder, Frankie blowing the save yesterday … I could go on, but these really are all only minor issues. Overall, what I find most encouraging is that the team overall is not playing over its head. Sure, Figgins will cool off, but his season stats are still very much in line with what can be expected from him. Lets take a short look at the stats and see who’s in a for a regression and who still has room for improvement:
Cabrera .336/.372/.451 - The average is likely to come down a bit, but the rest seems to be ok. Hitting in front of Vlad should continue to help him.
Matthews .285/.342/.452 - GMJ* seems to be doing what he is capable of.
Guerrero .325/.423/.562 - In line with his career numbers.
Kotchman .333/.411/.556 - Casey may see his stats drop some, a .900 OPS is probably be a bit much for him.
Willits .343/.439/.409 - His average will most like go down (although the same was predicted a month ago), but his OBP will remain excellent.
Hillenbrand .254/.275/.325 - His average is on the way up, but where is the power? Improvement is due either by Shea himself or via trade.
Figgins .302/.356/.386 - Season numbers still on the low side of what he is capable of.
Napoli .250/.345/.446 - Giving the Angels what he was supposed to. A good eye and some pop.
Kendrick .298/.331/.435 - Already solid numbers for Howie, but there is still room for more thanks to the injury caused slump and a slow start.
Aybar .248/.289/.282 - Has been robbed of his first big league home run twice now. However, all numbers should go up in the second half as he adjusts.
Anderson .264/.265/.411 - He still has some pop, but unless he gets more selective at the plate, having him on the DL is probably the better scenario.
Izturis .245/.298/.319 - Should also be able to hit better once healthy.
Molina .242/.258/.286 - Doubled his RBI total on Sunday (to 4), but will never be known for his bat. Still has room for a tad more power though.
Quinlan .274/.326/.452 - Solid numbers for Q. As long as he plays mostly against southpaws, he should be able to keep it up.
Morales .292/.370/.542 - If he’s going to play more in the second half, his batting line at the end of the season will look not nearly as good.
Haynes .333/.375/.333 - He should be able to keep up a good average, but that’s about it.
Kelvim Escobar 2.81 ERA, 1.11 WHIP - I always knew Kelvim could be good, but Cy Young good? Yes, I think he has it in him! If he stays healthy, expect the ERA and WHIP to rise a bit, but not too much.
John Lackey 2.96 ERA, 1.22 WHIP - Same as for Kelvim, ERA will probably rise some, but not too much.
Joe Saunders 2.97 ERA, 1.42 WHIP - His WHIP is a better indicator than his ERA, which will probably rise a run at least.
Jered Weaver 3.80 ERA, 1.53 WHIP - Just the other way around. Jered usually has good command and has been a bit unlucky on balls in play so far (BABIP .330). He should be ok if he stays healthy.
Dustin Moseley 2.52 ERA, WHIP 1.07 - Has been terrific so far, but is coming down to earth a bit lately. His K-rate (3.4 K/9) is probably not good enough to keep this up though.
Ervin Santana 5.06 ERA, 1.44 WHIP - Magic can be better than that and his last two starts on the road have been ok, which will be the key for him to finish the season with better numbers.
Bartolo Colon 5.90 ERA, 1.53 WHIP - Bad numbers across the board. It’s all about location for him, so let’s see what Mike Butcher can do here. Definitely has the chance to be significantly better.
Shields 1.90 ERA, 0.89 WHIP - Very good numbers for him after a bit of a rocky start. Might still see his numbers regress a bit, but not by much.
Speier 1.69 ERA, 0.75 WHIP - He can’t probably be THAT good when he finally returns, but even if his ERA rises a run and a half, he will still be boost for the pen.
Rodriguez 2.43 ERA, 1.17 WHIP - Good numbers for Frankie. His control worries me from time to time, but so far there’s no reason to expect him to regress significantly in the second half.
Bootcheck 3.73 ERA, 1.02 WHIP - Pretty good numbers for a mop-up guy. He has now earned the right to pitch in more high leverage situations, which in return will probably not help his ERA.
Oliver 6.20 ERA, 1.82 WHIP - Oliver has been simply terrible so far. He can’t get lefties out (.487 OBA), although he has been ok against righties so far. Has to get better soon or will not pitch in LA much longer.
Carrasco 6.55 ERA, 1.67 WHIP - Like Oliver, Carrasco has been a disaster so far. Thank god he only has a club option for 2008. At $3M, what do you think are the chances it will get picked up?
So all in all, there is no Magglio Ordonez (a.k.a. a player way over his head) on the team. On the contrary, it seems like overall, there is still some small room for improvement or an upgrade via trade - think Shea Hillenbrand - or via the Return of the Juan (Rivera). Of course, it’s always possible that an injuries takes out a player out of the rotation or starting line-up, but all together, I can’t help but be very incouraged by the current state of the team. Dare I say 100 wins?