In case anyone’s interested, in the 11 times this franchise has made the post season ( yes Im counting the 1995 season) the worst record that an Angel team has had after 83 games and still made the playoffs is the 2004 team with a 44-39 record.
Which incidentally is our exact same record as of today. So I guess the question is What player is Phillip going to get into a fight with in the dugout to spark the team to victory?
Yes, you clearly had better 2 hrs and 51 min than we did. It looked good for about first 30 minutes until Angels died by 1000 cuts (bloop hits). We had more hits, 4HRs vs 0HR and 24TB vs 11TB. Oh, we were 0 for 9 RISP.
I have just found out Harrison Ford is 80 years old. I am glad he got to complete his Indian Jones series before he could not.
I thought he looked great in the opening scene… then realized it was an earlier period scene from the rest of the movie and they likely just de-aged him in post. When it was the “present day” portion of the movie, he definitely looked his age.
Nevin didn’t have any intention of pulling Sandoval in the third inning, and so had no intention of winning this game. He had his middle finger cranked from the moment Sandy got into trouble.
So they could bring in Wantz or Tucky or Poupy to increase the deficit in innings 3-6?
You can blame Nevin all you want but the options sitting down in the bullpen in that 3rd were ultimately a helluva lot worse than what we got in leaving Sandy in to give us 2 scoreless innings afterwards. And thats on Perry. I would love to bring Webb or even Devenski into a key third inning when the Starter cant miss bats but we do not have the bullpen depth to make that happen.
Oh incidentally, When Webb gave the Pale Hose those tack-on runs in 9th that would never have happened if the Angel hitters hadn’t gone a robust 0 for 9 with RISP as then Estevez would have been pitching that inning with a lead or in a tie game.
Your thinking here is too narrow Cowboy. You are being tied and hemmed in by the old “stick to your roles” thinking. This is exactly where Phil was and IS and why he’s a bad manager…
A good manager has to be flexible and think outside the box. That is what made Maddon so great when he was in Tampa Bay. You have to do whatever is required to win on that day.
Today Phil was tasked with pulling his head out of his ass and couldn’t do it. He sucks at managing. Face it. The solution was simple : Going into the 3rd WE ALREADY KNEW that Sandy didn’t have it today. Therefore his replacement should have been warming to start that inning… After three hitters reached he should have been pulled. Plain and simple.
Either Soriano or Devenski would have sufficed and would have shut that inning down with either no or minimal damage. Sometimes your high leverage spot comes in the 5th inning and sometimes it might even come in the 3rd inning, like it did today. The 3rd was where we needed to stop them. That was the time for action by our manager. But stubborn, red ass Phil was too thick to see it. Or too stubborn to care…
Had Nevin made the required move by pulling Sandoval the Angels in all likelihood would have gone to the bottom half leading 4-2 or at worst 4-3. A far cry from trailing 7-4 like what happened. Nevin is an ignoramus. He’s an idiot. Not only should he not be the manager of an incredibly talented MLB team he probably shouldn’t be allowed to manage a High School team.
In short, he cost the Angels the game today. Not Sandoval. Not the offense.
NEVIN is the reason they lost.
The sooner he is gone the better. Because we’re not going anywhere with him at the helm.
I was surprised when Wayne-o said they din’t have anyone warming in the BP, after too much damage had been done and the bases occupied. I woke my wife up a few times during her nap with “Why is he still in there?”
But you’re missing the point Frostie. You can’t make chicken salad out of chicken shit. And there aint enough chicken salad to go around if you’re yanking you starter out of the game with 1 out in the 3rd inning if you had to do the same exact thing the game before .
We’re in Game 4 of 13 straight games. We made zero organizational moves after last night’s game despite our known potential depletion.
Oh and by the way what king of Wacky Soggy Joe moves did you have in mind to pull a rabbit out of the hat this time Frostie? Maybe Griffin Canning or Reid Detmers could have given us a couple since maybe it’s a throw on the side day? Or why not just have Soriano pitch until his arm falls off? Or maybe Fletch can be brought in for a couple innings of relive he cant run anymore but maybe can still sling it. Or maybe,God for bid,an inning out Ohtani since he can do anything.
If Perry wants to build a half ass bullpen thats fine. but then you’re going to get games like this with no viable options available. Or at the very least go back to a five man rotation and put Barria back in the pen for long relief like he done so effectively so many times before. then when you get another starter meltdown game. The Poupster can clean up the garbage in the 3rd and then Barria can reset and stabilize the game in the subsequent innings.
I will be watching with much interest how Nevin will set up the starting rotation for Padres series and Dodgers miniseries If he keeps current rotation, it will be Ohtani/Barria/Sandoval for Padres and Canning/Anderson for Dodgers. He does have an option of putting Ohtani on 4 day rest or Detmers on 5 day rest in place of Anderson since next Thursday is another off day.
Another possibility is to put Barria back into bullpen, converting to 5 man rotation, leading to Ohtani/Sandoval/Canning for Padres and Detmers/Anderson or Ohtani for Dodgers. All kinds of permutation.
Previously Nevin talked about converting to 5 man rotation sometime in second half of the season, and I recall Shohei and others pitching on 4 day rest successfully in September last year. There will be many unknown factors, such as new starting pitcher by trade or whether Angels are still contending for playoffs in September, but I will not be surprised that Angels are then using 5 man rotation.
P.S. I predict Rendon will be back sometime during the Diamondbacks series, which begs a question of who Rendon will replace on active roster. Is it Velazquez back to SLC, or Rengifo DFA’d or Fletch DFA’d? Or even someone we just acquired. As the World Turns continues.
I understand what you’re saying and don’t totally disagree..
My point is that IF you shut them down in the pivotal 3rd you keep the precious momentum and a lot more good likely comes your way in the process; such as the offense scoring another 4 or 5 runs etc.. When that happens you can at that point then afford to put Tucky D in the game and still not lose it…
Managing takes FEELING and intuition.. Mainly sensing when the key moment is there and then rising to the occasion…
Well, he’s not better. But that is not the point. I loved Salmon. He has one of the All-Time great Halos… It is about respect. That was his nickname and we should respect him by reserving it for him …
The same type of respect when your organization gives out your jersey number to the hyped new rookie despite the fact that everyone knows youre going to the Hall of Fame?
I know he had bad luck today, bunch of weak ass shit just getting through. But he doesn’t seem to have a plan this year. The next hitter he outthinks will be his first. Have no idea who calls the game for him, dugout, catcher, or himself? He just throws. Gets off balance, overthrows, loses his mechanics easily, can’t regroup. Seems to get all indignant when his shit isn’t working. Bad body language. Sure isn’t following Detmers and Canning’s development.
Rather watch Anderson pitch. At least he doesn’t quit and pout, fights through a bad inning.
IMHO, from my couch, eating Del Taco. Home of the 3 Thursday Chicken Tacos and every Angels GM’s favorite restaurant to get deals done.
Forgot to point out his pitching coach an managers are not his friend. And likely hurt more than they help.
I agree with your view on Sandoval. who was already frustrated with a bloop hit and passed ball by Thaiss in the first inning. Wonder if sports psychologist would be in order for him.
I am optimistic. Partly because this team has obvious talent (with Moore, Rendon & Neto on the mend) and partly because I prefer to take a positive approach with my entertainment choices.
Appreciate you optimism, brother! Fortunately, Texas lost earlier, so we remain 6 games behind. And 1 game behind for WC3. Will be symbolically important to win the 15th win for June.
By the way, tomorrow is Apple TV+ Friday Game. I believe you can still sign up for 2 mo free subscription until July 2nd, not entirely sure.
Capitalism at its finest. Apple is paying MLB $85 MM per year x 7 years. Manfraud said something to the effect of he on behalf of MLB desires to widen the horizon of streaming service without admitting that it is strictly for $. I predict that Apple will choose not to renew contract in 2028 after finding out that younger generations do not sit for hours to watch baseball, losing $400 MM in revenue.
I agree with your philosophy but I cannot even watch the games consistently anymore because I know the other shoe is about to drop. It did today. Ugly.
I get it. In fact, I know most of you are largely correct in your criticisms, but I intentionally steer towards being upbeat. Primarily because there are so many negatives occurring in the real world that occupy our thoughts.
I no longer spend much time with sports beyond the Angels & UFC and I make a concerted effort to focus on how this team CAN win versus dwelling in the reverse.
Anyway, I anticipate Perry making a move for an SP and a proven BP piece rather soon – particularly if Sandoval can’t arrest the fall.
And if Trout is “back” this lineup is really dangerous.
Thank you for keeping positive attitude. I have vented my frustrations even thought I am aware that Angels players and coaches are truly trying to win every game. This is a very likable team who has legitimate chance of making playoffs.
Speaking of SP and RP availability, MLBTR listed top 10 free agents. I read with curiosity that Blake Snell and Josh Hader may become available, should Padres decide to become seller. They are currently 7 games under 0.500 and 8 GB Arizona. They play next against super hot Reds and Angels to follow. If they go 1-5 or get swept in both of these series, Minasian will be inquiring for their availability.
So much for any surge by the Halos. The starting pitching continues to be a problem. And when it was 7-5, they couldn’t get over the hump. It’s a shame.
-RISP 0-9. What happened to our small ball strategy? Double steal? Hit and run?
-Robert Jr after HBP by Webb immediately steals in the top of the 9th. Everyone knew he was going to steal. Webb and Thaiss should have paid more attention.
-Lynn adjusted his strategy, not throwing strikes. Angels batters kept on swinging aggressively out of the zone. We should have knocked him out in the 2nd inning.
After the 4 run 2nd inning (Plus the previous game against Lynn) the Angels
swung the bats in a very carefree way – like they assumed that Lynn was their b*tch. They got over their skis for sure. It was definitely frustrating, but our pitching is the bigger culprit.
Take 2/3 from Arizona and we’ll forget about these
two games against Chicago.
We’ll forget about them til those 2 games here, 2 games there, meltdowns here, embarrassing loss there all come home to roost and cost this team a playoff spot.
And we’ll have 6 months to b*tch and moan about it
in the offseason.
For now, I see a team that’s in the thick of it and I’ll
focus on that.
However one views this team today, it figures to be better a few weeks from now when some key players return + the TBD players that Perry is likely to acquire are in the fold.
One of the biggest problems the Angels have is they don’t drive in runners in scoring position. They have generally sold out to launch angles and HRs. Hence, they have very few hitters who are RBI guys with runners in scoring position. Rendon was one. Fletcher in his prime was another. Pujols years back was a third. Trout stopped being that a couple years back. He doesn’t even try to get the basic hit to drive guys in. He’s all about HRs and power. Ohtani can do it — but often swings at balls out of the zone to hit HRs. Renfroe — nope. Ward — not anymore. It falls to Thaiss, Moniak, and maybe Drury. Urshela was another. He’s out for the year. But even those I have listed don’t do it consistently except for Rendon who is hurt again. That and the lack of dependable starting pitching is really hurting them. I wish I would be optimistic. It’s very hard.
I totally agree with you. Angels know they suck at driving runs in RISP situation. Then, why don’t they try something different. They did it successfully on Monday, scoring Trout for walk off run off WP after double steal, for god’s sake! Use steal, hit and run, and bunting more liberally. Gotta do something different. Tampa Bay and Braves do those things. We should learn from them by drinking the tea brewed from the fingernail goop of those teams.
By the way, Ohtani is no Ichiro. You would never convince him to hit for contact because he thinks he can hit anything that is thrown at him with power.
I wonder if yesterday’s three walks in an inning but a straight caught stealing and a CS due to missed hit-and-run meaning no runs made Philsie more cautious. Or just figured homers would carry the day in a day game?
I think “feel for the game” and being aggressive are somewhat predicated on players not screwing up as
well. If dudes are missing signs, etc.
it’s hard to blame
Phil for being somewhat gun shy.
if we need to win 90 we’ll have to go 46-33 the rest of the way. Still very possible. No use in feeling more down about this than any other of the many we’ll lose.
The only thing that bums me out is that we talked about how it would be good to go 5-2 against the Rox and the Chisox and instead we went 3-4.
In case anyone’s interested, in the 11 times this franchise has made the post season ( yes Im counting the 1995 season) the worst record that an Angel team has had after 83 games and still made the playoffs is the 2004 team with a 44-39 record.
Which incidentally is our exact same record as of today. So I guess the question is What player is Phillip going to get into a fight with in the dugout to spark the team to victory?
I’d be perfectly fine with someone punching Rendon. Hard. He absolutely needs and deserves a beating.
Agree. Dude is too soft.
Dare I say a “b__.”
Wow you guys. It’s almost as if Rendon were Dutch.
I suspect the injury is more severe than reported. Nothing else makes sense IMO.
I think all of the dudes want to be playing & contributing to a potential playoff team.
So you’re sayin’ there’s a chance….
Just pathetic
2 days ago most of you were declaring this team the next coming of the ‘27 Yankees.
Today it’s all doom and gloom after only two losses.
This is a bi-polar site for sure!
I still wonder if the Gates are Pearly or Crashing.
Much happier to have chosen to go see the new Indiana Jones movie during the game instead of watching this joke of a team right now.
Yes, you clearly had better 2 hrs and 51 min than we did. It looked good for about first 30 minutes until Angels died by 1000 cuts (bloop hits). We had more hits, 4HRs vs 0HR and 24TB vs 11TB. Oh, we were 0 for 9 RISP.
I have just found out Harrison Ford is 80 years old. I am glad he got to complete his Indian Jones series before he could not.
I thought he looked great in the opening scene… then realized it was an earlier period scene from the rest of the movie and they likely just de-aged him in post. When it was the “present day” portion of the movie, he definitely looked his age.
I’ve heard this movie blows a$$ and is chock full of “messaging” like 90% of the tripe that spews from the Hollywood sewer. What was your opinion?
Tomorrow’s starter for the DBacks is very “mid” on paper.
4.31 ERA
1.37 WHIP
Only 41 strike outs in 62.2 innings
He’s a lefty so I assume we’ll see a righty heavy lineup apart from Shohei.
Cy Loser will kick our ass.
Was is it over when the Germans bombed
Pearl Harbor?
Let me answer that: no, it was not.
Angels will get swept in this series. 5 game losing streak and finger pointing already in progress … Mine is pointed squarely at Nevin.
Every fan base thinks their team’s manager is the worst ever and should be fired immediately.
And sometimes they are right !!!
You’re confidence & enthusiasm knows no bounds.
Almost every single one of our pitchers (except Ohtani) has been rushed to the major leagues and it shows.
Nevin didn’t have any intention of pulling Sandoval in the third inning, and so had no intention of winning this game. He had his middle finger cranked from the moment Sandy got into trouble.
So they could bring in Wantz or Tucky or Poupy to increase the deficit in innings 3-6?
You can blame Nevin all you want but the options sitting down in the bullpen in that 3rd were ultimately a helluva lot worse than what we got in leaving Sandy in to give us 2 scoreless innings afterwards. And thats on Perry. I would love to bring Webb or even Devenski into a key third inning when the Starter cant miss bats but we do not have the bullpen depth to make that happen.
Oh incidentally, When Webb gave the Pale Hose those tack-on runs in 9th that would never have happened if the Angel hitters hadn’t gone a robust 0 for 9 with RISP as then Estevez would have been pitching that inning with a lead or in a tie game.
Your thinking here is too narrow Cowboy. You are being tied and hemmed in by the old “stick to your roles” thinking. This is exactly where Phil was and IS and why he’s a bad manager…
A good manager has to be flexible and think outside the box. That is what made Maddon so great when he was in Tampa Bay. You have to do whatever is required to win on that day.
Today Phil was tasked with pulling his head out of his ass and couldn’t do it. He sucks at managing. Face it. The solution was simple : Going into the 3rd WE ALREADY KNEW that Sandy didn’t have it today. Therefore his replacement should have been warming to start that inning… After three hitters reached he should have been pulled. Plain and simple.
Either Soriano or Devenski would have sufficed and would have shut that inning down with either no or minimal damage. Sometimes your high leverage spot comes in the 5th inning and sometimes it might even come in the 3rd inning, like it did today. The 3rd was where we needed to stop them. That was the time for action by our manager. But stubborn, red ass Phil was too thick to see it. Or too stubborn to care…
Had Nevin made the required move by pulling Sandoval the Angels in all likelihood would have gone to the bottom half leading 4-2 or at worst 4-3. A far cry from trailing 7-4 like what happened. Nevin is an ignoramus. He’s an idiot. Not only should he not be the manager of an incredibly talented MLB team he probably shouldn’t be allowed to manage a High School team.
In short, he cost the Angels the game today. Not Sandoval. Not the offense.
NEVIN is the reason they lost.
The sooner he is gone the better. Because we’re not going anywhere with him at the helm.
I was surprised when Wayne-o said they din’t have anyone warming in the BP, after too much damage had been done and the bases occupied. I woke my wife up a few times during her nap with “Why is he still in there?”
Exactly.
We all saw what was going on and yet Phil didn’t. Or worse, he did and just didn’t care …
But you’re missing the point Frostie. You can’t make chicken salad out of chicken shit. And there aint enough chicken salad to go around if you’re yanking you starter out of the game with 1 out in the 3rd inning if you had to do the same exact thing the game before .
We’re in Game 4 of 13 straight games. We made zero organizational moves after last night’s game despite our known potential depletion.
Oh and by the way what king of Wacky Soggy Joe moves did you have in mind to pull a rabbit out of the hat this time Frostie? Maybe Griffin Canning or Reid Detmers could have given us a couple since maybe it’s a throw on the side day? Or why not just have Soriano pitch until his arm falls off? Or maybe Fletch can be brought in for a couple innings of relive he cant run anymore but maybe can still sling it. Or maybe,God for bid,an inning out Ohtani since he can do anything.
If Perry wants to build a half ass bullpen thats fine. but then you’re going to get games like this with no viable options available. Or at the very least go back to a five man rotation and put Barria back in the pen for long relief like he done so effectively so many times before. then when you get another starter meltdown game. The Poupster can clean up the garbage in the 3rd and then Barria can reset and stabilize the game in the subsequent innings.
I’m one who believes in a 5 man rotation and, remembering teams from earlier days, am not opposed to a 4 man rotation
I will be watching with much interest how Nevin will set up the starting rotation for Padres series and Dodgers miniseries If he keeps current rotation, it will be Ohtani/Barria/Sandoval for Padres and Canning/Anderson for Dodgers. He does have an option of putting Ohtani on 4 day rest or Detmers on 5 day rest in place of Anderson since next Thursday is another off day.
Another possibility is to put Barria back into bullpen, converting to 5 man rotation, leading to Ohtani/Sandoval/Canning for Padres and Detmers/Anderson or Ohtani for Dodgers. All kinds of permutation.
Previously Nevin talked about converting to 5 man rotation sometime in second half of the season, and I recall Shohei and others pitching on 4 day rest successfully in September last year. There will be many unknown factors, such as new starting pitcher by trade or whether Angels are still contending for playoffs in September, but I will not be surprised that Angels are then using 5 man rotation.
P.S. I predict Rendon will be back sometime during the Diamondbacks series, which begs a question of who Rendon will replace on active roster. Is it Velazquez back to SLC, or Rengifo DFA’d or Fletch DFA’d? Or even someone we just acquired. As the World Turns continues.
Remember the days when Baltimore had 4-20 game winners with a 4-man? Old fashion baseball, chicks dig it and Boog Powell’s long balls.
I understand what you’re saying and don’t totally disagree..
My point is that IF you shut them down in the pivotal 3rd you keep the precious momentum and a lot more good likely comes your way in the process; such as the offense scoring another 4 or 5 runs etc.. When that happens you can at that point then afford to put Tucky D in the game and still not lose it…
Managing takes FEELING and intuition.. Mainly sensing when the key moment is there and then rising to the occasion…
Nevin clearly does not have that gift.
We need a real manager like Joe Maddon!
Like Big Brain Brad?
bring back the mohawk.
if nevin really wanted to win, he’d get a mohawk.
and perry, too….
Damn, that was pAthetic.
The offense was uneven, but 7 runs is 7 runs.
We lost this game due to poor pitching.
Trout with a 3-5 game while robbing an HR in Center. HOPEFULLY this is finally the spark that leads to a prolonged run by King Fish.
King Fish is Tim Salmon.
Can we please stop calling Trout by that name ?
Ooops. Wasn’t there some fish related nickname for Trout?
yeah, “Trout”
Salmon is better. He’s actually won a playoff game.
Well, he’s not better. But that is not the point. I loved Salmon. He has one of the All-Time great Halos… It is about respect. That was his nickname and we should respect him by reserving it for him …
The same type of respect when your organization gives out your jersey number to the hyped new rookie despite the fact that everyone knows youre going to the Hall of Fame?
Don’t get me started on the Angels and the subject of not retiring numbers…..
Trout steals all the nicknames.
King Fish – Salmon
Fat – Fat Bastard
Goat – Micheal Jordan
Kid – Ken Griffey Jr.
The middle two I don’t care too much about, since I never liked “Fat” as his moniker and I never agreed the MJ was/is the GOAT…
On the other two however you hit the nail in the head.
Man when Sandoval dominated Team USA this spring I remember thinking this guy is our legit #2. Oh well!
Same here. Sigh.
yeah, shoulda pulled him around the 4th run given up in the inning
I know he had bad luck today, bunch of weak ass shit just getting through. But he doesn’t seem to have a plan this year. The next hitter he outthinks will be his first. Have no idea who calls the game for him, dugout, catcher, or himself? He just throws. Gets off balance, overthrows, loses his mechanics easily, can’t regroup. Seems to get all indignant when his shit isn’t working. Bad body language. Sure isn’t following Detmers and Canning’s development.
Rather watch Anderson pitch. At least he doesn’t quit and pout, fights through a bad inning.
IMHO, from my couch, eating Del Taco. Home of the 3 Thursday Chicken Tacos and every Angels GM’s favorite restaurant to get deals done.
Forgot to point out his pitching coach an managers are not his friend. And likely hurt more than they help.
I agree with your view on Sandoval. who was already frustrated with a bloop hit and passed ball by Thaiss in the first inning. Wonder if sports psychologist would be in order for him.
I’m still optimistic, there’s really nothing else anyone can do anyway. But I am nervous that these games are going to haunt us down the stretch.
I am optimistic. Partly because this team has obvious talent (with Moore, Rendon & Neto on the mend) and partly because I prefer to take a positive approach with my entertainment choices.
Appreciate you optimism, brother! Fortunately, Texas lost earlier, so we remain 6 games behind. And 1 game behind for WC3. Will be symbolically important to win the 15th win for June.
By the way, tomorrow is Apple TV+ Friday Game. I believe you can still sign up for 2 mo free subscription until July 2nd, not entirely sure.
I refuse
Capitalism at its finest. Apple is paying MLB $85 MM per year x 7 years. Manfraud said something to the effect of he on behalf of MLB desires to widen the horizon of streaming service without admitting that it is strictly for $. I predict that Apple will choose not to renew contract in 2028 after finding out that younger generations do not sit for hours to watch baseball, losing $400 MM in revenue.
I agree with your philosophy but I cannot even watch the games consistently anymore because I know the other shoe is about to drop. It did today. Ugly.
I get it. In fact, I know most of you are largely correct in your criticisms, but I intentionally steer towards being upbeat. Primarily because there are so many negatives occurring in the real world that occupy our thoughts.
I no longer spend much time with sports beyond the Angels & UFC and I make a concerted effort to focus on how this team CAN win versus dwelling in the reverse.
Anyway, I anticipate Perry making a move for an SP and a proven BP piece rather soon – particularly if Sandoval can’t arrest the fall.
And if Trout is “back” this lineup is really dangerous.
Thank you for keeping positive attitude. I have vented my frustrations even thought I am aware that Angels players and coaches are truly trying to win every game. This is a very likable team who has legitimate chance of making playoffs.
Speaking of SP and RP availability, MLBTR listed top 10 free agents. I read with curiosity that Blake Snell and Josh Hader may become available, should Padres decide to become seller. They are currently 7 games under 0.500 and 8 GB Arizona. They play next against super hot Reds and Angels to follow. If they go 1-5 or get swept in both of these series, Minasian will be inquiring for their availability.
So much for any surge by the Halos. The starting pitching continues to be a problem. And when it was 7-5, they couldn’t get over the hump. It’s a shame.
Three things I noted today:
-RISP 0-9. What happened to our small ball strategy? Double steal? Hit and run?
-Robert Jr after HBP by Webb immediately steals in the top of the 9th. Everyone knew he was going to steal. Webb and Thaiss should have paid more attention.
-Lynn adjusted his strategy, not throwing strikes. Angels batters kept on swinging aggressively out of the zone. We should have knocked him out in the 2nd inning.
After the 4 run 2nd inning (Plus the previous game against Lynn) the Angels
swung the bats in a very carefree way – like they assumed that Lynn was their b*tch. They got over their skis for sure. It was definitely frustrating, but our pitching is the bigger culprit.
Take 2/3 from Arizona and we’ll forget about these
two games against Chicago.
That’s what the Angels do. See above. There isn’t an offensive plan. We will see about the coming games. I’m not seeing much but will hope.
We’ll forget about them til those 2 games here, 2 games there, meltdowns here, embarrassing loss there all come home to roost and cost this team a playoff spot.
And we’ll have 6 months to b*tch and moan about it
in the offseason.
For now, I see a team that’s in the thick of it and I’ll
focus on that.
However one views this team today, it figures to be better a few weeks from now when some key players return + the TBD players that Perry is likely to acquire are in the fold.
One of the biggest problems the Angels have is they don’t drive in runners in scoring position. They have generally sold out to launch angles and HRs. Hence, they have very few hitters who are RBI guys with runners in scoring position. Rendon was one. Fletcher in his prime was another. Pujols years back was a third. Trout stopped being that a couple years back. He doesn’t even try to get the basic hit to drive guys in. He’s all about HRs and power. Ohtani can do it — but often swings at balls out of the zone to hit HRs. Renfroe — nope. Ward — not anymore. It falls to Thaiss, Moniak, and maybe Drury. Urshela was another. He’s out for the year. But even those I have listed don’t do it consistently except for Rendon who is hurt again. That and the lack of dependable starting pitching is really hurting them. I wish I would be optimistic. It’s very hard.
I totally agree with you. Angels know they suck at driving runs in RISP situation. Then, why don’t they try something different. They did it successfully on Monday, scoring Trout for walk off run off WP after double steal, for god’s sake! Use steal, hit and run, and bunting more liberally. Gotta do something different. Tampa Bay and Braves do those things. We should learn from them by drinking the tea brewed from the fingernail goop of those teams.
By the way, Ohtani is no Ichiro. You would never convince him to hit for contact because he thinks he can hit anything that is thrown at him with power.
The current results tell me that Ohtani’s approach is correct.
When you lead in HR, RBI, Slugging & OPS and still bat .300+ there is nothing to revise IMO.
I wonder if yesterday’s three walks in an inning but a straight caught stealing and a CS due to missed hit-and-run meaning no runs made Philsie more cautious. Or just figured homers would carry the day in a day game?
I made the same possible connection. If that’s the case, Nevin does not seem to have necessary feel for the game.
I think “feel for the game” and being aggressive are somewhat predicated on players not screwing up as
well. If dudes are missing signs, etc.
it’s hard to blame
Phil for being somewhat gun shy.
I hate that a legitimate ROY candidate may be hurt, but this might be a favorable omen for Angels.
https://twitter.com/SteveGilbertMLB/status/1674531090902683649
Favorable omen my ass.
If needed, his replacement will go 3-5 with 2 doubles, HR, 2 stolen bases, and a walk. Throw in a great catch while you’re at it.
Meh Donkey
It will probably be Dominic Fletcher, who will replace him. It would be vintage trAdition if Fletch’s brother beats Angels all by himself.
Attention . A midrange Losing streak is now on the horizon.
if we need to win 90 we’ll have to go 46-33 the rest of the way. Still very possible. No use in feeling more down about this than any other of the many we’ll lose.
The only thing that bums me out is that we talked about how it would be good to go 5-2 against the Rox and the Chisox and instead we went 3-4.