The Angels feel like a slightly different team right now. After a few reworkings of the lineup, the team is younger, quicker, and playing better baseball. More importantly, they are making contact more consistently 1 through 9.
There wasn’t a ton of contact early in the game as Rays starter Griffin Jax kept the Angels hitters off balance. But on the other side, Jose Soriano was putting up zeroes for the Angels.
After Jo Adell doubled, Nolan Schanuel scorched a ball to shortstop that found its way to the grass and scored the game’s first run.
That score held until the bottom of the sixth inning when newcomer Denzer Guzman had his first really big hit for the team. A two run single with two outs off Crag Kimbrel pushed the score to 3-0 Angels.
I have a feeling Angels prospects deal with an effect similar to the Coors Field hangover when they get promoted to the big league club. Guzman is clearly seeing the ball better the last couple of games and I hope this is the start of him playing up to his abilities.
The 3-0 score did not last long. Another newcomer, Donovan Walton, singled in the following at bat to push the score to 4-0 in the bottom of the 6th inning.
Jose Soriano only pitched 5 frames tonight. He took a comebacker earlier in the game and might have been removed for precautionary reasons. Samy Natera Jr. pitched two scoreless frames after Soriano’s departure.
Then yet another mid season call up Jose Siri hit a two run blast in the bottom of the 7th to crack the game open and push the Angels lead to 6-0. Not only did Siri break out the lumber against his former team, he also flashed the leather and robbed them of a home run.
From there the beatdown was on. Denzer Guzman drove in another run to push the score to 7-0 and once again Walton followed him with an RBI hit. It was 8-0 in the bottom of the 7th.
After 7 innings, the Angels had out hit the Rays 14 to 3 and it was the Rays, not the Angels, who were charged with the lone error in the game.
Brent Suter breezed through the top of the 8th before Kirby Yates was unleashed to make sure the Rays scored. Alas, pitching in a blowout Yates was capable of putting up a zero himself.
An absolutely dominant win tonight and the Angels win the series against the Rays. Tomorrow Grayson Rodriguez will be on the hill as the Angels go for the sweep.
BTW, did anyone else notice a few games back when “Sell the team” chants were very clear on the TV broadcast and then a fake USA chant was dubbed over?
Today’s lineup:
Hayden Alvarez:
April: .221/.309/.337
May: .347/.463/.531
June: .391/.462/.696
After an icy April, he turned a corner on May 1 and has been playing like a top 100 national prospect since. 54 runs and 32 steals from the leadoff spot in mid-June.
He still needs to work on contact, which has regressed a bit since last year with a more aggressive approach, but I’d like to see a double promotion of Alvarez to Tri City and TJ Ford to Rancho this summer.
I keep thinking about Neto’s downward spiral. My buddy thinks he has a tumor.
Glad not to be a soccer fan. Most people watching World Cup, so dirt cheap tickets for Angels day game. Hoping to watch a sweep, but bummer Grayson is pitching. Guy lasts for 3 innings.
GrayRod will last five innings easy. He’ll just give up six or seven runs.
The tides are shifting and this team is gonna play themselves back into the playoff picture this month lol.
The main story remains the same — it’s all about the starting pitching. Soriano was excellent last night, switching up from his usual pitch mix to great results:
Splitter 33% (25 pitches)
Knuckle Curve 29% (22 pitches)
4-Seam Fastball 22% (17 pitches)
Sinker 12% (9 pitches)
Slider 4% (3 pitches)
Whatever we’re paying Maddux isn’t enough.
Denzer with only two strikeouts (11% K rate) in his first four games, and plus defense.
Play him every day.
Could this mean we can move on from Moncada?
Well, he elected to get knee surgery, so yessir.
Nice to have a 3B who you are confident will make the routine plays — we certainly didn’t have that with Moncada in there….
from the watch GPB redundant files: This team is fun to watch.
Go halos go kids
Our two worst players tonight were Neto & Trout.
The young talent is really coming thru and Jo Adell was slapping base hits around like Rod Carew.
Go figure.
It’s a very weird year. Vlad Jr hitting for average, but only 3 HRs all season.
We’ve all had our fair share of having fun at Adell’s expense – “four-base error”, but to my recollection, he’s never lacked for effort and he always hustles, even when he’s struggling. If only Neto has the same mindset, and doesn’t act like he’s already “arrived”.
Totally agree. Adell by all accounts works hard and has a great attitude.
The problem is that he’ll probably always be a low average & OBP guy. I’d love to be proven wrong BTW.
And this year he isn’t slugging either.
No longer the worst team in the AL!
Yep, 2nd worsyest! But shouldn’t affect the ping pong balls.
We are only a 13 game win streak from .500. We’ve got this.
LTBU
Shufflebot soon?
4 in a row
Go Halos!
Rerun