Angels have not been good. But somehow been even worse in the 2nd half this season. 5 wins since the All Star Game. That is it. 5. And the last 2 ended on a bad strike 3 call. So, could a 6th win happen today? Or will this be yet another pathetic sweep of the team?
Ryan Johnson had the bump today. He did not last long, he went 4 and 2/3 innings, giving up 1 run on 3 hits, striking out 1 and walking 5. Not even 80 pitches for a SP, ugh. This gutted bullpen had to now pitch even more than usual.
But hey, at least the Angels bats scored more than 2 runs this time. The Angels have scored 2 or fewer runs 9 times in the 2nd half ALONE. It is August 6th. Neto’s home run did a lot of the heavy lifting, and the team once again relying on the long ball is not so good, especially when the Angels have slipped to 21st in number of home runs hit. Remember when they were in the top 5?
Highlighted Recap
Neto hit his 20th home run of the year in the 3rd inning.
O’s get one back immediately on a home run of their own.
It could have been worse, but our new catcher Ballesteros threw out a runner!
Johnson left in the 5th inning, and the defense continued to save the pitching as Lowe slid to make a catch in no man’s land.
O’s mistakes continue to save the Angels, with a balk setting up a sac fly in the 7th.
It was only the 2nd time the Angels took advantage all game as they had 14 baserunners and somehow only scored in 2 innings. Part of that is just bad luck, like a Meckler liner that was caught by the bullfrog.
Somehow, someway, this bullpen was keeping the lead, even as they were depleted. Part of that was because the defense again saved them, even if Lowe and Siri collided with each other in the 8th.
Natera jr came in for the last out of the 8th, and while he gave up a hit, and threw a wild pitch, luck was on the Angels side as it bounced right into the glove of BALL and the runner was thrown out at home!
Staying for the 9th was Natera jr and he pulled off the 4 out save! Angels win!
Upcoming
Off to Miami, where 3 early games await. And then back home for Rangers and Royals.
I believe Mo had a talk with Kurt about line-up construction before another loss, just maybe… 📞
We give up eight base on balls and give up one run…huh! 😂
But somehow we didn’t luck into that win. 🤩👍
I sere Klassen is scheduled to start tomorrow. Let’s see how that goes.
Trout at leadoff has been the obvious answer for multiple years, but, since the people in charge – and likely Trout himself – disagree, the best lineup at the moment is:
Meckler
Nolan
Grissom
Neto
Trout
In a logical world, it would be:
Trout
Meckler
Grissom
Neto
Nolan
He who bats leadoff dictates the rest of the batting order and in either scenario, Neto should NOT bat leadoff. Trout leading off (or not) has downstream effects. I prefer option #2, but failing that, option #1 is the best decision.
Why Grissom 3rd and Trout 5th? Flip them and I’m with you
I’m with Pineapple.
Simple. Grissom is currently a more efficient RBI player than Trout.
Samy Natera Jr. has caught my eye. A very nice stat line put up. 25-innings pitched and only 12-hits. Elite. 38-Ks in those 25-innings but his walk count a bit high with 10. A strike-out to walk ratio of 3.8 to 1 (which is a rarity with Angel pens) is good. Big boy at 6’4″ and looks to have solidified himself in high leverage appearances. All this from a 17th round pick I’m tempering my enthusiasm until he has more innings pitched but looking good.
https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/los-angeles-angels/overview
Pardon me for being off topic but I wonder if Moz is smarter than we might give him credit.
He must have gotten some assurances on being able to make changes. This team has two contracts for next season. Arte spent $160 million on a poor team but all other contracts expire. He can non-tender some that are arbitration eligible. So he can revamp the team because he has no albatross contracts unless you want to argue about those two. He first had to start to turn around the farm, which he has done. This could be something interesting if he is as smart in LA as he was in St. Louis. It is going to be tough the rest of this year, but MAYBE the Calvary is coming.
It’s a new direction and from someone used to running a real organization. So that’s new. Since Stoneman, it has been a parade of guys likely over their heads and trying to prove themselves while basically learning on the job. So this is refreshing and there is some hope. Not sure when results will hit though.
As someone once said “they all count.” I’ll take any victory even if it was completely lucky. Two good things happened also. 1. Suzuki changed the batting order and line up. 2. We are seeing if some of prospects can play in the MLB.
Anyone else notice that Gubi’s mic is often quieter than Razzle Dazzle? My poor rock-abused ears can’t handle straining to hear him.
I have the o’s broadcast not necessarily by choice. They’ve been pretty good the past couple of days. Don’t miss Gubi or Wayno.
Man these write ups – when the Angels lose, they suck. When they occasionally win – they still suck but somehow got “lucky.” A 4-1 win against another team that has professional ball players can be seen as a quality win – but not with this writer – NO – it is always luck.
It’s just kind of frustrating to watch Mike Trout flailing away and then getting bases loaded with no outs and still coming away with nothing.
On the positive side, the Neto RBIs were well earned.
LOL you are back !!! 😂😂😂
About 30 wins short
Hmmm…
And I would have said “unfortunately win” instead of “luck into a win.”
Well, today the Angels had multiple balls bounce their way, literally. And you can just feel the meltdown in the bullpen in that 8th inning especially because it happens so often.
The last win belt this the Angels won on a very bad strike 3 call. Would likely have won but still. And the one before that in SF the Angels were already collapsing when the umps gave the Angels the win on the bad strike 3 call with runners on.
And the victory vs the O’s at home was due to a number of misplays by the O’s.
Now, you are right that emphisizing luck is getting somewhat redundant and that, hey, if something happens that’s worth praising I should mention it. Like G-Rod’s performance this series. Too bad the Angels didn’t win that one.
Yes and let’s grouse about Ryan Johnson’s 1 ER start while we’re at it!
I LOVE IT when people volunteer for doing the post game write ups.
I have on record in this thread that THC (er uh EHC) and also gripemanpoorman wish to be post game writers.
HOOK EM UP!!!!
Hey EHC – they need writers. Instead of complaining why don’t you do it?
Thankfully, Mo Balla has more to offer than just his bat.
Big Mo showed off some defensive chops today
Manny Sanguillen like
Neto moved out of leadoff and Guzman brought in as a late defensive sub?
Somebody check on Suzuki, he’s not acting normal.
But Neto was moved to clean up. I wouldn’t put him there. I would drop him to 7 or 8.
Neto is our 2nd best hitter. Let him thrive in the 4 spot
I would rather him percolate in the 7 it 8 slot and start thinking about his hitting approach.
Good win. Glad to see Neto get off the Schnide.
Johnson should be in the minors. He’s not a mlb quality starting pitcher.
Klassen and the Italian Stallion should be getting reps over him.
Yeah, Zach better suited at 4 or 5. Meckler leading off is good, hopefully we can see if he has the speed we need.
Gutsy start by Johnson today. Kept his composure. You’re daft.
There’s nothing gutsy about a starting pitcher going 4 innings and not qualifying for a quality start, let alone qualifying for a win. I understand we stink, but let’s have some level of expectation.
As for Johnson’s quality, I don’t need to spend much time building a case, just click his stat page. Sending him down would only help him.
He’s a spot starter / long reliever. A long sought after replacement for Suarez.
/sarc
Losing 2 out of 3 works fine with a victory on getaway day. #PreserveTheTank
Gonna be hard to hold off the Rockies and A’s. Neto being freed from the leadoff spot hurts the tank
Man, the A’s are in an epic collapse.
we’ve already won 5 more than my season prediction so that’s fun. Sadly Mike is now on the down escalator
He’s been on that elevator for quite a while.