At the Break….

Here we find ourselves at the All Star Break, halfway through a season that’s shaped up to be nothing short of every adjective you can think of……tragic, enduring, forgiving, challenging, pleasant and painful yet alltogether encouraging…..and that’s speaking solely of the Angels. Just as in life, it seems the rest of the MLB world seems to play out like an action-drama, twisting and turning and emotional every step of the way. To me though, as an avid fan of the grand game, following your home team over the course of a season is more exciting and fullfilling than any movie experience. You love projecting personal player stats and team success in anticipation of the season…..you can’t help but look at the league’s standings even after the first full schedule of games…..you’re upset when the lineup doesn’t line up as you envisioned it all off season….you cheer your heros and boo your bums one week, and next week you find yourself booing your heros and cheering your bums.

 As for the Angels, there’s been plenty to cheer and boo for so far, but all in all the team has perservered and actually made the season quite interesting. Expectations have been met, exceeded, and of course dissapointed. I think that, offensively, everyone’s realized and filled their roles really well, and even taken to unexpected roles surprsingly well. Figgins and Abreu at the top of the line up have been amazing, hitting for average, getting on base at an alarming rate, and pressuring the defense with great speed. Hunter, Rivera, and Morales through the heart of the order have impressed as well with great power numbers. All three could very well be on pace for 30 HR 100 RBI seasons, and Morales’ 24 doubles shows he’s capable of being a potential line to line power threat for years to come. Vlad is yet to be VLAD so there’s much to be desired when it comes to his HOF bat. Then there’s Napoli, who’s pop out of his respective backstop position comes as a welcome addition to the hit parading. Aybar has been just fine providing a good average and incredible speed out of the bottom of the line up, and Izturis’ ridiculous success hitting with runners in scoring position has been outstanding. You can plug him anywhere in that line up and he only makes it stronger. Throw in the rest of the bunch for good measure and Scioscia seems to have all the tools he needs from an offensive standpoint. Kendrick getting things going would be HUGE!

Then there’s the pitching. A whole lot needs to be worked out with regards to pitching. Aside from Weaver, starters have been injured and/or underperfomed. The ‘pen has sustained it’s share of injuries and also underperfomed. As of late they’ve straigtened out a little bit, but it’s never a sure thing getting the game to Fuentes in the 9th. I think pitching is the biggest concern for this club and until they right that ship, this can be anybody’s division.

So again, here we are at the Break leading said division by a game and a half. Vlad and Torii are expected to be out for the better part of a month. Lackey and Saunder’s need to improve to be considered a force in the rotation. Santana needs to improve to even remain in the rotation. Weaver needs to stay the course to continue to anchor the rotation. And depending on how all that plays out heading into the trade deadline, a major boost might very well be in order. Same goes for the ‘pen. Offense is of no concern, with a league leading .284 team batting average, and in the top 5 in OB%, SLG%, stolen bases, and runs scored, this has been a pretty fun team to watch. One of the better balances of OB%, speed, and power that I’ve seen from this team in years.  Exciting ball club, exciting 1st half of the season, and what promises to be a rollercoaster ride of a 2nd half.  

• Posted on July 13, 2009 at 9:35 AM
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• Tags: Abreu, Angels, Aybar, Figgins, Hunter, Izturis, Kendrick, Morales, Napoli, Rivera, Vlad
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1 Comments

Great summary of the season thus far! I’m concerned about Torii and Hunter but at the same time, I never cease to be amazed at where the clutch hits can come from…Mathis, Izturis, Morales, Abreu, Figgins, etc. They all stepped up very nicely this weekend and I’m sure they will continue to do so. I, for one, am feeling very good at the All-Star break!
Lori
http://luckylori.mlblogs.com

By luckylori on July 13, 2009 5:37 PM
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