Halo Hotline

Halos Take 2 of 3 From Boston, Stand Pat at Trade Deadline

Well, after taking two out of three from the Boston Red Sox the Angels decided not to make a deal at the trade deadline.  They should've swept them and gotten Jered Weaver his 8th win in 8 starts, unfortunately Scot Shields didn't have a great outing on Saturday and the Halos lost.  Today's lack of a deal illustrates one of two things, either Bill Stoneman is a horrible negotiator with other GMs, or, the Angels management team feels like they have a team, right now, that can go all the way.  Given all the talk about needing a bat, the DL move of Colon and the weakness of a beat-up starting rotation, I'm leaning towards the former, that Stoneman isn't a decent negotiator.

Trade Deadline Nears

The trade deadline is rapidly approaching (see countdown timer above) and it looks like the Texas Rangers are going to make a run at winning the division.  They've just acquired Carlos Lee from the Milwaukee Brewers in a trade where the Brewers received reliever Francisco Cordero and outfielders Kevin Mench and Laynce Nix.  This trade will only turn up the heat on Bill Stoneman to actually get a deal done that makes this Angel team a viable contender for the division and for the post-season run.  This deal will surely increase the asking price for other big-name talent being shopped, like Alfonso Soriano and Bobby Abreu.

Total Trade Supposition...

How's this for a trade idea, and the associated moves on the roster:

Kennedy + Willits + Moseley ? WAS
Soriano ? LAA

then the Halo roster looks like this:
P - still our solid starting 5 (-Bart)
C - Napoli / Molina
1B - Kendrick
2B - Soriano
3B - Izzy
SS - OC
LF - Juan
CF - Figgy
RF - Vlad
DH - Anderson/Salmon/Quinlan

I only throw this out there because the LA Times is running an article today talking to Adam Kennedy about the likelihood that he won't be an Angel next year, etc...

Jim Bowden, Nationals GM High?

The hunt for Soriano continues, this from ESPN:

Sori still a hot commodity

Jul 27 - Sources have indicated to ESPN The Magazine's Buster Olney that the Tigers are willing to include right-handed pitching prospect Humberto Sanchez in a trade with the Nationals for Alfonso Soriano.

ESPN.com's Jayson Stark, meanwhile, reports the White Sox and Twins remain in the hunt to acquire Soriano.

And, according to a report in the Los Angeles Times, the Angels are also interested in acquiring Soriano. The paper reports Nationals GM Jim Bowden is believed to have asked the Angels for one of their three top young pitchers, John Lackey, Ervin Santana or Jered Weaver, and one of their top prospects, infielder Howie Kendrick or shortstop Brandon Wood.

"We know the price that we need to have from clubs," Bowden told the Times. "The price doesn't change. The price today is the same price it's going to be at the deadline. We don't have to trade anybody."

And here's a link to the LA Times article that is referenced. Bowden MUST be high. There is NO WAY the Angels should trade ANY of those starting pitchers for a guy who'll be a free agent at the end of the season. Those are the three best starting pitchers in the Angels organization. If he want's Bartolo and Saunders...maybe that deal would work. Either way, if Stoneman makes a trade and trades away ANY of those starting pitchers, or Vlad, Figgy, OC or Napoli he should be fired, immediately.

Halos Take Series from D-Rays

:  15R, 20H, 1E

:  6R, 9H, 3E

Yesterday it was a 6-3 loss to the Devil Rays, today, a 15-6 absolute drubbing of the D-Rays by the Angels. The upside of all of this news is that everyone else in the AL West lost yesterday so the Halos held on to a first place tie with the A’s. After today’s victory they are now 0.5G in front. The big news from today’s game is that Bartolo Colon had to leave the game after the 1^st inning where he gave up 4R, 4ER, 4H, 1K, 2HR. Not one of Bart’s more memorable outings. The rest of the bullpen picked up for him admirably, however, with Kevin Gregg (W, 3-3) tossing 3.1IP, 4H, 2R, 2ER, 1BB, 4K. Next came Hector Carrasco, 2.2IP, 1H, 2K; then Brendan Donnelly, 1IP, 1BB, 2K. The final Halo pitcher of the day was JC Romero, 1IP, 1BB, 2K. The staff line isn’t too bad, 9IP, 9H, 6R, 6ER, 3BB, 11K, 2HR.

Offensively it was one big inning, the 2^nd, where every Angel reached base, and the team put up 10R. Great performances came from Macier Izturis (3-5, 1R, 3RBI) and Juan Rivera (3-5, 1R, 4RBI). There were extra base hits galore, with 2Bs by Rivera, Jose Molina, Izturis, Chone Figgins, Curtis Pride, and Rob Quinlan. In addition, Howie Kendrick hit his 1^st HR of the season, a solo shot in the 6^th. On the downside, the offense left 23 on base (combined), 10 as a team, and 6 RISP/2; that is, however, not bad considering that the Halos had 20 hits. The huge 2^nd inning saved the Angels, who only scored 5 runs in the remaining 8 innings.

The trade rumor mill is going nuts still. Alfonso Soriano is still a name that is being thrown around, as is Sean Casey (Pirates), Carlos Lee (Brewers) and Bobby Abreu (Phillies). The biggest problem with Abreu is that he’s traditionally not a super hustle guy and he has a big contract; in addition, the Phillies are looking for starting pitching help, something that, with Bart going down today, isn’t in huge supply for the Halos. Casey looks easily obtainable with AAA/AA talent and would make an immediate impact on the roster. Lee, on the other hand, would, like Abreu, cost a lot to bring over. Soriano, too, will be pricey, however, he wants to leave DC and hasn’t been willing to negotiate a new contract with them.

The Halos are now en route to Boston for a Friday game against the Red Sox. That game will see Kelvim Escobar (6-9, 3.88) facing Jon Lester (5-0, 3.04).

 

Angels Back On Top

: 8R, 11H, 2E
: 4R, 6H, 0E

After splitting the four game series in KC the Angels started off this three game set with Tampa Bay in the right fashion, with the offense putting up strong numbers in support of a pretty good outing by John Lackey (W, 9-6). Lackey went 8IP, 5H, 4R, 2ER, 1BB, 7K. He was relieved, in the 9^th, by Scot Shields who pitched one strong inning giving up a single hit and getting one K.

It was, again, Juan Rivera coming through for the Halos last night. Rivera went 2-4, 1R, 2RBI and tying his career high in HR with his 15th. Garrett Anderson, too, is looking to break out of a slump, going 3-5, 3R, 1RBI. Rob Quinlan, now the only 1B on the roster as Kendry Morales was optioned to AAA, also looked sharp at the plate, going 2-4, 2RBI. The team did, however, leave a combined 17 runners on base, 9 as a team, but, only 4 RISP/2. Taking Morales' spot on the roster was old friend and Mr. Hustle, Curtis Pride who's been tearing up AAA.

Tonight sees the Halos facing the Devil Rays again, and, a win means the opportunity to be back in first place alone. It is a 4:15 start for the Angels. They send Ervin "Black Magik" Santana (11-3, 4.03) to the hill to face James Shields (4-4, 5.75). This is Ervin's first start since his horrible outing at KC where he went 4.1IP and gave up 4ER. The game is on FSN, 710ESPN, and 830AM (en Espanol).

Trade rumors after the jump:

Angels Snap Skid

:  4R, 6H, 0E
:  3R, 10H, 1E
The Angels were able to stop their skid yesterday in extra innings.  They wanted it to be exciting, apparently, and, it was.  All around, however, there is no reason for these games against the team with the worst record in baseball to be quite so close.
Kelvim Escobar (ND) went 7IP, 9H, 3R, 3ER, 2BB, 3K and didn't look to bad.  A few too many hits, but, in all, not a bad outing.  Scot Shields (W, 6-6) came in to pitch the 8th, and 9th, giving up only 1H, and getting 2K for the win.  He looks to be returning to his "real" self.  Finally, K-Rod (S, 24), closed the game in interesting fashion, giving up 2 BB and getting 1K in the bottom of the 10th for the save.
Offensively the game saw the debut of Reggie Willits who went 2-4, 1R, 1RBI, 1B, 1K, 3LOB, however, that one RBI was the game winner in the top of the 10th.  He also scored a run in the 1st when Macier Izturis hit a triple.  Macier would later score in the 1st also, on a ground ball by Vlad Guerrero.  The middle of the line up didn't do well and the team, as a whole, only went 6-34 (.176), but, did only leave 10 on base, 5 as a team, and, only 4 RISP/2.  Willits and Chone Figgins also each swiped a bag, Figgins' came in the 10th after he walked while pinch hitting for Jose Molina.
The team is still struggling, but, at least they were able to keep pace with Oakland and Texas, both teams got victories yesterday as well.  Today sees them playing the early travel day game at 11:10 PT.  The game will be carried on KCOP-13 (in the LA area), 710 ESPN, and 830 AM (en Espanol).  Tossing, for the Halos today, is Jered Weaver (6-0, 1.12) who's looking for his 7th straight victory.  He'll be facing Brandon Duckworth (1-3, 4.78).

Angels Make It 3 In A Row

: 3R, 6H, 1E
: 8R, 7H, 0E

Bartolo Colon (L, 1-5) didn't pitch baddly enough to deserve this loss. He went 6IP, 4H, 4R, 3ER, 2BB, 1K, 1HR, but the 3-run shot to DeJesus in the 3rd didn't help the cause. Even worse than Bartolo's performance was Brendan "I Should Play More" Donnelly's. I've always been a Donnelly fan, but, the Donkey just doesn't have it any more. He tossed to 6 hitters in the 7th and managed only 1 out before he was pulled. His line, .1IP, 3H, 4R, 4ER, 2BB, 1K, 1HR; for those of you interested in these things, that puts his ERA, for the game, at 360.00! Chris Bootcheck, the recent arrival for "showoff" duty from Salt Lake finished up the game, pitching 1.2IP and getting 2K and facing only 5 hitters, the minimum. I put the blame for this loss squarely on Donnelly from a pitching perspective, he let it get away when the Halos were, at the time, only chasing 1R.

Offensively, on the other hand, there is plenty of blame to hand out. The team went a pathetic .188 (6-32), left 5 on base as a team, 12 on base total, and 4 RISP/2. Macier Izturis, though, had all the RBI (2) for the Halos on a 2-run shot, his 2^nd of the season, in the 8^th inning (the other run scored in the 4^th off of a wild pitch). Figgins, Cabrera, and Morales all went hitless, although Figgins, at least, managed one BB. The defensive blunder of the game went, this time, to Adam Kennedy who made his 8^th error of the season, he had only 5 all of last season. He managed to blow a catch of a double play attempt from OC in the 3^rd, the next hitter, DeJesus hit a 3-run shot.

It seems, to me, as though this team just doesn't take the "bad" teams seriously. They need to remember, every team that they play is a Major League Baseball Team, no matter what their record may happen to be. This season is beginning to look a lot like Angels seasons of old, the team teases us with a half-hearted run for the lead, gets close, and then thinks they can't lose a game, the next thing you know, they've run up a nice 3-6 game losing streak and are again back in the cellar. It's not quite that bad yet, as Oakland and Seattle also lost so the Halos are still only 2-games back of 1^st, but, they have fallen back to .500 (48-48) in a time period when they should've won at least two of the last three games and could, potentially, be only a .5 game back.

The only truly good news of the day, yesterday, was that Shea Hillenbrand went to San Francisco and didn't come to the Halos. It'll be interesting to see how long he lasts there before he gets into it with Barry and another melt-down/fight/calling-out happens. It's never a good idea to, "play for yourself," in a game that is team sport.

Tonight's game, a 4:10 PT affair, sees Kelvim Escobar (6-9, 3.88) taking the hill to attempt to put a stop to this slide and he'll be pitching in pain. He'll be facing off against Luke Hudson (2-3, 5.40). The game is on KCOP 13, 710 ESPN, and 830 AM (en Espanol). Hopefully the Halos will take this game, and tomorrow's seriously before they head off to Tampa Bay (3) and Boston (3).

Hillenbrand Headed to the Angels & Other Trade Rumors

The rumor mill is swirling with rumors that Shea Hillenbrand is headed to the Angels. The folks over at Halosheaven are practically drooling (or worse) over the prospect of having him on the team, however, the Angels don't like cancer. ESPN is reporting:

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Jul 21 - ESPN.com and Scouts Inc.'s Keith Law reports that the Angels have no interest in acquiring Hillenbrand, who was designated for assignment by the Blue Jays on Wednesday.

ESPN The Magazine's Buster Olney reports the Giants, however, are interested in Hillenbrand. The Toronto Sun, meanwhile, reports several other teams are in the mix to get Hillenbrand. Included in the list are the Brewers, Twins, Phillies, Dodgers and Padres.

"We're confident that we will be able to move him," Blue Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi said in a report in the Sun. "We'll play it all out and try to get the best deal we can."

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Alfonso Soriano is also still rumored to be in the sights of Bill Stoneman, however, the Tigers, Mariners, Yankees and Dodgers are also in that mix. He's a much better fit for the Halos than Hillenbrad, no doubt.

Miguel Tejada is also a potential target for the Angels, the Astros, White Sox, and Tigers also have interest there. He, too, isn't necessarily a great fit for a hustle club, like the Halos, but, is better than Shea "Mr. Attitude" Hillenbrand.

The important thing to note is that it's likely that Adam Kennedy will be a part of all of these trades and will be leaving the Angels before the trade deadline passes. That is, in my opinion, a horrible idea, however, his knowledge of that fact could be contributing to his less that stellar performance thus far in the season.

Two In A Row

First it was the travel day loss to Cleveland, then it was the opening game loss to Kansas City. The loss to Kansas City, last night, was very disappointing. The Angels lost 9 - 4, Ervin Santana only managed 4.1IP, tossed 103 pitches only 46 strikes, gave up 5H, 4R, 4ER, 8BB, 4K, 0HR. It didn't help that the Halos committed 4 errors in the game too. It was a VERY ugly loss and I've already spent too much time talking about it, so.....

On to today's game. It's a 5:10 PT event and sees the Angels sending Bartolo Colon (1-4, 4.56) to the hill to face Runelvys Hernandez (1-4, 7.44). The game will be braodcast on FSN, 710 ESPN, and 830 AM (en Espanol).

In other notes, the LA Times is reporting that Bill Stoneman is looking into the Shea Hillenbrand situation in Toronto. Also, Chris Bootcheck has been recalled and Tommy Murphy sent back to AAA Salt Lake. The only thing I'll say about the Hillenbrand situation is that Jose Guillen was enough of a problem for the Angels to let him go, why would they even think about getting a guy that's this high maintenance? I can't even imagine what Scioscia would do with this guy.