For the second consecutive off-season, the Rangers heated rivals won the World Series in January. Unfortunately for Artie Moreno and Mike Scioscia’s club, games aren’t played on paper. The Angels daunted rotation of Jered Weaver, Christopher John Wilson, Dan Haren, Ervin Santana, and eventually Zack Greinke couldn’t make up for a lousy bullpen, and the Angels finished on the outside looking in come October. In their defense, the team that represented the Junior Circuit in the Fall Classic did finish with a worse record than the Halos, but I digress…
What went right: Mike Trout. I don’t feel like I need to say anything more.
What went wrong: Everything else. Albert Pujols went a month being a replacement player before he realized he was Albert Pujols, and by then the
club had dug themselves a near insurmountable hole. While Jered Weaver’s numbers were CY Young worthy, his fastball velocity took a dip, and there’s no telling how much longer he will be an ace caliber pitcher. After a strong first half of the season (pick a player, C.J. Wilson or Mark Trumbo), did more harm to their team than good in the second half. Dan Haren and Ervin Santana were shells of their former selves, and the number one reason for the poor season by the Angels, a mediocre bullpen that blew game after game.
Going forward, there were mass changes in the pitching staff, and a familiar name is smack dab in the middle of the lineup…
The Rotation:
Led by the talented Jered Weaver, the Angels look to have more success on the mound this season. They will have to hope for health because after their starting five, they are lacking for depth on guys who can give you innings. When Garrett Richards and Jerome Williams are your next in line, you have to hope your offense can carry you.
- Jered Weaver RHP – Few pitchers in baseball have been as reliable as the lanky northpaw. While his fastball routinely sits shy of 90 MPH, the deception in his delivery, his command of all his pitches, and the rock structure in center field at the Big A make it difficult to square up Weaver. As his velocity continues to dip as he gets older, he still is able to neutralize opponents’ batting orders. Even if he does take a step back in 2013, he is still an All-Star.
- C.J. Wilson LHP – This SoCal native has the ability to piss off people in
bunches with his oblivious arrogance. His demeanor blinds the fact that he is actually a pretty good dude, especially in the community. When he is pitching well, no one seems to care about his self-proclaimed “straight edge” life style, pounding Red Bulls, racing cars, and directing commercials and the occasional small film. He was the same Ceej Ranger fans had become accustomed to in the rotation the first half of the season before bone spurs derailed him. His strikeouts were down, and his walks were up from 2011, so there was an expectation of regression, but if he does come back fully healthy, C.J. should still expect a solid season. - Jason Vargas LHP – This craft veteran was acquired from the Mariners in a deal for 1B/DH Kendrys Morales. The Angels were able to deal from a position of surplus to help fill a hole in the rotation. Vargas has been a solid innings eating lefty for the Mariners for years, relying on command and strong off speed offerings to overcome an average fastball. He has been very successful for Seattle, but his home/road splits were quite extreme. There are question marks about how he will pitch outside of the friendly confines of Safeco Field, but with the offense behind him he’ll merely be needed just to keep games close.
- Tommy Hanson RHP – Hanson came over in a deal with the Atlanta Braves for fireballing reliever (and Texan) Jordan Walden. Hanson was a hyped prospect for the Braves, and was considered a future ace. However, injuries to his shoulder have all but kept him from reaching that potential. He has adjusted his delivery to try and take some stress out of his arm, but that is still a question mark. All his pitches have lost some zip as well, but if he can somehow regain his old form he could be a steal. More realistically, however, he’ll be a back of the rotation arm.
- Joe Blanton RHP – Joe Blanton makes his triumphant return to the AL West after a World Series ring with the Phillies in 2009, and years of mediocrity ever since. Blanton was signed to a very generous 2 year $15 million dollar deal. It seemed like an over sign early in the offseason, but in light of Kyle Lohse signing for 3 years and $33 million this week, this deal is a joke. Blanton isn’t a bad pitcher per se, but he is what he is, a back of the rotation guy (at best) who will pitch some innings, but isn’t a guy you have much confidence in to shut down an opposing lineup.
The Bullpen: This part of the team is (potentially) MUCH improved from last year. Scott Downs, Ernest Frieri, and later in the season Kevin Jepson were really the only reliable members of the bullpen. After the Angels acquired Frieri in a steal of a deal from the Padres, he was a shutdown reliever and
eventually closer for the club. He did wear down late in the season, but he is still a very good late innings arm. This year the Angels went out and signed Ryan Madson to a one year deal to be the closer, and lefty Sean Burnett from the Nationals to deepen the back end of the bullpen. If everyone is healthy, this turns their biggest weakness into a strength. However, Madson is coming off of Tommy John surgery, and he hasn’t been able to pitch yet. He’s expected to miss at least April and it could be even longer if he has any setbacks. A healthy Madson, set up by mixing and matching righties (Jepson and Frieri) and lefties (Downs and Burnett) gives the Angels a much better chance of locking down wins.
Offense and Defense – There may not be a better top of the lineup in baseball this year, Trout – Callaspo/Kendrick – Pujols – Hamilton is as feared a lineup you’ll see Whoever hits behind Trout will have many RBI opportunities, and should score plenty of runs when they get on base themselves, setting the 
table for two former MVPs. There are of course question marks, can Trout avoid a sophomore slump and come anywhere close to repeating his historic rookie year? Is Albert Pujols slowing down at 33 years old? Can Josh Hamilton recover from his abysmal second half of the season last year after starting out on a historic pace? After the big boppers is there enough to keep rally’s going? Mark Trumbo was one of the best power hitters in baseball prior to the All-Star break before falling to Josh Hamilton levels after. Is he a legit power threat after Hamilton in the lineup or can the holes in his swing be easily exploitable by pitchers? Defensively, the Angels will have the best defensive outfield in baseball with Trout, Bourjos, and Hamilton roaming around out there. The infield is solid, led by gold glove caliber Erick Aybar at short.
The Angels have a very talented team this year, no question about it, but there are enough holes and question marks that make them no shoe in, especially with the re-tooled Rangers, and the perky A’s in the division. This team could win 100 games and be a serious World Series contender, or they could succumb to pitching woes and injuries and fail to meet expectations for the second (third, fourth?) year in a row. I predict that this team is a wild card team at worst, not necessarily because this is one of the best teams in baseball, but because they are talented, and they share a division with the potentially historically bad Houston Astros. With 19 matchups against Houston they SHOULD be able to pull out at least 15 easy wins. With a balanced AL East that will beat each other up, and a weak AL Central, the AL West should end up with both wild cards. If you want me to be specific, I say the Angel finish second in the division with a record of 92-70.
