Ya know it's somethin to do with the Halos... http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog Thu, 09 Apr 2009 14:58:21 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.2 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=285

Andrew Thomas Gallo]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=285 Thu, 09 Apr 2009 19:57:05 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=284
Fuentes saved 30 games for the Rockies last season with a 1-5 record. He recorded a save in 88% of save opportunities compared to K-Rod\\\'s 90%.

Even if Fuentes isn\\\'t the solution as a closer, he is left-handed which is something the Angels have been lacking in the late innings for years.

Fuentes\\\' deal is worth $17.5 million for the first two years with the club option for 2011 at $9 million.

Comparison of 2008 Stats:

Saves:
K-Rod 62
Fuentes 30

Save %:
K-Rod 89.9%
Fuentes 88.2%

ERA:
K-Rod .224
Fuentes .273

BAA:
K-Rod .216
Fuentes .205

WHIP:
K-Rod 1.29
Fuentes 1.10

]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=284 Wed, 31 Dec 2008 19:43:08 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=283 rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=283 Tue, 23 Dec 2008 18:41:10 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=282
The 30-year old outfielder is a career .284 hitter, but hit just .246 last season in a limited roll (256 ab).

Rivera\'s best season came in 2006 with the Angels when he hit .310 with 25 home runs and 85 runs batted in. He was scheduled to be the starting left fielder in 2007, but broke his leg playing winterball in his native Venezuela.

As of right now, Juan Rivera will probably be the starting right fielder for the Angels next season with Vladimir Guerrero becoming the angels DH.
]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=282 Fri, 19 Dec 2008 19:13:22 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=281 offered a 7-year $150 million contract to free agent Mark Teixeira.

Teixeira, and his uber-agent Scott Boras are seeking a deal in the 10-year, $200 million range, though most people don\'t expect him to get that much. I mentioned before that I thought it would take a 7-year, $160 million offer to sign Tex and that I would do it if I were the Angels.

Teixeira grew up in Maryland, so an offer from the Nationals is not unexpected. The Orioles, Red Sox, Yankees and Angels are also rumored to be interested.

]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=281 Wed, 10 Dec 2008 17:09:58 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=280 K-Rod has signed a 3-year $37 million deal with the New York Mets.

Rodriguez was seeking a 5-year deal in the $75 million range after turning down a 3-year $33 million deal from the Angels last spring.

There was really know other team showing interest in Rodriguez and it started to look like he might be back with the Angels next season.]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=280 Tue, 09 Dec 2008 19:20:46 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=279
- K-Rod Finishes 3rd in AL Cy Young Voting

- Joe Maddon wins AL Manager Of The Year
- Angels Not Interested in re-signing K-Rod
- Angels Raise Ticket Prices Again
- Florida\'s Kevin Gregg Traded to Cubs
- Yankees Offer Sabathia $140 million for 6 years

Interesting...
As I was searching to see how much the Angels raised ticket prices, I ran across this article from the LA Times circa 1998. Here\'s the opening sentence, \"The Angels raised the price of virtually every seat in the house Tuesday, but the extra revenue won’t generate nearly enough money to pay Mo Vaughn should he accept their contract offer.\"]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=279 Mon, 17 Nov 2008 15:53:25 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=277
Headlines

- Torii Hunter wins his 8th consecutive Gold Glove
- Exclusive period to sign Teixeira ends Thursday
- Six Angels players file for Free Agency
- Guerrero & Lackey have their option picked up
- Anderson\\\'s option not picked up by the Angels
- Single-A manager, Ever Magallanes, leaves for White Sox
- Brewers make offer to Sabathia
- Former Angel Curtis Pride Becomes Head Coach at Gallaudet University.

Rumors & Opinions

The Angels are planning on making an offer to free agent Mark Teixeira and Scott Boras this week. They want to either sign him or move on in the next couple of weeks, which is completely against Boras\\\' negotiating style. A lot of it depends on how Teixeira enjoyed his time in Anaheim. If he wants to play for a winner, he will have his choices with the Red Sox and Yankees (are they winners anymore?). If he wants to go back to his home state of Maryland, The Orioles and Nationals are both interested. Then again, I\\\'m hoping that he enjoyed the weather and competitiveness of Anaheim. The rumors seem to agree on a contract offer of 7 years at $20 million per season. I\\\'m hoping the real offer is a little bit more - $160 million for 7 years, because the Yankees, Red Sox, Orioles and Nationals are going to bid him way up.

What\\\'s also interesting regarding Teixeira is that he and Vladimir Guerrero are viewed as the ever-important one-two punch in the lineup, but I don\\\'t think the Angels are going to re-sign Vlad after next season. His body is just to warn down to offer him any long term deal. So after next year, it will be Teixeira batting without protection unless Howie Kendrick improves.

For awhile it seemed as if the Angels were interested in trading for Jake Peavy of the San Diego Padres. Fortunately, that seems to be all talk. There are a couple of reasons I\\\'m against this. 1) I don\\\'t like trading for players. If you want a big name pitcher, you can get one for the same price through free agency without giving up any prospects. 2) The Angels have enough starting pitching. Their starting pitching depth is among the best in baseball, but when you get to the playoffs, you only need three starting pitchers. The money should be spent on a hitter.

My biggest off-season concern is the Angels\' apparent interest in CC Sabathia. I don\'t want him. I just mentioned my belief that the Angels have enough starting pitching and again I\'d like to see the money spent on a hitter. Also, the Angels do not have good luck with signing overweight free agents - Mo Vaughn and Bartolo Colon come to mind. Colon did win the Cy Young in 2005, but in the next two seasons he won a total of seven games.

I also think that high priced free agent pitchers never live up to their expectations. If anyone has seen a study on starting pitchers and free agency, let me know, and it will save me the work. Otherwise, you\'ll see it here in a couple of weeks.

There might not be much of a market for Francisco Rodriguez. His agent is seeking a deal in the neighborhood of 5 years and $75 million dollars, but there aren\'t a lot of teams interested. The obvious team is the New York Mets, but even the free-spending Mets might realize that they can get him cheaper. I don\'t think the Angels are interested in re-signing him, but what if they can get him for 3 years at $30-$36 million total? Supposedly, the Angels are interested in signing Nationals reliever Chad Cordero.

The annual rumors of the Angels and Rockies discussing trading players has begun, but since this ongoing tradition hasn\'t resulted in a trade since the Angels got Chone Figgins for Kimera Bartee, I\'m not even going to mention who the rumors involve this year.

I know it\'s not likely, but I\'d like to see the Angels offer Garret Anderson an incentive laced deal for next season.

Until next week...

]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=277 Mon, 10 Nov 2008 05:21:11 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=276
Outfielder Garret Anderson\'s $14 million option for 2009 was not picked up by the Angels. Instead they will pay Anderson a $3 million buyout and he will become an unrestricted free agent. The Angels have a 2-week period in which they can exclusively deal with Anderson, but no deal is likely to be done.

Anderson\'s future with the Angels seems to depend on whether or not he will be a starter next season. A fate which might not be known until early next year when the majority of free agents have been signed.]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=276 Tue, 28 Oct 2008 18:52:55 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=273
What stood out the most to me, was the number of errors - both defensively and errors in judgment, so I\\\\\\\'ve compiled a list of the top ten blunders in this year\\\\\\\'s playoffs. Sadly, four game provided enough.

10. Mike Scioscia - Bringing in Francisco Rodriguez in a non save situation in Game 3
Every Angel fan knows that when K-Rod comes into a game that is not a save situation, he gives up runs. I (unfortunately) don\\\\\\\'t have stats on it, but it\\\\\\\'s well known. In fact,most closers have trouble coming in when losing or tied. In any case, K-Rod came in to pitch the 10th inning of a tie game. K-Rod loaded the bases, but got Jed Lowrie on a line out to right field to end the inning. No damage, but K-Rod shouldn\\\\\\\'t be used in these situations.

9. Reggie Willits - diving for Jason Bay\\\\\\\'s double
With one out in the bottom of the 9th inning and the score tied, Jason Bay hit a fly ball to right field. Reggie Willits dove for it and missed it by at least a foot. Fortunately for Willits, the ball had enough spin on it that it bounced into the crowd for a ground rule double. Had the ball not bounced into the stands, it would have been an easy inside the park home run. While it\\\\\\\'s good to go 100% at every ball in the outfield, Willits also has to know when he doesn\\\\\\\'t have a play on the ball and to back off. Bay eventually scored anyway on a single.

8. Torii Hunter - Going for two in Game 3
It\\\\\\\'s hard to point a finger at Torii Hunter in this series, but in Game 3 with the game tied in the 9th inning, he led off with a nice single to left field. The only problem is that he tried extending it into a double. The Angels eventually won the game, but it could have ended earlier.

7. Gary Matthews Jr - Misplayed a line drive into a triple.
Game 1, two outs in the top of the 7th and the Halos down 2-1. Matthews misjudges a line drive that should have ended the inning. Instead, Jacoby Ellsbury is on 3rd Base and the Angels are snake bitten again. The run didn\\\\\\\'t score, but the miscue represented every Angels v Red Sox postseason series. It was just another mental error showing that the Angels were scared and intimidated against the Red Sox.

6. Vladimir Guerrero - Getting thrown out at 3rd Base
Vlad represented the tying run in the 8th inning. With one out and Vlad on 1st base, Torii Hunter hit a blooper over the first baseman\\\\\\\'s head. It was a close play, so Vlad had to wait between first and second before seeing what to do. The ball hit the ground and Vlad headed for third. He was out by about 89 feet claiming that he didn\\\\\\\'t see the 3rd Base Coach after rounding 2nd Base.

5. Mike Scioscia - Not inserting a pinch runner for Vladimir Guerrero in Game 1
This is real easy to criticize in hindsight, but I was screaming for a runner at the time. With the Angels trailing by one run in the bottom of the 8th inning, the tying run is of the utmost importance. That tying run is at first base with one out and is Vladimir Guerrero. While his bat would be missed if the game were extended, it won\\\\\\\'t be extended without getting a run across first.

4. Angels - Winning their 100th game of the season on the last day.
I don\\\\\\\'t know what the psychological disadvantage is about winning 100 games, but it\\\\\\\'s real. The Angels were the 19th team in the Wild Card era to win 100 games or more during the regular season. Of those 19, only the 1998 Yankees won the World Series. 1 in 19. And the last team before the 1998 Yankees, was the 1986 Mets. Think about it. In 21 years (1987 on), 24 teams have won 100+ games and only one has won the World Series. In the Wild Card era there have been 8 teams that have won 98 or 99 games, and 4 of those 8 have won the World Series. I don\\\\\\\'t know what the extra pressure is, but the numbers don\\\\\\\'t lie.

3. Howie Kendrick - Not catching the pop up in Game 3.
The Angels had a tiny 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning; With 2 outs and the bases loaded, Jacoby Ellsbury hits a shallow popup that Howie Kendrick is going to catch, only he jumps out of the way at the last second allowing the ball to drop in for a bases-clearing \\\\\\\"single\\\\\\\". Joe Saunders should have been out of the inning, instead the Halos are down 3-1.

2. Mike Scioscia - Bringing in Francisco Rodriguez in a non save situation in Game 2
I\\\\\\\'ve already mentioned that K-Rod should not be coming in when it\\\\\\\'s not a save situation, so I don\\\\\\\'t need to elaborate on it. In any case, K-Rod came in with two outs in the bottom of the 8th inning with the Angels down one and got Dustin Pedroia to ground out. However, in the 9th inning, K-Rod gave up 4 hits and 2 runs including a lead off double to Big Papi and a 2-run home run to JD Drew.

1. Erick Aybar - missed bunt in Game 4
With one out in the 9th inning and the go ahead run on 3rd base, the Angels put on the squeeze play. Aybar is a good bunter and there was a 2-0 count, so the Sox pitcher had to throw a strike. Unfortunately, the ball was way inside and Aybar missed it completely. Willits was caught in a rundown and tagged out. The other blunders may have been worse, but the magnitude of this play was too big for it not to be number one.

Honorable Mention/I forgot this one...(thanks to Rosy and Walter for pointing it out)
- Howie Kendrick bobbling a ground ball in the 5th inning of Game 4. With runners on 1st and 3rd and one out, Ellsbury hit a ground ball to Kendrick. I don\\\'t think there was any chance of turning the double play, but if Kendrick fields it cleanly, he would\\\'ve got the out at second. Then with the runner at 1st base, not 2nd, the ensuing single wouldn\\\'t have scored a run for the Sox.
]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=273 Tue, 07 Oct 2008 19:45:20 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=274 A
Torii Hunter (.389, 7-for-18, 5-rbi, 0-xbh)
Hunter was the only clutch hitter in the Halos lineup. He was 5-for-11 (all singles) with runners in scoring position and led the team with 5 rbi. His two out single in the 8th inning of Game 4 was the biggest hit the Angels had all year.

A
Kendry Morales (.500, 2-for-4, 1-2b)
This grade might come as a surprise, but Morales had two huge 9th inning pinch hits.

A-
Mike Napoli (.250, 3-for-12, 2-hr, 4-rbi)
Napoli\\\'s grade is this high for his two big home runs in Game 3 of the series. His home run was the first Angels postseason home run in 68 innings and he accounted for 33% of the Angels extra base hits. On the flip side he was 0-for-4 in Game 1 with 3 strikeouts and 0-for-3 in Game 4.

B+
Mark Teixeira (.467, 7-for-15, 1-rbi)
Tex had a great first postseason hitting .467. Unfortunately, when runners were in scoring position he was 0-for-4.

B+
Vladimir Guerrero (.467, 7-for-15, 0-rbi, 4-bb, 1-2b)
Coming into the 2008 postseason, Vlad was hitting just .183 (11-for-60) in the playoffs. Vlad quieted his critics this series with a .467 batting average. He was 0-for-2 with runners in scoring position, but did get 2 walks in those situations.

B
Jeff Mathis (.500, 1-for-2)
Mathis didn\\\'t really play enough to get graded, but in his limited action, he was 1-for-2.

B
Chone Figgins (.333, 7-for-21, 6-k, 2-xbh)
After going 11-for-66 (.167) in his career in the postseason, Chone continued the trend with an 0-for-5 in Game 1. While many fans thought he should have been benched, he instead went 7-for-16 the rest of the series including a huge 8th inning leadoff triple in Game 2.

C-
Erick Aybar (.111, 2-for-18, 1-rbi)
Aybar had a terrible series at the plate. The only thing saving his grade is the huge game winning single in the top of the 12th inning in Game 3.

D+
Juan Rivera (.125, 1-for-8, 1-rbi)
Rivera walked to force in a run in the 1st inning of Game 3. On the flip side, he was 0-for-3 with runners in scoring position.

D
Garret Anderson (.158, 3-for-19, 4-k)
Anderson was 2-for-4 in Game 1 of the series and then went 1-for-15. With runners in scoring position, GA was 0-for-4.

D-
Howie Kendrick (.118, 2-for-17, 7-k)
Howie had a dreadful series going 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position. He left 11 men on base in the first two games and made a huge defensive blunder in Game 3. Unlike many Angels fans who want to sever all ties with Howie, you have to understand that he was not healthy nor was he ready to play at game speed. He was out from August 28th to September 21st with a hamstring injury and never really got back into shape.

F
Gary Matthews Jr (.000 0-for-5, 2-k)
No hits and crappy defense. Ever since steroids were \\\'banned\\\', he has been terrible at best.
]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=274 Tue, 07 Oct 2008 19:10:23 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=275
A
7 Darren Oliver (1.1 IP, 0.00 ERA, 0.75 WHIP)
Oliver faced 5 batters and only gave up a walk to David Ortiz. He also had a big strike out of Ortiz in Game 1 with two on and two out in the 7th inning.

A
Jered Weaver (2.0 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1.00 WHIP)
Could it be that Jered Weaver was meant to be a closer? Coming out of the bullpen in Game 3 in Boston, Weaver allowed just one hit and one walk in 2 innings to get the win. With the Angels up one in the bottom of the 12th, he walked Ortiz and then got Youkilis, Bay and Cora in order.

A-
John Lackey (13.2 IP, 2.63 ERA, 1.10 WHIP)
Lackey pitched great, but was outpitched by Jon Lester in both starts. It doesn\\\'t help that Lackey was pitching knowing that his offense was inept and any mistake he made could be the ball game.

A-
Jose Arredondo (3.2 IP, 0.00 ERA 1.09 WHIP)
Arredondo had no earned runs, but in Game 2, he was shaky. Coming in with two on and one out in the 6th inning, he walked the first batter before getting the next two outs. He then got two outs in the top of the 7th before giving up two singles and a fly out. He got out of the jams, but he made it too nervous. Sounds like a closer in the making.

C+
Scot Shields (5.2 IP, 4.76 ERA, 1.24 WHIP)
Shields let the Red Sox blow open Game 1, but then pitched well the rest of the series. He even pitched well at Fenway giving up just one run (Game 4\\\'s game winner) in 4 innings. In 15 career regular season games at Fenway Park, Shields is 0-3 with a 13.85 ERA.

C
Joe Saunders (4.2 IP, 1.93 ERA, 1.93 WHIP)
Saunders actual era was 7.71, but I just can\\\'t include the 3 earned runs that scored on Ellsbury\\\'s \\\"single\\\" which should have been caught by Howie Kendrick. Saunders allowed base runners in all 5 innings he pitched.

D
Ervin Santana (5.1 IP, 8.44 ERA, 1.50 WHIP)
Santana gave up 5 straight 2-out hits in the first inning of Game 2. Amazingly, the feeble Halo bats came back to tie this game, but Santana\\\'s hole was too big to climb out of.

D
Francisco Rodriguez (2.1 IP 7.71 ERA, 3.00 WHIP)
K-Rod was 0-1 in 2 appearances. In Game 2, he gave up a 9th inning 2-run home run to JD Drew. In his \\\'good\\\' outing, he loaded the bases but didn\\\'t give up a run. The fact that I put some blame on Scioscia for bringing in K-Rod in non-save situations is the only reason he didn\\\'t get an F.
]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=275 Tue, 07 Oct 2008 16:44:45 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=272
The one thing we do know about the baseball playoffs is that hindsight is 20/20. And hindsight tells us that the hottest team wins the World Series, so let\'s see who the hottest team has been each year.

Last year, the Red Sox swept the Angels in the ALDS. They also swept the World Series.

In 2005, the Angels won the first game of the ALCS against the White Sox and then lost four straight. The White Sox then swept the World Series. The White Sox also swept the Red Sox in the ALDS. The lone loss for the White Sox that year was against Scioscia and the Halos.

In 2004, the Angels were swept by the Red Sox in the ALDS. The Red Sox won the World Series in 4 games.

That\'s 3 exits from the playoffs to teams that were so hot that they swept the World Series. In other words, the Angels have had a bit of bad luck in their postseason draws.

Unfortunately, this trend means that the Boston Red Sox will win this year\'s World Series again in a sweep.]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=272 Tue, 07 Oct 2008 04:27:26 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=271 rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=271 Mon, 06 Oct 2008 03:22:40 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=270
Here is a look at stats for tonight\\\'s starting pitchers.

Ervin Santana

               GS  W-L    ERA   BAA
2008            32 16-7   3.49  .237
Home 08         15  5-5   4.03  .245
Night 08        23 13-5   3.17  .227
vs Red Sox 08    0
Career         114 51-37  4.42  .255
Home Career     58 30-14  3.38  .237
Night Career    80 36-26  4.01  .253
vs Red Sox Car.  4  1-2   5.73  .247


Daisuke Matsuzaka
               GS  W-L    ERA   BAA
2008            29 18-3   2.90  .211
Road 08         13  9-0   2.37  .178
Night 08        19 12-1   2.48  .198
vs Angels 08     1  0-1  10.80  .350
Career          61 33-15  3.72  .230
Road Career     31 16-8   3.35  .210
Night Career    43 24-9   3.75  .225
vs Angels Car.   1  0-1  10.80  .350


Red Sox hitters vs Ervin Santana

        H/AB  HR BI   AVG   OPS
Bay       0/0
Crisp     2/2   0  1 1.000 3.000
Drew      2/7   0  0  .000  .000
Ellsbury  0/3   0  0  .000  .000
Kotsay    7/18  0  2  .389  .950
Lowell    2/5   0  1  .400 1.300
Lowrie    0/0
Ortiz     5/9   1  3  .556 1.747
Pedroia   0/3   0  0  .000  .000
Varitek   0/8   0  0  .000  .111
Youkilis  1/2   0  1  .500 1.167


Angels hitters vs Daisuke Matsuzaka

        H/AB  HR BI   AVG   OPS
Anderson  0/2   0  0  .000  .000
Aybar     0/0
Figgins   1/2   0  0  .500 1.167
Guerrero  2/3   0  0  .667 1.333
Hunter    2/7   1  3  .286 1.000
Kendrick  0/1   0  0  .000  .500
Matthews  0/0
Napoli    0/0
Rivera    0/1   0  1  .000  .000
Teixeira  1/2   0  0  .500 2.167
]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=270 Fri, 03 Oct 2008 18:43:25 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=269
When looking at ALDS & NLDS series in the past 10 years, the home team has won Game One 19 times and lost it 21 times. And of those 21 losses, the home team has come back and won the series 7 times.

Better yet, in the American League, 6 out of 10 teams have lost the first game at home and then won the series. I know it sounds improbable, but over the last 10 years this is how it goes.

Of course, the Angels have to take one game from the Red Sox before they can think about winning the series, but at least there is some hope and lots of historical precedence.

]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=269 Thu, 02 Oct 2008 05:24:38 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=268 Here is a look at stats for tonight\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s starting pitchers.

John Lackey

                GS  W-L    ERA   BAA
2008             24 12-5   3.75  .260
Home 08          12  5-3   4.29  .275
Night 08         16  7-4   3.69  .265
vs Red Sox 08     2  2-0   2.81  .132
Career          206 91-63  3.81  .262
Home Career      99 43-27  3.70  .257
Night Career    154 66-44  3.74  .262
vs Red Sox Car.  13  3-6   5.54  .305


Jon Lester
                GS  W-L    ERA   BAA
2008             33 16-6   3.21  .256
Road 08          16  5-5   4.09  .275
Night 08         24 13-3   3.07  .256
vs Angels 08      1  0-0   7.20  .429
Career           59 27-8   3.81  .265
Road Career      29 11-6   4.37  .277
Night Career     45 22-5   3.70  .261
vs Angels Car.    4  1-1   7.78  .393


Red Sox hitters vs John Lackey

         H/AB HR BI   AVG   OPS
Bay       0/0
Crisp     4/22  2  2  .182  .705
Ellsbury  0/6   0  0  .000  .000
Kotsay    9/34  0  0  .265  .639
Lowell    3/19  0  1  .158  .316
Lowrie    0/0
Ortiz    10/30  2  9  .333 1.112
Pedroia   5/12  0  0  .417 1.045
Varitek   5/24  0  2  .208  .630
Youkilis  5/17  2  4  .294  .941


Angels hitters vs Jon Lester

         H/AB HR BI   AVG   OPS
Anderson  3/7   0  0  .429 1.071
Aybar     2/3   0  2  .667 1.417
Figgin    2/8   0  3  .250  .597
Guerrero  4/10  0  1  .400  .955
Hunter    2/3   0  0  .667 1.667
Kendrick  2/5   0  0  .400 1.000
Matthews  3/6   2  3  .500 2.000
Napoli    0/3   0  0  .000  .000
Rivera    2/5   0  2  .400 1.100
Teixeira  0/3   0  0  .000  .000
]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=268 Wed, 01 Oct 2008 17:51:07 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=267
Here\'s a list of where Angel players finished in the top 10 of the American league this year. If there were no Angels in the top ten, then the highest Angel is also listed.

Saves
1. 62 Francisco Rodriguez (New ML Record)

Strikeouts
1. 231 AJ Burnett
2. 214 Ervin Santana

WHIP
1. 1.05 Roy Halladay
3. 1.12 Ervin Santana
9. 1.21 Joe Saunders

IP
1. 246.0 Roy Halladay
4. 219.0 Ervin Santana

Batting Average Against
1. .211 Daisuke Matsuzaka
5. .237 Ervin Santana

ERA
1. 2.54 Cliff Lee
6. 3.41 Joe Saunders

Wins
1. 22 Cliff Lee
6. 17 Joe Saunders
7. 16 Ervin Santana

HITTERS

Batting Average
1. .330 Joe Mauer
13. .303 Vladimir Guerrero

RBI
1. 130 Josh Hamilton
16. 91 Vladimir Guerrero

HR
1. 37 Miguel Cabrera
13. 27 Vladimir Guerrero

Runs
1. 118 Dutin Pedroia
28. 85 Vladimir Guerrero & Torii Hunter

Hits
1. 213 Ichiro Suzuki & Dustin Pedroia
27. 164 Vladimir Guerrero

Doubles
1. 54 Dustin Pedroia
17. Torii Hunter

Triples
1. 13 Curtis Granderson
13. Erick Aybar

Walks
1. 111 Jack Cust
28. 62 Chone Figgins

Stolen Bases
1. 50 Jacoby Ellsbury
6. 34 Chone Figgins

On-Base Percentage
1. .436 Milton Bradley
20. .367 Chone Figgins

Slugging Percentage
1. .573 Alex Rodriguez
10. .521 Vladimir Guerrero

OPS
1. Milton Bradley .999
10. Vladimir Guerrero .886]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=267 Mon, 29 Sep 2008 15:49:43 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=266
Smith said that the last team to do it was the 2005 Cardinals. The Cardinals that year lost in the NLCS to the Houston Astros. The year the Cardinals won the World Series was 2006 when they went 83-78 during the regular season. That would be 17 games away from 100 wins.

So, here\\\'s the stat I mention so often. In the last 12 years (aka the Wild Card era), there have been 17 teams who have won 100 games or more in the regular season. Of those 17 teams, only one, the 1998 Yankees, have won the World Series. One out of 17.

I\\\'m hoping that this means that a 100-win team is overdue to win the World Series this season.

For the record, in the past 12 years, here is the breakdown of regular season record and postseason success...


Wins    Teams WS PSrecord  PS%
82-87      6   2   8-4    .667
88-91     24   1  14-23   .378  
92-95     27   3  24-24   .500
96-99     22   5  24-17   .585
100-117   17   1  14-16   .467

WS = World Series titles
PS record = Post Season Series Record
PS% = Post Season Record Percentage
]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=266 Sun, 28 Sep 2008 21:17:02 +0100 http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=265 1 John Lackey
2 Ervin Santana
3 Joe Saunders

Bullpen
4 Francisco Rodriguez
5 Scot Shields
6 Jose Arredondo
7 Darren Oliver
8 Jon Garland
9 Jered Weaver
10 Kevin Jepsen

Catchers
11 Mike Napoli
12 Jeff Mathis

Infield
13 Mark Teixeira
14 Howie Kendrick
15 Erick Aybar
16 Chone Figgins
17 Robb Quinlan
18 Kendry Morales
19 Brandon Wood

Outfield
20 Vladimir Guerrero
21 Torii Hunter
22 Garret Anderson
23 Juan Rivera
24 Gary Matthews Jr
25 Reggie Willits]]> rallymonkey@rallymonkey.com http://www.rallymonkey.com/blog/index.php?entryid=265 Sun, 28 Sep 2008 21:05:21 +0100