Remote Blogging

Coming to you from DFW, where my connecting flight was cancelled and I'm waiting on another one.

• Kings sign Stuart, Handzus, Preissing, Calder, and Nagy: Pretty savvy operating by Dean Lombardi in my opinion. Anze Kopitar, Mike Cammalleri, and Jack Johnson are going to be the guys who lead the Kings into the future, and Dean didn't sign interlopers. And on top of that, he left them with terrific cap flexibility going forward so that they can keep those guys. I'm not sold on the need for another goaltender, not because I believe their goaltending is good enough, but because I believe it won't matter next year. And I believe that by the time it does matter, Jonathan Bernier will be ready.
• UCLA gets commitment from Jrue Holliday: Really an amazing pickup, especially considering that Lorenzo Romar can recruit with the best of them, and Holliday's brother is at Washington. But this gives UCLA four players in the top thirty in next year's class, joining Love and Stanback from this year's class. They have the bodies and talent to replace Darren Collison. They are going to be very deep and talented in the backcourt. Look for the 2009 class to feature big men.
• Angels take two of three from Baltimore, but are losing right now: Such is baseball. Ervin was striking guys out like crazy, but get banged up on two homers, and his bullpen and defense blew up in his absences, tossing the Rangers a couple more runs. But it won't matter tonight, because they can't solve Kevin Millwood, a guy with an ERA over 7.00. Carrasco is gone, which is a plus, but Napoli is a victim of Sunday's game ending play at the plate, and hits the 15 day DL. That's gonna hurt. Two of three from Baltimore was a nice pick-me-up, but they'll need to rebound in the last couple of games against Texas. And Brad Wilkerson just hit three homers. I don't think it was Santana so much as just a guy who was on fire.

In an hour, hopefully I'll be on a plane getting some sleep.

Maybe this would be a good time

...to announce that I'm going to San Jose this weekend and therefore probably won't be posting until the fifth or so. Good timing, since I haven't really felt like writing anything lately, which should be obvious from the fact that there aren't any posts for the last few days. The smarter ones of you out there probably already figured it out.

Anyway, Shea's gone, which is good. They got swept by the Royals, which is bad. And that pretty much sums it up for now.

Just a short one tonight

I have to get up early tomorrow.

Do. Not. Count. This. Team. Out. Another terrific comeback victory, and the big thing is, other than the home run the other night, which they didn't really need, they're doing a lot of this without Vlad at his best. he can carry a team for two or three weeks, and he will at some point, but the fact that they're winning without his big contributions is very nice.

Give some props to Joe Saunders, who struggled early, but kept them in the game and got it to the bullpen within striking distance. Similar thanks should go to Chris Bootcheck, who got the job done when called up, as well as Frankie and Shields (but we expect it from them).

The OC was the player of the game with the walkoff double to go along with a homer and an RBI single.

And how about giving some credit to Dino Ebel! Twice he sent guys that should have been out by ten feet, but they must have some sort of scouting report that says run all over the Pirates defense, because he got them two runs that they may not otherwise have scored tonight. And both runners (Napoli and Haynes) looked like they did not expect to be sent. The tying run especially was enormous, because you just can't be sure whether you're going to get another chance.

Nice way to start the series.

Astros 4; Angels 8

Congratulations to Terry Evans on his first major league home run in his first major league start. For a guy who was a non-prospect 23 year old in AAA as recently as last year, he's come a long way, and he was the Angels' only offense until a wild seventh inning. He scored twice, drove in two, and the guy who struck out 60 times against 10 walks in Salt Lake this season drew a big walk in the seventh, and didn't strike out once.

They wouldn't have had a chance in that inning if not for what actually wasn't all that bad of a start from Ervin Santana, despite the poor line in the box score. Other than the first inning home run from Hunter Pence, he actually made a lot of good pitches. Give credit to the Astros for putting the bat on the ball and getting some hits when they needed to in the early innings. Santana kept the game from getting away in the fifth, sixth, and part of the seventh, helping to set up the comeback.

And for the second time in three nights, what a comeback. Error, walk, walk, walk......walk, sac fly. Oh, and a three run homer from Vlad. Just like that, a two run deficit became a four run lead. Four of the Angels' five walks came in that stretch. The walks to Napoli and Evans weren't surprising. The walks to Evans and Figgins were. And while Borkowski clearly struggled with his control, the Angels earned those walks, fighting off some pitches, extending at bats, and punching their own tickets to first base. And just as the Angels had taken the lead, Vlad decided to remove any doubt with a bomb to left center.

Another series win. Another game the Angels probably shouldn't have won. But once again, the message to their opponent was "if you come in to Anaheim on a roll, prepare to get rolled while you're in town". They're taking 2 of 3 consistently from good teams, bad teams, teams on a run, etc. Three more on tap versus the Bucs as the season rolls on.

Bartolo Colon

He's not very good.

Across the Pond

I'm pretty sure I own the albums from whence 38 of the following 78 tracks, collected on this box set, are culled. Any guesses which ones?

The Brit Box:

Disc 1:

01 The Smiths - "How Soon Is Now?"
02 Cocteau Twins - "Lorelei"
03 Felt - "Primitive Painters"
04 Shop Assistants - "Somewhere in China"
05 The Mighty Lemon Drops - "My Biggest Thrill"
06 The Cure - "Just Like Heaven"
07 Echo & The Bunnymen - "Lips Like Sugar"
08 The Jesus and Mary Chain - "April Skies"
09 Spacemen 3 - "Walkin' With Jesus (Sound of Confusion)"
10 The Primitives - "Crash"
11 The Wonder Stuff - "Unbearable"
12 The Stone Roses - "She Bangs the Drums"
13 The Charlatans UK - "The Only One I Know"
14 Happy Mondays - "Step On"
15 Primal Scream - "Loaded" [single version]
16 Inspiral Carpets - "This Is How It Feels"
17 The Trash Can Sinatras - "Obscurity Knocks"
18 The La's - "There She Goes"
19 The Sundays - "Here's Where the Story Ends"

Disc 2:

01 Ride - "Vapour Trail"
02 Pale Saints - "Sight of You"
03 My Bloody Valentine - "Only Shallow"
04 Lush - "For Love"
05 The Telescopes - "Flying"
06 Chapterhouse - "Pearl"
07 Catherine Wheel - "I Want To Touch You"
08 Bleach - "Trip & Slide"
09 Curve - "Coast Is Clear"
10 Five Thirty - "You"
11 Moose - "This River Will Never Run Dry"
12 The Family Cat - "(Thought I'd Died) And Gone To Heaven"
13 The Dylans - "(Don't Cut Me Down) Mary Quant in Blue"
14 Thousand Yard Stare - "0-0 A.E.T. (No Score After Extra Time)"
15 Ned's Atomic Dustbin - "Grey Cell Green"
16 Birdland - "Shoot You Down"
17 Manic Street Preachers - "Stay Beautiful"
18 Teenage Fanclub - "Star Sign"

Disc 3:

01 Suede - "Metal Mickey"
02 Swervedriver - "Duel" [radio edit]
03 Eugenius - "Breakfast"
04 Superstar - "Barfly"
05 New Order - "Regret"
06 James - "Laid"
07 Nick Heyward - "Kite"
08 The Boo Radleys - "Lazarus"
09 Saint Etienne - "You're in a Bad Way"
10 Stereolab - "Wow & Flutter"
11 Blur - "Tracy Jacks"
12 Oasis - "Live Forever"
13 Pulp - "Common People"
14 These Animal Men - "Speed King"
15 Mega City Four - "Wallflower"
16 Echobelly - "Insomniac"
17 Gene - "Sleep Well Tonight"
18 Menswe@r - "Sleeping In"
19 Supergrass - "Alright"
20 Cast - "Alright"
21 Elastica - "Stutter"

Disc 4:

01 Dodgy - "In a Room"
02 Ash - "Girl From Mars"
03 Sleeper - "Sale of the Century"
04 Marion - "Sleep"
05 Kula Shaker - "Tattva"
06 Ocean Colour Scene - "The Riverboat Song"
07 Babybird - "You're Gorgeous"
08 The Bluetones - "Slight Return"
09 Super Furry Animals - "Something 4 the Weekend"
10 The Divine Comedy - "Something for the Weekend"
11 Cornershop - "Brimful of Asha"
12 Silver Sun - "Service"
13 Spiritualized - "Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space"
14 Mansun - "Wide Open Space"
15 Hurricane #1 - "Step Into My World"
16 The Verve - "Lucky Man"
17 Rialto - "Untouchable"
18 Catatonia - "Mulder and Scully"
19 Placebo - "You Don't Care About Us"
20 Gay Dad - "Oh Jim"

Chone Figgins - Asskicker

It's not very often that you see a guy raise his batting average thirty points in one game in June. But that's what Chone Figgins did tonight, all while pulling John Lackey and Hector Carrasco's asses out of the fire. Both pitchers were awful, but Figgins capped off a six for six night by driving in the tying run on a two out infield single in the 8th inning and a two out game winning double in the bottom of the tenth inning, making a winner out of Frankie Rodriguez.

Lackey was less than good for the second straight start, blowing a 4-1 lead, and exiting the game with two runners on base and trailing 6-4, all five runs coming with two outs. He simply didn't have it from the get go, and while he battled for a few innings, he succumbed in the fifth, walking Carlos Lee to load the bases, and throwing three ball fastball after fastball to Mark Loretta, who finally bounced one over the left-center field wall for a two run ground rule double. But Lackey didn't accept the good break, and promptly delivered a textbook gopher ball to Mark Lamb. A hit batter and some choice words for the umpire is all Lackey could muster before finally getting the hook.

Hector Carrasco got out of the fifth, and delivered a 1-2-3 sixth before falling apart in the seventh, the coup de grace coming on error in a run down that not only allowed the 8th run to score, but allowed the eventual ninth run to reach third, where a sac fly would chase him home.

Then the monkey paid a long overdue visit. Singles from Vlad and HGHMJ, followed by a walk to Kendrick loaded the bases. Hillenbrand, who conveniently waited until the game was tied to deliver his usual suck (in his defense, he had three hits and two RBIs in what was a pretty good game for him) drove in two with a single. Mike Napoli busted down the line to avoid a double play, a huge effort that paid dividends. Erick Aybar knocked one into right to score Kendrick and move Napoli to third, from where he would score on a Reggie Willits sac fly. With Aybar on third, Figgins delivered his fifth hit of the night, a bouncer to first that he legged out for the game tying RBI.

Anxious moments plagued the 8th and 9th innings, but Scot Shields and Frankie Rodriguez made big pitches when they needed to, none more important than Frankie's slider to Craig Biggio that ended the ninth inning, which looked to me like one of the best he's thrown since 2002.

With two outs in the ninth, Reggie Willits became the ninth Angel starter to reach base via a hit, and set the stage for Chone Figgins' heroics. On a 1-1 pitch, with Willits drawing all kinds of attention from Astros reliever Trever Miller, Figgins laced a liner down the right field line, hit almost as hard as two liners that he had caught earlier in the game. It dropped a few feet to the happy side of the foul line, found its way to the corner, and Willits came home with the winning run.

The Angels should not have won this game. They got seven innings of lousy pitching, 4.2 from a guy who may have just cancelled his trip to San Francisco in mid-July. Only three of their 19 hits went for extra bases (Figgins was officially credited with a triple on the last hit), and none left the yard. But they scratched a victory worthy of their magical 2002 season. Championship teams win games during the season that they have no business winning, and this was one of those for the Angels. And almost all of the credit goes to Figgins. Really an amazing game, and an amazing turnaround from a guy that people wanted to run out of town about a month ago.

Less than stellar of late, Bartolo Colon takes the mound tomorrow to take a shot at wrapping up another series win.

Enough about Adam Dunn already

The Angels should make a run at Dunn, or whatever other power bat they can find, then send Hillenbrand packing.

So says Jonah Keri over at ESPN.com. I like Adam Dunn. I had him on my fantasy team a couple years ago and even kept him last year over a bunch of really good guys, including Derek Lee (before all the injuries).

Let's say a guy was about to hit the market who hit 310/362/525 last year in the AL. Let's also say that the price the Angels would have to pay for this guy in terms of players/prospects and additional salary is a big fat nothing. Let's also assume that unlike Adam Dunn, the guy isn't a total butcher in the field, meaning that acquiring him would allow the Angels to DH Vlad more frequently down the stretch, keeping him rested for potential post-season play. I'd imagine that this would be the type of player that writers would say the Angels should go out and get.

Do people not realize that Juan Rivera will probably be back in a month or so? And that he'll be free? And that he's been pretty good the last year and a half? And that he can also play at least average defense?

Personally, I'd rather have a month of Hillenbrand, followed by Rivera the rest of the way, and hold on to the starting pitcher, major league infielder, and top prospect that the Reds are asking for over a few months of Adam Dunn, who won't come cheap, and will likely be a free agent at the end of the year if he gets dealt during the season.

On the U.S. Open

First, for the best coverage and commentary, go here. As for me:

• The 280-300 yard par 3 8th hole: Personally, I liked it. I think Phil Mickelson summed it up best when he commented on the "black hole" that exists between about 240 and 310 yards. You never see holes of that length, because it's too long for a par 3 and too short for a par 4. But (and this is a theme I'll be returning to), par is just a number. The idea is to get the ball in the hole in as few shots as possible. If you think you can get there and too putt for a three, have at it. You want to lay it up short and try to get up and down, be my guest. Golf isn't paint by numbers. There are lots of ways to skin this cat, and the best tournaments should feature the best players being creative.
• The Rough and the Fairways: The conventional wisdom is that the straight hitters have an advantage in the open because the fairways are so tight and the rough is so penal, that you have to keep in the fairway to score. Wrong for a couple reasons. First, as Geoff Ogilvie mentioned, the fairways are so tight and firm in the typical Open that you can hit very good drives and still miss the fairway. So the advantage that straight hitters have is negated because they're chopping it out of the rough all day too. Guys that normally hit 10-12 fairways are hitting 6-7, just like the long hitters. As Ogilvie said:

  I mean, I'm quite happy hitting seven shots out of the rough. I do that every day. They don't.

  If you're going to miss the fairway, you may as well bomb it out there. On top of that, the long hitters are hitting two-iron to where the straight hitters hit 3-wood. That's a big advantage for the long hitters. And not surprising, Angel Cabrera is a bomber. So it Tiger. So is Bubba Watson.
  
• The Setup in General: This is the time of year where we hear a lot of "it's great to see those guys hack around like I do on a typical Saturday." I think that's stupid. No one says "it's great to see guys strike out like I would in a major league game", or "it's great to see guys with three inch verticals and no inside or outside game miss all kinds of jumpers", or "it's great to see guys roll gutter ball after gutter ball once in a while". OK, scratch the last one since no one watches bowling. But anyway, these are the best players in the world. I want to see them play like the best players in the world. I don't want to see shots that land on the left side of the fairway roll into the rough on the right side of the fairway. That doesn't mean the winning score should be 20 under, but par is a standard, and the best players in the world should be able to do better than par. That brings me to....
• Par: Like I said, it's just a number, but to the USGA it's like the virginity of a bible thumper's daughter, to be protected at any cost. That's why courses that routinely play as par 72s for the members play as par 70s in the open. They take two 520 yard par fives and turn them into 500 yard par fours. That's probably a two or three shot swing every day for four days. But here's the thing: Who cares? Other than the USGA, I mean. Tournament golf is a very simple concept. A bunch of players play the same course over four days, and the guy finishes in the lowest number of strokes win. Par is simply a concept that allows us to keep track of who's in the lead when players are on different parts of the course, and it makes following the leader board a heck of a lot easier. But you could get the same result by just making EVERY hole a par 4, or 5, or 10, or 20. It simply doesn't matter. It may matter to you and me when we try to compare how we did at one golf course versus another, but in the context of tournament golf, par is meaningless. They aren't competing against the course, or against their round at the local muni last Saturday. They're competing against each other. So when the USGA says they aren't fixated on par, they're full of shit.
  
• Furyk: I can only assume that Jim Furyk was pretty confident that he could at the very least put the ball in a position to make birdie on 17, and no worse than par, even if he hit driver. Sometimes you pull a club that's easier to hit and you don't do any better than you would have with driver, with the added problem of being 20 yards further back. And let's not forget that he was tied at the time. He's trying to make birdie and win it outright. This isn't Jean Van de Velde making mistake after mistake on the 18th at Carnoustie.
  
• Tiger: What's strange is that if Tiger is leading after three rounds, the tournament is over. If he isn't leading after three rounds, the tournament is over for him, even if he takes a lead, however briefly, during the final round. For the second straight major, he led in the final round, only to eventually finish as the runner-up. He simply couldn't make a putt when he needed to, and apparently got a bad break out of the bunker on 17, to the extent that's possible. I mean, bunkers are supposed to be hazards, so one should question whether you can really get a "bad break" in a bunker. But the bottom line is that if Tiger is in your rear view mirror on Sunday in a major, ignore him and worry about the other names you see, because he's not the one that's going to get you. One last thing about Tiger, though. If that becomes the conventional wisdom, and I believe it will, then no one is going to work harder to change it than Tiger.
• Angel: This guy won the U.S. Open. He didn't inherit it. He wasn't the last man standing as everyone else fell apart. He won it by busting par on Sunday. He got up and down from tee box 300 yards away on number 8. And while he nearly gave it back on 16 and 17, he earned the title earlier in the round, especially with an incredible approach on 15. He hit the ball beautifully for most of the round, and when he came to the tournament's toughest hole, with a one shot lead, he hit a perfect drive and made a routine two putt par to maintain the margin of victory. He earned it.

As for me, I choked. I was four over through 14 holes at Dubs on Saturday after hitting a 198 yard five iron to about four feet on the 14th and making the putt for birdie. I played the last four holes in 5 over, including going four over on the last three holes despite hitting the fairway on all three. I was not happy.

Big Weekend for the Angels

On the diamond, the Angels continued their recent dominance over the Dodgers, taking two of three, and they really should have taken all three.

On Friday, Ervin Santana strung together his second consecutive solid road start, and his fourth consecutive solid start overall. That's four straight quality starts, and while his ERA is still around 5.00, it's come down about a run over those starts. He's thrown 27 innings and given up 9 earned runs over that span. Those are solid third starter numbers. Unfortunately, the bats didn't pick him up, and he dropped a 2-1 decision to Derek Lowe.

On Saturday, in a game that I couldn't watch (thanks, Fox!), the Angels got five and a third scoreless from Jered Weaver, who didn't sound as sharp as his numbers indicate, and a two run single from Reggie Willits in a three run fifth. The bullpen completed the shutout for the 3-0 victory, but the game was costly, as Garret Anderson returned to the DL, and Casey Kotchman was hit in the head with a ball thrown so hard that he needed stitches....UNDER HIS HELMET! Apparently Russel Martin has a cannon.

And finally, yesterday the Angels got yet another excellent start from Kelvim Escobar, who held things down until the Angels had broken the game open in the seventh. He left having thrown seven innings and allowing three runs while striking out eight. 110 pitches are a few more than I'd like to see, but it was yet another game in which the offense provided some run support, a rarity in Escobar's first few seasons in Anaheim. He picked up his 8th win, and he's a deserving all-star candidate, though he'll likely get screwed because the Angels always get screwed on all-star selections. Speaking of guys who will screwed out of all-star spots, raise your hand if you thought Orlando Cabrera would be hitting over .340 right now? The guy has been on fire for about a month now. He'll end around .310 or so is my guess, but the Angels are making hay right now, and he's a major reason.

Coupled with both the Mariners return to earth against Chicago and Houston, and the A's come from ahead loss yesterday, the Angels have now five games ahead of both teams in the loss column. On the docket are nine at home against the Astros (30-39), Pittsburgh (30-39), and the Royals (28-42). 6-3 would be a mild disappointment. This is the stretch where the Angels should really open up some serious ground on their pursuers.

As for the Dodgers? Well, L.A. will always be a Dodger town, but the Angels have clearly established themselves as the team of choice for a large portion of the Southern California market. Job well done, Arte.

Are there two Adam Dunns?

I only ask because apparently Cincinnati is thinking about trading one of them, but it can't be the guy that played left field in the recently completed series, because they're asking, well, a bit too much for that one.

The Angels had preliminary discussions with Cincinnati about acquiring Dunn, according to a baseball source, but those talks quickly ended when the Reds requested a proven major league starting pitcher, a major league infielder — preferably a second baseman — and a top prospect.

Those demands were considered too hefty for a player whose $13-million option for 2008 would be voided if he's traded, meaning he could become a free agent after this season.

Umm, Okay, Cincinnati. So they're looking for Ervin Santana, Erick Aybar, and one of Conger, Adenhart, or Wood. Wow.

Apparently they're a little stung from that awful Austin Kearns deal (that would be the one that landed them Gary Majewski, who you could argue is already pitching for the Angels).

The Angels probably wouldn't even trade second baseman Howie Kendrick for Dunn straight up, according to the source.

Probably? Probably wouldn't? I sure as hell hope they wouldn't!

Angels 6; Reds 3

There were rumblings yesterday about Vlad slumping, and failing to come through in the clutch as of late (apparently eight or nine days ago against Baltimore does not count as "of late"). Vlad gave notice that he's alive and well, driving in four runs on three hits, two of which went for extra bases, and he was the difference in the Angels bleed staunching victory over the Reds yesterday.

You hate to call any game in mid-June a "must win", but the fact is that at this point of the season, Lackey and Escobar have been the Angels best and most consistent pitchers. If they had lost last night, they were staring down the barrel of a sweep against a really crappy team, so yesterday's game had a little extra importance. Lackey delivered, going six innings and allowing three runs, only one earned, to pick up his 10th win on the season.

Scot Shields has been very sharp lately after a very shaky start to the season, and last night may have been one of his best outings yet. Called on to deliver two innings, Shields responded by retiring the side in order in the seventh before striking out the side (with one hit sandwiched in between) in the eighth. He inherited a one run lead and delivered a three run lead to Frankie, who did his part by retiring the side in order in the ninth, picking up two strikeouts of his own.

Coupled with the Mariners loss, the Angels were able to catch their breath a little bit, and they have a two game lead over the Mariners in the loss column, while the A's sit four games back in the loss column.

Two more hits for Garret Anderson, including an RBI single in the eighth. Orlando Cabrera continues to sizzle, picking up three base hits, and upping his average to .339.

In other news, someone somewhere must have linked to Troy Percival's Baseball-Reference page, because I've already had about five hits from there this morning.

Angels 3; Reds 5 - and other notes

I'm with the Rev on this one. I can't think of one particular player, or even two, on whom this loss can be pinned. Escobar only lasted six, and gave up three runs, but he also struck out 14, so it's tough to blame him. Of course, he occasionally had trouble getting the strikeouts he really needed, but that's simply analysis in hindsight.

Figgins blew a simple tag that cost the Angels a big run. Heads up play by Josh Hamilton on that slide, but as I told my dad after that play, if I'm the Angels, I make sure every tag comes down hard. No retaliation, but send the message that if they're going to make tricky slides, they're going to pay for the privilege. And while a review of the scoreboard says Erick Aybar's error didn't matter much, it more or less put the final nail in the coffin. It's a lot easier to get one run than two in an inning featuring the Angels' three best "sluggers".

Mike Napoli and Orlando Cabrera had less than stellar nights at the plate. They were a combined 1-9, with five runners left on base, three in scoring position.

But ultimately, they just played against a team who played better than them, at least for one night, and sometimes that happens. They aren't going to win every game. But losing the first game of the set puts extra importance on the last two. It doesn't help matters that the Mariners simply won't lose. They've won five in a row and nine of their last ten, and they now sit only a game back in the loss column. I still don't think the Mariners are *that* good, but what I think doesn't matter. All that matters is what they think, and if they think they're that good, they're going to be very tough beat this season.

In other news, the Times is reporting that Dallas McPherson has been cleared to run on a treadmill, and Juan Rivera will be taking batting practice as soon as next week. In addition, Maicer Izturis is almost done with his rehab assignment. Sooner or later, someone needs to figure out where all of these guys are going to go. There are four guys on the DL who could return by mid to late July, and three of those should be back much sooner. So where do they go?

Nathan Haynes will go down, obviously, so that covers Rivera. If you bring back Ztu and McPherson, Aybar will have to go, but who else? Another outfielder? Hillenbrand? As much as many of us might like it to be Hillenbrand, I'm not sure I could see the Angels brass making that move.

Who goes out for Speier? Oliver? Carrasco? Bootcheck and Moseley have outpitched both of them, but will the Angels cut those ties? There are some tough decisions coming up, assuming other injuries don't come into play to "help" the Angels make those roster decisions.

And finally, I haven't seen this noted anywhere else, but Casey Kotchman now has eight homers, and is on pace for 21. I think most people have considered Kotchman to be a 20-25 homer guy (per season) for his career, which is good, but not great power. But I'll tell you what. For a guy who isn't supposed to have great power, he has hit the shit out of the balls that have left the yard for his last three or four homers. These haven't been of the Garret Anderson in the 2003 home run derby variety*. They've been getting five to ten rows deep into the right field bleachers in Anaheim, which isn't easy to do for a left hander, and the one he hit yesterday was an absolute bomb. The kid is only 24. Don't be surprised if in three years or so, he's hitting somewhere between 30-40 per season.

*GA won the 2003 home run derby, and I swear that he didn't one homer more than about 3 rows deep at the Cell. It was like he was hitting wedges and dropping them right on the pin. It was more a display of conservation of energy than pure power. But it was impressive.

Two of three

Not a bad start to the road trip, although today's game left a bit to be desired. We seem to be getting into the nagging injury phase to the season, and that could play a significant role on this trip, as Kotchman, Anderson, and Weaver all seem to be ailing somewhat. It comes at a particularly bad time for the two former, as they were both either hot, or starting to heat up.

Fortunately, their absence may be somewhat tempered by the fact that both Chone Figgins and Howie Kendrick seem to have found their swings. On to Cincinnati where Escobar, Lackey, and possibly Colon will try to take care of the Reds.

Speaking of the pitchers, perhaps the best new of the weekend came in last night's game, where Ervin Santana went six innings, giving up three runs, while driving in two of his own. It was by far his best start of the season on the road, and the 2 run double was icing on the cake. A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned that with two straight starts at home, perhaps that was a chance for Santana to build some momentum going into last night's game. Maybe I was right. Coming off three straight solid starts, he'll have another chance to prove himself on the road later in the week.

Personally, I missed today's game, and only caught last night's game on my DVR. The wife of a friend and former co-worker of mine plays on the Duramed Futures Tour, which is like the minor league version of the LPGA Tour. They were about a half hour away in Hammond this weekend, so I went down to watch the final two rounds. Fortunately the atmosphere is pretty laid back. There are no ropes, not really any security, and you can pretty much walk wherever you want within reason. I say fortunately, because this gives me a chance to talk to my friend, which allows me to catch up, and more importantly, establishes that I'm there to see friends, as opposed to being the creepy guy who goes by himself to watch "minor league" women's golf.

As for Courtney, she finished two over, in a tie for third place, which is by far her best finish in a year and a half on tour. She made more than twice as much money today as she did all of last season, and she's already made as many cuts this year as she did all of last year. One of her playing partners in today's round, Allison Fouch, fired a six under 66, and won by three shots, so it was a good group to follow.

Probably time much better spent than watching the Angels today.

Rough day

To start with, I played like crap in the CDGA Amateur qualifying. It's got me contemplating taking an indefinite hiatus from competitive golf. Fortunately, I'll be heading down to the Futures Tour event in Hammond this weekend to watch a friend play, so that will keep me occupied while I take a couple of weeks off from playing golf at all, which should allow my wrist some time to heal.

On top of that, the Angels played less than stellar baseball, and John Lackey blew a four run lead as the Angels lost their first game in the last six. They've now won four straight series, and nine of the last ten.

Lackey was sharp through three innings, but started to elevate the ball a bit, and if you do that during a day game in June, you're going to give up some home runs in that stadium. The Twins took advantage.

Then something happened in hockey, but I had already fallen asleep on the couch.

Twins 3; Angels 16

For the first few innings, this looked like your typical Angels-Twins tilt. Low scoring, good pitching, great defense, questionable baserunning, exciting plays on the bases and at the plate...

The Angels had extended a little bit in the fifth, putting together a two out rally, Orlando Cabrera's single bookended by doubles from Reggie Willits and Vlad Guerrero. After a Gary Matthews fly out, things had settled down.

Then, with one out in the sixth, Boof Bonser, who had been a strike throwing machine, threw three consecutive balls to Casey Kotchman. The fourth pitch was a strike, and it ended up about 8-10 rows deep in the right field seats. It was such a nice swing, I had to re-watch it a couple of times just to hear the crack of the bat. Then the floodgates opened. After a Howie Kendrick single, Mike Napoli knocked one into the second bullpen, and a two run lead was suddenly a five run lead. As if to rub it in, the Angels added two more runs with two out, Cabrera singling home Figgins (who should have been out stealing second), and a Matthews single following a Guerrero IBB for an 8-1 lead.

But this time eight wasn't enough. Willits, Cabrera, and Vlad reached again (a second straight IBB to Vlad), and Gary Matthews made them pay again, this time with a grand slam. And the hits just kept coming. Garret Anderson followed with a homer of his own. As much I love watching Vladdy hit it deep, there's just something about the swing that GA takes on home run balls that is really beautiful to watch. They weren't finished until they had doubled up that 8 runs for a total of 16 on 23 hits.

Almost lost in the shuffle was an excellent performance from Jered Weaver, who allowed six baserunners, one homer, and struck out four over seven innings. He's now 5-3 with a 3.88 ERA. I think that will come down a notch or so, and he'll finish the season closer to 3.50. I'd take that in a heartbeat. That would be a quality major league season.

After going 8-2 in their last ten, the Angels now sit 15 games over .500, trailing only the Red Sox and Mets in the race for baseball's best record. This has been a pretty nice 59 games, and a fantastic last 26, in which they've gone 20-6. They've been fun to watch.

Now let's hope they didn't use all their runs last night. And if they did, well, Kelvim is used to getting little help.

Orioles 3; Angels 4

Apparently the key is to lose the first game of the series. For the second straight series, the Angels lost game one, and rolled the rest of the way. Kind of reminds me of a certain post-season in recent memory.

After a close victory Friday and a comfortable win last night, no doubt made better by the bitchslapping that the Senators gave the Ducks, the Angels needed some Vladimir Guerrero heroics, a two run homer in the ninth, to pull out today's victory. I missed Friday night's game because I was drinking with some friends, and I really just didn't feel like writing about last night's game.

58 games into the season, the Angels have baseball's third best record. They have some separation between themselves and the M's and A's, and Texas is completely out of the picture already. Apparently it's their best record ever after 58 games. Next up are the Twins, who've been hanging around .500, and are a solid 7-3 in their last ten games. Something about the Twins. The Angels always seem to play playoff style close games against the Twins.

Mariners 6; Angels 8; Cubs Slaughtered

I missed the first five innings or so of last night's game due to a friend of mine coming up with free Cubs tickets. I hate the Cubs, and I couldn't really care less about the Marlins, but the tickets were pretty good (first row of the upper deck, about even with the bullpen), and it was a nice night. First game I've been to at Wrigley this year, which is fun to go to, but doesn't really hold the allure for me that it does for most people. It was neat the first couple of times, but it kind of feels like a glorified high school stadium to me. For me, major league parks are giant monoliths surrounded by parking lots. At least the Cubs didn't disappoint, getting hammered more than most of the people in the stands for once.

I was in a cab on the way home when Vlad hit the three run homer off of King Felix to put the Angels in front for good. Weaver was already gone by the time I got home, but it sounds like he really struggled with his command. While I don't want to see him struggle, games like last night's don't bother me. First, they still won. Second, it wasn't an issue of him getting so much as he just had a hard time finding the strike zone. Only two of the nine hits he allowed went for extra bases, and none of them left the yard. Sometimes guys just don't have it.

Just ask King Felix, who got drilled for seven runs on nine hits, including three homers and a double. It was the second time the Angels got to him this season, and he could still be struggling coming back from his injury. His big mistake came against Vlad in the fifth, when his high fast ball got crushed over the right center field wall for the Angels third homer of the night.

Reggie Willits was on base three times again, while Cabrera continued his scorching pace with three more hits. While Napoli has cooled a little, Casey Kotchman stayed hot, hitting his fifth home run, and pushing his average comfortably back up over .300 to .309. Meanwhile, Howie Kendrick has yet to find a consistent stroke since returning to the lineup. He was 0-4, dropping his average to .256. He's now 0 for his last nine, and has just four hits in 25 at bats since his return.

Scot Shields has quietly gone from the unreliable Scot Shields to the once again dominant Scot Shields. He pitched a perfect eighth, striking out two, and his ERA is down to 2.83. Frankie was a little shaky in the ninth, starting it off with a walk before striking out the side. His slider must have been really breaking hard, because it appeared that he couldn't control it, and they were taking some pretty awful swings at it. But hey, sometimes that's to a pitcher's advantage. I mean, if he doesn't know where it's going, chances are the hitter doesn't either.

The Mariners were a hot team entering Anaheim before the Angels cooled them off. Now Baltimore comes in having won five straight, moving all the way up to second place, still 10.5 games behind the Red Sox. Escobar, Lackey, Saunders, and Santana will work the series for the Angels.

Mariners 1; Angels 4

No shame in thinking this one was trouble about two batters into the first inning. Ervin Santana allowed the first two runners to reach, and only retired Guillen on a shot to third that Quinlan was able to stab. He became Ervin the Usual against Ibanez, turning an 0-2 count into a walk before completing his streak of eight straight balls against Richie Sexon. For a team that doesn't walk, the Mariners' first five batters were very patient, laying off some very close pitches. Then Kenji Johjima stepped up, grounded into a double play, and Santana had escaped with minimal damage. To top it off, the Angels got a run back in the first to tie it up.

With his new lease on life, Santana exploded. He went six more innings allowing only two hits and no walks, completing seven innings having allowed only one run, and needing fewer than 100 pitches to do it. So a reprieve for now. He'll remain in the rotation, and his next start is at home. Maybe two straight home starts, if he can get it done again, will boost his confidence for that next road game. Maybe that double play was a turning point. We can only hope.

On the offensive side of the ball, Reggie Willits showed that last night wasn't just a bump in his slump, as he produced his second two hit game in a row. Behind him, Orlando Cabrera added three hits of his own, pushing his average to .314. Kind of a strange game offensively. The top three hitters reached base a total of 8 times, yet they still needed an unlikely two run homer from Shea Hillenbrand to provide the winning runs (with insurance added later). Mike Napoli's hitting streak ended on a rocket to third that Adrian Beltre had to grab simply to save his own life.

Speaking of Cabrera and Napoli, if you're wondering about the Angels recent success, you need look no further than those two players and Casey Kotchman. Not that they've been alone, but on May 8th, the Angels lost to the Indians and dropped to 17-16. Following that game, those three stood as follows:

• Kotchman - 232/304/384
• Cabrera - 266/338/379
• Napoli - 194/296/339

Where are they now? (average through tonight's game - OBP and SLG through last night, to be updated tomorrow, because I'm lazy):

• Kotchman - 302/381/487 - 6th in AL OPS among every day first basemen
  
• Cabrera - 314/359/425 - 5th in AL OPS among every day short stops
  
• Napoli - 259/339/491 - 6th in AL OPS among every day catchers

Certainly those rankings aren't monumental, but the turnarounds are, and they're a big reason the Angels have won 15 of their last 20. The Angels now sport five starters hitting over .290. The offense isn't outstanding, but it doesn't have to be. If they can simply be average, middle of the road (they're currently 6th in the AL in runs scored), that will be plenty to win the AL West.

Jered on the mound tomorrow night to hopefully take the series. He hasn't been great of late, but he's been good enough.

Long Weekend

Lots to cover, so I'll just give it all the short shrift in which I specialize.

The Angels finally reached .500 on the road, recovering from a couple of awful games in Detroit to take three from the Yankees. Kendrick's back, and Kotchman and Napoli are currently raking. Figgins looks pretty much lost on both sides of the ball, alternative good plays with spotty plays at third base, and generally alternating bad at bats with crappy at bats. Hillenbrand is still a total waste of a roster spot.

They came home and harnessed that momentum into a total implosion against the Mariners last night. Poor pitching, poor fielding, and mediocre hitting against a team that has now won four straight and sits only 3.5 games behind the Angels in second place. Santana and Weaver close out the set against the M's, then it's Baltimore for four and the Twins for three. It's a 10 game homestand in which the Angels should really go 7-3, but last night wasn't exactly a confidence builder.

In the college ranks, UC Riverside won it's first ever Big West championship, and will be making it's second appearance in the field of 64. Unfortunately they were screwed by the selection committee and have to travel to Tempe for the regional. Traditionally, the Big West champ hosts a regional. This year, the committee decided to reward second place Long Beach State. That would be the same Long Beach State that UCR bitchslapped three straight times a couple weeks ago. Sort of reminds me of that year in the mid '90s when UCR was the top team in the regional (D2) and was forced to head up north because the NCAA didn't want to make Sac State and Chico State travel south.

As for me, I spent the weekend running around, playing golf, and boozing with friends for the most part. Finally took the new irons (it's a mixed set) out on the course and struck the ball pretty well. CDGA Amateur qualifying is next week.