Solid series in Seattle, after coming off a solid series in Texas. The Angels are now 10-12 on the road, which is pretty good following their 1-7 start. The most satisfying moments from this series? Jose Guillen striking out with the bases load and two out in a 2-0 game in game 2, and watching the ball go right between his legs on a base hit to right field last night. That was pretty sweet.
The Revs got a post up over at the mother ship about what's been good and bad so far. I'll say that I've been wrong on Matthews to this point, though I still think five years is way too long of a deal. However, I have been right about Willits. I maintained that Willits would outproduce Matthews this season, based partly on high expectations I had for Willits, and low expectations for Matthews. Reggie hasn't disappointed.
So after a quarter of the season, the hold a three game lead over the Mariners and A's. They've had Garret Anderson miss a ton of time (no big loss), and they've have Howie Kendrick miss a ton of time (big loss). In addition, Colon appears to be back and healthy, and Weaver has been solid, save for one unfortunate outing. The looming issues right now are Scot Shields, who has been good, but unreliable, and Justin Speier, who seems to have disappeared for some reason. And then there's Sheam Hillenbrand, who has been awful. He's either going to head back towards the mean and be decent the rest of the way, or he's history once Garret Anderson comes back. I'm guessing the latter.
I'm not particularly concerned about Kotchman or Napoli. Napoli has showed signs of breaking out of his slump a little bit. Kotchman is going to be up and down all season. He's a streaky hitter at this point, and a lot of that is probably due to his youth. I think he'll find that consistency as his career moves on.
So I could be happier right now, but all in all, things look pretty good. They've got room to improve, and they'll need to play better if they hope to win the division, but there's not a whole lot to complain about right now.
Friday, May 18, 2007
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Get used to this
Maybe not the final. Maybe not the horrendous defense. Maybe not the bad outing.
But get used to the Angels losing every game started by Felix Hernandez for probably the next 15 years or so.
Say what you will about Escobar, but if Figgins isn't a moron, he goes into the third tied, and if not for Ztu, it's a tie game with one out in the third. Kelvim didn't have his good stuff, but his defense killed him.
But get used to the Angels losing every game started by Felix Hernandez for probably the next 15 years or so.
Say what you will about Escobar, but if Figgins isn't a moron, he goes into the third tied, and if not for Ztu, it's a tie game with one out in the third. Kelvim didn't have his good stuff, but his defense killed him.
Monday, May 14, 2007
Angels 7; Rangers 2
This being a day game, I had to sort of watch while "working". Missed Kotch's grand slam, and since most of the fireworks came in that at bat (shout out to Napoli's double as well, and the two run single from Murphy), there wasn't a whole lot left to see on the offensive end.
That's seven safe trips to first base for Kotchman in the last two games. He's establishing himself as a somewhat streaky hitter, which isn't all that surprising for a guy who's only 24. Consistency should come with more experience and at bats.
Little Weav was strong again, pitching through a rain delay, and going seven innings with only 87 pitches, striking out five while allowing eight to reach safely. This was Weaver's 25th start, and maybe that's a good time to make a comparison to his brother. There's another guy out there who likes this comparison a lot, so let's see where we're at.
Jeff: 25 starts, 8-10, 5.23 ERA, 144.2 IP, 101 K, 1.304 WHIP, 22 Homers
Jered: 25 starts, 13-5, 2.79 ERA, 155.1 IP, 135 K, 1.127 WHIP, 18 Homers
If you follow those links, click on the red numbers on the right to get cumulative career stats through that particular game. Granted, the Tigers sucked when Jeff played for them, so pay as little attention to that record as you'd like. And in the interest of full disclosure, Jeff was a year younger (so you could make the case that Jered is MUCH better at this age than his brother), and those starts came over the course of one season, as opposed to two. But the rest of the numbers speak for themselves. Granted, Jeff had great numbers through 14 starts. We're now 11 starts past that, and Jered is still kicking ass, and if you take away his one awful start this year (a true anomaly through his first 25), his numbers get even more impressive.
Additionally, if we dig a little deeper, we find that Jeff was 6-3 with a 2.93 ERA after 14 starts. Jered was 9-2 with a 2.33 ERA. Both look pretty damn good. But one of the main cries of the skeptics has been "wait 'til the league sees Jered twice". Assuming that MLB teams actually have an advanced scouting budget, I'm guessing that most teams are prepared for Jered at this point. So let's see how each fared over his next 11 starts.
Anyway, the Angels are now 8-11 on the road, which isn't that great, but consider they're 7-4 since that awful start, and they seem to have righted the ship somewhat. Aside from Santana's road woes (nice perspective given by the Chronicler over here), the starters have been fantastic. The bullpen has been spotty, or rather, most of the bullpen has been great, Darren Oliver sucks, and Scot Shields has not been reliable. The offense should get a jolt when Howie Kendrick returns, but all we can do is hope that it's not negated by Garret Anderson's return, which may very well lead to less time for Reggie Willits. Hopefully that's a net positive. And pending the eventual DFA of Shea Hillenbrand, the offense may improve from "terrible" to simply "not very good". With their pitching, that might be enough.
On to Seattle to hopefully open some ground on the M's. The good news? Santana's misses the series and his next start is on friendly ground.
That's seven safe trips to first base for Kotchman in the last two games. He's establishing himself as a somewhat streaky hitter, which isn't all that surprising for a guy who's only 24. Consistency should come with more experience and at bats.
Little Weav was strong again, pitching through a rain delay, and going seven innings with only 87 pitches, striking out five while allowing eight to reach safely. This was Weaver's 25th start, and maybe that's a good time to make a comparison to his brother. There's another guy out there who likes this comparison a lot, so let's see where we're at.
Jeff: 25 starts, 8-10, 5.23 ERA, 144.2 IP, 101 K, 1.304 WHIP, 22 Homers
Jered: 25 starts, 13-5, 2.79 ERA, 155.1 IP, 135 K, 1.127 WHIP, 18 Homers
If you follow those links, click on the red numbers on the right to get cumulative career stats through that particular game. Granted, the Tigers sucked when Jeff played for them, so pay as little attention to that record as you'd like. And in the interest of full disclosure, Jeff was a year younger (so you could make the case that Jered is MUCH better at this age than his brother), and those starts came over the course of one season, as opposed to two. But the rest of the numbers speak for themselves. Granted, Jeff had great numbers through 14 starts. We're now 11 starts past that, and Jered is still kicking ass, and if you take away his one awful start this year (a true anomaly through his first 25), his numbers get even more impressive.
Additionally, if we dig a little deeper, we find that Jeff was 6-3 with a 2.93 ERA after 14 starts. Jered was 9-2 with a 2.33 ERA. Both look pretty damn good. But one of the main cries of the skeptics has been "wait 'til the league sees Jered twice". Assuming that MLB teams actually have an advanced scouting budget, I'm guessing that most teams are prepared for Jered at this point. So let's see how each fared over his next 11 starts.
Jered: 66.1 IP, 3.26 ERA, 9 HR, 61 K
Jeff: 58.2 IP, 8.59 ERA, 16 HR, 40 K
Anyway, the Angels are now 8-11 on the road, which isn't that great, but consider they're 7-4 since that awful start, and they seem to have righted the ship somewhat. Aside from Santana's road woes (nice perspective given by the Chronicler over here), the starters have been fantastic. The bullpen has been spotty, or rather, most of the bullpen has been great, Darren Oliver sucks, and Scot Shields has not been reliable. The offense should get a jolt when Howie Kendrick returns, but all we can do is hope that it's not negated by Garret Anderson's return, which may very well lead to less time for Reggie Willits. Hopefully that's a net positive. And pending the eventual DFA of Shea Hillenbrand, the offense may improve from "terrible" to simply "not very good". With their pitching, that might be enough.
On to Seattle to hopefully open some ground on the M's. The good news? Santana's misses the series and his next start is on friendly ground.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Sheamful
If the Angels lose a game, chances are it has Hillenbrand's fingerprints all over it. Today, he may have homered, but he also left five guys on base, three in scoring position, in his last two at bats.
The guy sucks. Everyone knew he sucked before the Angels signed him, except possibly Bill Stoneman.
His failure to drive in a run in either at bat meant that Scot Shields was pitching the ninth, instead of Frankie, and Shields has more or less been about as reliable as a Trabant this season, and once again, he didn't even give his fielders a chance, serving up a game ending gopher ball to Nelson Cruz. Erick Aybar wasn't any better, going 0-5 and leaving six men on base. The difference, however, between Aybar and Hillenbrand is that Aybar can contribute defensively, and has played to a level that has warranted more playing time. Shea hasn't.
Santana was not good, but he kept his team in the game, though he continuously blew leads. Then again, if you expected Santana, against the Rangers offense, on the road, during the day, to even come close to pitching a good game, you're a moron.
On the plus side, Kotchman and HGHMJ each had three hits, and Napoli is up over .200. And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that Alfonso Maquez is a fucking idiot, not only screwing up a tag up play (in the Angels' favor), but also booting Carrasco for "throwing at" Ian Kinsler....in a tie game....with no one out....in the seventh inning....with a curve ball. Kinsler, of course, did nothing to move out of the way of the pitch, but that no longer matters to major league umps. Scioscia, for his part, got tossed while telling Marquez he's a fucking idiot.
It's looking like the Royals series. Weaver goes tomorrow, and don't be surprised if the Angels turn a good opportunity into a pile of crap yet again.
The guy sucks. Everyone knew he sucked before the Angels signed him, except possibly Bill Stoneman.
His failure to drive in a run in either at bat meant that Scot Shields was pitching the ninth, instead of Frankie, and Shields has more or less been about as reliable as a Trabant this season, and once again, he didn't even give his fielders a chance, serving up a game ending gopher ball to Nelson Cruz. Erick Aybar wasn't any better, going 0-5 and leaving six men on base. The difference, however, between Aybar and Hillenbrand is that Aybar can contribute defensively, and has played to a level that has warranted more playing time. Shea hasn't.
Santana was not good, but he kept his team in the game, though he continuously blew leads. Then again, if you expected Santana, against the Rangers offense, on the road, during the day, to even come close to pitching a good game, you're a moron.
On the plus side, Kotchman and HGHMJ each had three hits, and Napoli is up over .200. And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that Alfonso Maquez is a fucking idiot, not only screwing up a tag up play (in the Angels' favor), but also booting Carrasco for "throwing at" Ian Kinsler....in a tie game....with no one out....in the seventh inning....with a curve ball. Kinsler, of course, did nothing to move out of the way of the pitch, but that no longer matters to major league umps. Scioscia, for his part, got tossed while telling Marquez he's a fucking idiot.
It's looking like the Royals series. Weaver goes tomorrow, and don't be surprised if the Angels turn a good opportunity into a pile of crap yet again.
Friday, May 11, 2007
Angels 6; Rangers 3
I've been hard on John Lackey for the last couple of seasons because of his seeming refusal to put hitters away when he's ahead in the count. Time after time, he'll be ahead early, and let hitters off the hook, and even if he does get the out, he ends throwing 2-4 more pitches than he should have. Well, not tonight. Tonight he challenged guys, he got ahead, and he put them away. And guess what? He still struck out seven.
The proof is in the pitch count. He threw 95 pitches tonight, working eight and a third innings, and almost 73% of those pitches were strikes. That's efficiency, and that's not only going to allow John to work later into games, but it's going to help him enter his next start with similar sharpness.
Offensively, the Angels benefited greatly from an Ian Kinsler error, which would have started an inning ending double play, and instead allowed two Angels runners to cross the plate. As it was, the Angels still grounded into four double plays, with Kendry accounting for two of those, one on a shot back up the middle which took a fortuitous bounce off of Vicente Padilla right to Michael Young, or else it would have been an RBI single. Kendry was 1-4 and accounted for five outs, but still, he hit the ball hard every time up, which is more than you can say for the man he replaced.
Three straight wins, and just like that, the Angels seem to have turned it around a bit. It falls to big Bart tomorrow. I won't see this one, because a) I'll be playing golf, and b) it's a Fox regional broadcast, so I'd be blacked out anyway. Oh well.
The proof is in the pitch count. He threw 95 pitches tonight, working eight and a third innings, and almost 73% of those pitches were strikes. That's efficiency, and that's not only going to allow John to work later into games, but it's going to help him enter his next start with similar sharpness.
Offensively, the Angels benefited greatly from an Ian Kinsler error, which would have started an inning ending double play, and instead allowed two Angels runners to cross the plate. As it was, the Angels still grounded into four double plays, with Kendry accounting for two of those, one on a shot back up the middle which took a fortuitous bounce off of Vicente Padilla right to Michael Young, or else it would have been an RBI single. Kendry was 1-4 and accounted for five outs, but still, he hit the ball hard every time up, which is more than you can say for the man he replaced.
Three straight wins, and just like that, the Angels seem to have turned it around a bit. It falls to big Bart tomorrow. I won't see this one, because a) I'll be playing golf, and b) it's a Fox regional broadcast, so I'd be blacked out anyway. Oh well.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
The Hell?
I missed today's game due to a golf tournament in Michigan. What the hell happened? Figgins with two hits? Escobar in a game that lasted less than three hours? Has the whole world gone crazy?
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
Angels turn the tables on Indians....and me
I'd love to say the previous post was reverse psychology, but I was actually pretty convinced that the Angels were going to lose tonight. Of course, I became convinced sometime last night, but that's another story.
As mentioned before, I missed the top of the first because I was at the Michael Penn show. He was at Schuba's, and I assume he was promoting his new compilation CD. And he played with the Last Town Chorus, which is essentially made up of Megan Hickey and whoever she brings along to play with her. And she's very attractive, and really cool (we had a nice chat after the show). It's not too often you see a woman on slide guitar, and she really makes it sing. Very glad I made it to the opening set. But I digress.
Anyway, Jered looked fairly solid, if not completely sharp for the following five innings, holding the Indians at bay, even though he may have needed a Houdini routine in the sixth inning.
Moseley entered from there to keep the Tribe down in the top of the seventh before Kendry Morales, replacing the heretofore worthless Shea Hillenbrand, provided the fireworks, crushing a pitch into the right field seats, tying the game at two. Following another excellent inning from Moseley (2 IP, 1H, only 16 pitches), Gary Matthews provided the winning margin in the bottom of the eighth, even though FSN may not have wanted you to see it. Frankie worked a 1-2-3 ninth for the save, and temporary stem to the bleeding.
I'll gladly take the win, and it keeps the Angels above .500. But there's still not a whole lot to get excited about. On the plus side, they pounded out 11 hits, including a double from Kotchman. Perhaps more exciting than the Morales home run was the simple fact that he was in the lineup over Hillenbrand. It's a start.
Moseley dropped his ERA to 1.77 and earned his first win. The longer the offense continues to flounder, the more you have to think that Moseley's future is in another uniform. You can say what you will about his ceiling, but he's proving he can get major league hitters out, and he can do it as a starter or as a reliever.
Enjoy the victory, but this team is going to have to start scoring more than three runs per game if they hope to go on the type of May or June run that opens up a lead in the division that holds up the rest of the way.
Here's LTC doing David Bowie's Modern Love.
Indians something; Angels less than the Indians also something, for now
Just walked in the door after returning from the Michael Penn concert. Flipped on the TV and saw that the Angels gave up two runs in the top of the first.
At least it was nice of them to go ahead and lose tonight's game early. Now I've got time to do some cleaning, watch something else, etc.
It's unbelievable how much this team sucks.
Update: Will wonders never cease? Kendry Morales with an absolute bomb to right field and the game is tied. That's two more runs than I expected them to score.
At least it was nice of them to go ahead and lose tonight's game early. Now I've got time to do some cleaning, watch something else, etc.
It's unbelievable how much this team sucks.
Update: Will wonders never cease? Kendry Morales with an absolute bomb to right field and the game is tied. That's two more runs than I expected them to score.
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
This team is awful
Bottom of the third inning, and from the swings they're getting against Cliff Lee, we may very well be in for a no-hitter tonight. I'm serious.
Fourth inning, now 3-0 Indians, and the game is officially over. See you tomorrow night.
Eighth inning. 3-1. Scioscia officially gives up on this game and brings in Darren Oliver.
Physioc just mentioned that, with Speier on the DL, Carrasco will pitch in more high pressure situations in the next two weeks. Umm, don't you have to be able to score enough runs to get a lead before you can be in a high pressure situation? I don't think Pipo will be in too many high pressure situations in the next two weeks.
It wasn't a fluke, folks. The Royals didn't get lucky to take two of four games from the Angels. This team is honestly no better than the Kansas City Royals. They're that bad.
Fourth inning, now 3-0 Indians, and the game is officially over. See you tomorrow night.
Eighth inning. 3-1. Scioscia officially gives up on this game and brings in Darren Oliver.
Physioc just mentioned that, with Speier on the DL, Carrasco will pitch in more high pressure situations in the next two weeks. Umm, don't you have to be able to score enough runs to get a lead before you can be in a high pressure situation? I don't think Pipo will be in too many high pressure situations in the next two weeks.
It wasn't a fluke, folks. The Royals didn't get lucky to take two of four games from the Angels. This team is honestly no better than the Kansas City Royals. They're that bad.
Drew Gordon to Westwood
Huge get for Ben Howland and the Bruins. Considered to be the best power forward (6'9") in the West, the Bruins have landed for 2008 three of the top 42 players according to Scout. Joining Gordon are guards Malcolm Lee (6'4") and Jerime Anderson (6'1"). That's a power forward, a combo guard, and a point guard. Nice combination of recruits, especially with a center already coming in next year.
On the one hand, the first thing that comes to mind is if Love stays two years, and dare I say it, even three, they're going to be scary good. On the other hand, even if Love goes, does anyone think Howland won't find a replacement? The guy is getting almost everyone he wants. Two final fours will do that.
Best of all, the haters have been saying all along that the UCLA style of play will turn off recruits. High school kids want to run and gun and have fun. They don't want to hunker down on the defensive end. So why has Gordon verbally committed to UCLA?
Only six months until basketball season.
On the one hand, the first thing that comes to mind is if Love stays two years, and dare I say it, even three, they're going to be scary good. On the other hand, even if Love goes, does anyone think Howland won't find a replacement? The guy is getting almost everyone he wants. Two final fours will do that.
Best of all, the haters have been saying all along that the UCLA style of play will turn off recruits. High school kids want to run and gun and have fun. They don't want to hunker down on the defensive end. So why has Gordon verbally committed to UCLA?
Gordon felt the Bruins, with their defensive-oriented style, fit his all-around capabilities best.Sounds like a smart kid. Sounds like a kid who wants to work hard at both ends of the floor. And with Ryan Wright's departure, the Bruins still have a scholarship to offer Jrue Holliday, Scout's #3 ranked player in the 2008 class. Nab him, and the Bruins likely have a top 3, if not top overall, recruiting class in 2008.
"I had to think about the style of play," said Gordon, who has both sets of grandparents living in the L.A. area. "What it comes down to is being an all-around good player. You have to be able to pick up the pace, slow down the pace. In this case, UCLA, I'll slow down the pace a little bit, learn and get better slowing myself down, focusing on defense instead of run and gun.
Only six months until basketball season.
Sunday, May 06, 2007
White Sox 4; Angels 3 - Shields blows it Again
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Friday, May 04, 2007
White Sox 1: Angels 5
MVP has to go to the sky tonight. Without Erstad losing that ball in the gloaming, it would have been a much closer game. The offense still sucks, and relied on a lot of Sox mistakes to provide the winning margin tonight.
But credit where credit's due, and that goes to Kelvim, who was really pretty sharp. he gave the Angels seven strong innings, worked out of two significant jams, and allowed only eight baserunners, while striking out four. Better yet, he did it in 95 pitches. Watch his next start. It's an underrated area of analysis, but often times you'll see a pitcher on a fairly limited pitch count look really sharp in his next outing. And one thing the Angels have done almost better than any other team in the Scioscia era is manage their starters' workloads. That's an area where they don't get enough credit.
Back to the offense, at least it was a team effort tonight. Everyone, save Figgins, reached base at least once, and five different players scored. They got some serious breaks from the White Sox "defense", but props to the OC for coming through in a clutch situation and "breaking the game open", which for the Angels, means taking more than a one run lead.
Scot Shields is also starting to sharpen up. He was excellent over two perfect innings, striking out four in the process. Speaking of striking, take a look at the batting averages of the White Sox line up, but avoid it if you've got a weak stomach. Only Darin Erstad is hitting over .250, and Tadahito Iguchi is the only other player hitting over .216. Man, that's awful. They started six guys hitting under .210, two of whom are under .200, and a third is in double digits. Yowza.
Schmendrick takes the mound tomorrow, and against that lineup, he should roll. Jon "Granada Hills" Garland takes the mound for the Sox, with fellow alum Garret Anderson likely still sidelined. It's a day game, starting at about 3:00 my time. The good news is I should be back from Cog Hill (Dubsdread) by then. Got an appointment for a clubfitting after our round, weather permitting. Yeah, it rains here after March. I know, it sucks.
But credit where credit's due, and that goes to Kelvim, who was really pretty sharp. he gave the Angels seven strong innings, worked out of two significant jams, and allowed only eight baserunners, while striking out four. Better yet, he did it in 95 pitches. Watch his next start. It's an underrated area of analysis, but often times you'll see a pitcher on a fairly limited pitch count look really sharp in his next outing. And one thing the Angels have done almost better than any other team in the Scioscia era is manage their starters' workloads. That's an area where they don't get enough credit.
Back to the offense, at least it was a team effort tonight. Everyone, save Figgins, reached base at least once, and five different players scored. They got some serious breaks from the White Sox "defense", but props to the OC for coming through in a clutch situation and "breaking the game open", which for the Angels, means taking more than a one run lead.
Scot Shields is also starting to sharpen up. He was excellent over two perfect innings, striking out four in the process. Speaking of striking, take a look at the batting averages of the White Sox line up, but avoid it if you've got a weak stomach. Only Darin Erstad is hitting over .250, and Tadahito Iguchi is the only other player hitting over .216. Man, that's awful. They started six guys hitting under .210, two of whom are under .200, and a third is in double digits. Yowza.
Schmendrick takes the mound tomorrow, and against that lineup, he should roll. Jon "Granada Hills" Garland takes the mound for the Sox, with fellow alum Garret Anderson likely still sidelined. It's a day game, starting at about 3:00 my time. The good news is I should be back from Cog Hill (Dubsdread) by then. Got an appointment for a clubfitting after our round, weather permitting. Yeah, it rains here after March. I know, it sucks.
Grant Lee Phillips @ Lakeshore Theater - 5/3/07
Grant Lee has a new album which came out about a month or so called "Strangelet". In my opinion, after a handful of listens, is that it's his best solo work to date. A little louder and more up tempo than Ladies Love Oracle and Virginia Creeper, not quite as electronic as Mobilize. For me, so far, it's the one I've most enjoyed listening to.
To start with, last night's show was a treat because it's the first time since late 2001 that GLP has toured with a more or less full band (him, bassist, drummer). And the whole thing was electric. There wasn't even an acoustic guitar on stage. Most of that is probably because the new album sort of lends itself to that setup more than the last two, but it also means that the old GLB stuff is really going to sound great.
Clearly last night's show was going to be heavy on the new album. One of the downsides of seeing an artist with so much material (nine albums by my count) to draw from is that you're virtually guaranteed to leave without hearing everything you wanted to hear, but that's only a small complaint. He mixed in about half and half. Incomplete and out of order setlist (by album):
It's truly an experience to see him live because he's either a great actor, or he really does love performing. More than anyone I've ever seen live, he really has a good time bantering with the crowd between songs, and that gets everyone into the show.
The down part last night was that "everyone" was a pretty small crowd. In addition to that, Lakeshore Theater is not a particularly good venue for a rock show. It's exactly what it says it is, a theater. As in, like a movie theater. It would be a great place to see a play, or a lecture. It's not a good place to see rock show. I don't like to sit at concerts, but you really didn't have a choice at this one. In addition, it was about three times too big for size of the crowd, especially for show in which the headliner was taking the stage at 11:00 on a Thursday night. This would have been a fantastic show at Schuba's. It was still a very good show, but the venue left a lot to be desired. That's not a knock on the theater itself. It just wasn't the right venue for this performance.
Speaking of Schuba's, Michael Penn comes to town next week.
To start with, last night's show was a treat because it's the first time since late 2001 that GLP has toured with a more or less full band (him, bassist, drummer). And the whole thing was electric. There wasn't even an acoustic guitar on stage. Most of that is probably because the new album sort of lends itself to that setup more than the last two, but it also means that the old GLB stuff is really going to sound great.
Clearly last night's show was going to be heavy on the new album. One of the downsides of seeing an artist with so much material (nine albums by my count) to draw from is that you're virtually guaranteed to leave without hearing everything you wanted to hear, but that's only a small complaint. He mixed in about half and half. Incomplete and out of order setlist (by album):
- Runaway
- Soft Asylum (No Way Out)
- Fountain of Youth
- Hidden Hand
- Chain Lightning (he opened with this one)
- Johnny Guitar
- Raise the Spirit (video below)
- Calamity Jane
- Far End of the Night
- Don't Look Down
- Truly, Truly, Truly
- Honey Don't
- Mockingbirds
- Lone Star Song (closed with this one)
- Fuzzy
- Wish You Well, which I'd never seen him do live before in the six or seven times that I've seen him.
It's truly an experience to see him live because he's either a great actor, or he really does love performing. More than anyone I've ever seen live, he really has a good time bantering with the crowd between songs, and that gets everyone into the show.
The down part last night was that "everyone" was a pretty small crowd. In addition to that, Lakeshore Theater is not a particularly good venue for a rock show. It's exactly what it says it is, a theater. As in, like a movie theater. It would be a great place to see a play, or a lecture. It's not a good place to see rock show. I don't like to sit at concerts, but you really didn't have a choice at this one. In addition, it was about three times too big for size of the crowd, especially for show in which the headliner was taking the stage at 11:00 on a Thursday night. This would have been a fantastic show at Schuba's. It was still a very good show, but the venue left a lot to be desired. That's not a knock on the theater itself. It just wasn't the right venue for this performance.
Speaking of Schuba's, Michael Penn comes to town next week.
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Thank God for the AL West
The Angels may win the division only because every team sucks a little more than them. Then again, if they can't beat the Royals, and apparently they can't consistently, they'll find themselves in the cellar before too long.
Two hits. That's what they mustered today. Two goddamned hits. They've managed three runs in their last two games. Against the Royals.
These guys fucking suck.
Two hits. That's what they mustered today. Two goddamned hits. They've managed three runs in their last two games. Against the Royals.
These guys fucking suck.
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
Angels 1; Royals 3
Two things:
- Don't make the first or third out of the inning at third base. Especially the first out when Vlad is on deck.
- A pitcher shouldn't have 107 pitches through fewer than seven innings when he's pitching a shutout.
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
Angels 7; Royals 5
We need to keep this one in perspective. Despite starting his season with two solid starts, Bart has basically started three games in the last year. He's not going to be in mid-season form. And that was the case tonight, as he blew a five run lead, and would have if his offense hadn't picked him up in the fourth inning. But he battled on a night where he really didn't have it, got through five innings, and turned the ball over to a suddenly effective bullpen to hold the lead.
It looked to me like Bart was getting squeezed a bit in the second inning, and then again in the third when he walked Pena. As a result, he threw some pitches that got too much of the plate as he was just trying to throw strikes. These may the Royals, but they're still professionals, and they have some excellent young hitters. They made Bart pay, the long ball coming off the bat of Mark Teahen to pull the Royals to within one.
Bart had the big lead because the offense was stout early. After three straight singles to start the game, Zach Greinke got behind Vlad 3-1, and Vlad took it out on him by hitting the next pitch about 460 feet for a grand slam and four run lead. They added another in the second on a Matthews triple and Cabrera double. A Kotchman sac fly in the 4th pushed the lead to two, which was promptly cut back to one in the bottom of the 4th, before a Reggie Willits RBI single in the 8th provided the winning margin.
The Angels pounded out 13 hits: Two each for Aybar and Cabrera, three for Willits, and four for HGHMJ. It's not easy to figure out who the best young player has been to this point. Willits is seemingly always on base, now hitting .382 while getting on base at a .447 clip. Honestly, other than deference to the veteran, I don't know how you put Garret Anderson back in the lineup unless you make him DH and put Hillenbrand on the bench.
Then there's Erick Aybar. Forget the two stupid caught stealings in the first two weeks. He's now hitting .320, while playing outstanding defense at second base. He's clearly bench bound upon the return of Kendrick, but if I were Orlando Cabrera, I might be polishing my resume. They're going to need to have this kind in the infield every day in the next year or two. Yeah, I know he's not slugging, but he'll hit for just as much pop as Cabrera, with a better average, comparable defense, for about $7MM less.
And if you thought those were the only two fighting it out, you've clearly forgotten about Dustin Moseley. He bridged the 6th and 7th innings tonight, turning the ball over the Scot Shakyields. All he's done is toss 17.1 innings, allowing less than a base runner per inning, with an ERA barely over one. He doesn't strike a lot of guys out, but he doesn't walk many either, and he's keeping the ball in the yard this season. Oh, and opposing hitters are hitting only .186 against him. He and Joe Saunders are making Ervin Santana look very tradeable. I hear there's a team in a big market on the East Coast that's really struggling on the mound right now.
Same time and teams tomorrow night, with the aforementioned Ervin taking on Jorge De La Rosa. Can Ervin get it done on the road? We'll see.
It looked to me like Bart was getting squeezed a bit in the second inning, and then again in the third when he walked Pena. As a result, he threw some pitches that got too much of the plate as he was just trying to throw strikes. These may the Royals, but they're still professionals, and they have some excellent young hitters. They made Bart pay, the long ball coming off the bat of Mark Teahen to pull the Royals to within one.
Bart had the big lead because the offense was stout early. After three straight singles to start the game, Zach Greinke got behind Vlad 3-1, and Vlad took it out on him by hitting the next pitch about 460 feet for a grand slam and four run lead. They added another in the second on a Matthews triple and Cabrera double. A Kotchman sac fly in the 4th pushed the lead to two, which was promptly cut back to one in the bottom of the 4th, before a Reggie Willits RBI single in the 8th provided the winning margin.
The Angels pounded out 13 hits: Two each for Aybar and Cabrera, three for Willits, and four for HGHMJ. It's not easy to figure out who the best young player has been to this point. Willits is seemingly always on base, now hitting .382 while getting on base at a .447 clip. Honestly, other than deference to the veteran, I don't know how you put Garret Anderson back in the lineup unless you make him DH and put Hillenbrand on the bench.
Then there's Erick Aybar. Forget the two stupid caught stealings in the first two weeks. He's now hitting .320, while playing outstanding defense at second base. He's clearly bench bound upon the return of Kendrick, but if I were Orlando Cabrera, I might be polishing my resume. They're going to need to have this kind in the infield every day in the next year or two. Yeah, I know he's not slugging, but he'll hit for just as much pop as Cabrera, with a better average, comparable defense, for about $7MM less.
And if you thought those were the only two fighting it out, you've clearly forgotten about Dustin Moseley. He bridged the 6th and 7th innings tonight, turning the ball over the Scot Sh
Same time and teams tomorrow night, with the aforementioned Ervin taking on Jorge De La Rosa. Can Ervin get it done on the road? We'll see.
Ted Leo Review and Pics
Can't argue with Pitchfork on this one. If you enjoy live music, you owe it to yourself to check out a Ted Leo show sometime.
Angels 3; Royals 1
I'm not sure there's a lot to say about this one. They still aren't scoring many runs on the road. And as good as the pitching was, it's hard to get excited about holding the Royals to one run.
Still, Lackey overcame some early Lackey-itis and started to work through some efficient middle innings, which allowed him to get into the seventh, where Speier shut the door. Shields walked a guy with no power who he had down 1-2 before breezing through the rest of the inning, and Frankie gave up a lead off double before striking out the side for his ninth save. And boy is he going to have a lot of saves this season if he stays healthy. Because they aren't going to be winning a lot of blowouts. If they have a lead in the ninth, there's a really good chance it will be within three runs.
Figgins looked pretty solid in his 2007 debut, poking an RBI double to left field, which could have been good for two RBIs if the runners hadn't been forced to hold, waiting to see if the ball was caught. He also started an excellent, yet dubious double play, which featured a terrific turn by Erick Aybar, though it was pretty clear that Estaban German beat the throw to first. They're going to need to make room for Aybar somewhere next year. That guy is a lot of fun to watch in the field.
HGHMJ made a nice second inning peg to nail Ryan Shealy at the plate and keep the lead at 2-1. He's really starting to deliver. Speaking of runners being thrown out, note to Vlad: Please stop getting thrown out at third. It's starting to get a little ridiculous.
Big Bart tomorrow against Zach Greinke in what should be another low scoring affair.
Still, Lackey overcame some early Lackey-itis and started to work through some efficient middle innings, which allowed him to get into the seventh, where Speier shut the door. Shields walked a guy with no power who he had down 1-2 before breezing through the rest of the inning, and Frankie gave up a lead off double before striking out the side for his ninth save. And boy is he going to have a lot of saves this season if he stays healthy. Because they aren't going to be winning a lot of blowouts. If they have a lead in the ninth, there's a really good chance it will be within three runs.
Figgins looked pretty solid in his 2007 debut, poking an RBI double to left field, which could have been good for two RBIs if the runners hadn't been forced to hold, waiting to see if the ball was caught. He also started an excellent, yet dubious double play, which featured a terrific turn by Erick Aybar, though it was pretty clear that Estaban German beat the throw to first. They're going to need to make room for Aybar somewhere next year. That guy is a lot of fun to watch in the field.
HGHMJ made a nice second inning peg to nail Ryan Shealy at the plate and keep the lead at 2-1. He's really starting to deliver. Speaking of runners being thrown out, note to Vlad: Please stop getting thrown out at third. It's starting to get a little ridiculous.
Big Bart tomorrow against Zach Greinke in what should be another low scoring affair.
Seitz Goes Commercial
Seen these new Puma ads?
Like the song? Here it is in it's entirety. And if you see these guys live, bring earplugs, because they are very loud. But both times I've seen them, they've been well worth the experience. I'd introduce them as Mazarin, but they aren't Mazarin anymore. The name is still pending.
Like the song? Here it is in it's entirety. And if you see these guys live, bring earplugs, because they are very loud. But both times I've seen them, they've been well worth the experience. I'd introduce them as Mazarin, but they aren't Mazarin anymore. The name is still pending.
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