Los Angeles Angels Fanclub

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Ted S. Warren – AP

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Just one bad pitch, and too much Matsui – The Olympian – Olympia, Washington
With the Mariners clinging to a one-run lead and two outs in the seventh inning, Vargas threw an 0-1 fastball inside, but not inside enough to Hideki Matsui. The veteran slugger ripped it into the right-field seats for a two-run homer to provide the tying and winning runs in the Angels’ 4-2 win over Seattle on Wednesday at Safeco Field. “Vargas did an outstanding job for 62/3 solid innings,” Mariners manager Daren Brown said. “He just left a pitch up to Matsui and it cost him.” But the fastball to Matsui was even more frustrating because Vargas had first base open with two outs and Brandon Wood, hitting .165 this season, standing in the on-deck circle. “I feel like I’m smarter than that,” Vargas said. “(Matsui) is definitely a guy that can change the game. And we’ve got a guy we had success with on deck (Wood). … You can’t let him beat you there. You probably just keep feeding him sliders and if he walks, he walks, and just move on to the next guy.” In Moore’s mind, that was what he wanted to do. He called for a slider and Vargas shook it off. He called for a change-up, and Vargas shook it off, wanting the fastball. “Vargas wanted to go with his gut and went with it,” Moore said. ” … I should have went out there and made a visit, but I didn’t. It hurt us.”

These are a couple interesting quotes from the Mariners’ battery and sort of highlights how a catcher can have an impact on the pitcher.  If the catcher had had a bit more experience, he would have reminded Vargas that they didn’t have to pitch to Matsui, especially with Wood on deck.  I don’t know how it relates to the the Angels catcher situation, but it at least help me realize the importance of the pitcher/catcher interaction.  Have some highlights:   Gutierrez makes the catch in center – Howard Kendrick skies one to center, where Franklin Gutierrez tracks it down for the out,  Matsui crushes a go-ahead homer to right – Hideki Matsui hits his 18th home run of the season, a two-run shot that stakes the Angels to a 3-2 seventh-inning lead,  Callaspo’s dinger adds an insurance run – Alberto Callaspo takes Sean White deep to right for a solo shot, extending the lead to 4-2 in the eighth, Bell throws six frames of two-run ball – Trevor Bell strikes out six over six innings of two-run ball.

Hideki Matsui’s homer lifts Angels, 4-2 – latimes.com
Jordan Walden struck out two in a scoreless seventh, Kevin Jepsen, who was tagged for three eighth-inning runs and the loss Tuesday night, struck out two in a scoreless eighth, and Fernando Rodney struck out two in a scoreless ninth for his eighth save.

Someone needs to update Scioscia’s Relief Pitcher Flowchart to reflect the new roles for his relievers.

MORE LINKS AFTER THE BREAK…

Angels activate Bulger, Stokes from disabled list -  FOX Sports on MSN
The Los Angeles Angels have added depth to their bullpen by activating right-handers Jason Bulger and Brian Stokes from the 15-day disabled list.

Just in time for the Halos big playoff push.

Frank McCourt has taken Dodgers deep in debt – latimes.com
Since buying the Dodgers for $430 million six years ago, Frank McCourt has so heavily leveraged the team — $433 million in debt as of last year — that he has struggled to find additional financing. The debt load has limited how the Dodgers can pay their players and could affect the team’s ability to sign talent.

Here are some more tid-bits from the linked article:

• In a deposition, Dodgers Chief Financial Officer Peter Wilhelm said Citibank declined even to engage in serious negotiations.  “They did not feel that the Dodger organization had the capacity to take on more debt,” Wilhelm said.
• McCourt pledged on his first day as an owner that the Dodgers would maintain a player payroll among the top quarter of major league teams, but the business plan he submitted to Major League Baseball — revealed in court documents Wednesday — called for cutting the payroll from $100 million in 2004 to $85 million in 2006.
• In a court declaration, Wilhelm, the Dodgers’ CFO, identified “borrowed funds” as the primary source for the “operation of the business enterprise as well as a source of potential distributions” to the McCourts.
• The McCourts took $108 million in personal distributions from the Dodgers from 2004 to 2009, primarily from the borrowed funds, court records show.  For example, in 2006, Blue Land Co. — the McCourt entity that owns the Dodger Stadium parking lots — took out a $60-million loan against the parking lots, according to Wilhelm’s declaration. The McCourts invested $10 million in the Dodgers and used about $50 million for personal mortgages and purchases of residential real estate, Wilhelm said.

This is some serious B.S.  And it makes me glad McCourt wasn’t able to buy the Angels as he tried to do prior to buying the Dodgers.

Finally, A Baseball Fight That Doesn’t Disappoint – Deadspin.com
A night after bowling over the catcher, Nyjer Morgan gets a pitch behind him. Morgan goes after the pitcher, when — BAM! — Gaby Sanchez out of nowhere.

By the headline I thought the McCourts had met outside the courthouse to settle their dispute.

Reds’ Chapman hits 103 mph, gets 6-1 win -  Yahoo! Sports
No. 1 for Aroldis Chapman. Eight and counting for his new team. The Cuban left-hander hit 103 mph on the radar gun during another sizzling inning Wednesday night, then got his first big-league win when the Cincinnati Reds rallied for a 6-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers that pushed their NL Central lead to eight games.

via i.cdn.turner.com

Beck’s Blog: St. Pierre finally gets call to big leagues
Max St. Pierre is finally coming to the big leagues. He won’t be the most glamorous September call-up, but he might well be the happiest. After 978 games over 14 minor league seasons, the longtime Tigers farmhand will join the big club as an extra catcher when rosters expand on Wednesday.

It’s nice to see someone rewarded for chasing their dream.

Angels ” Win Probability ” Wednesday, September 01, 2010 – FanGraphs Baseball

Almost second place:

American League West

Team
W
L
Pct.
GB

Texas
75
58
.564
-

Oakland
65
67
.492
9½

L.A. Angels
65
69
.485
10½

Seattle
52
81
.391
23

September 2 – BR Bullpen
Events, births and deaths that occurred on September 2.
1880 – Using three towers illuminating light 100 feet above the playing field, teams from the department stores of Jordan Marsh and R.H. White stage the first night game.
1912 – At Boston, Christy Mathewson wins both games for the Giants in a 5 – 2, 6 – 1, sweep of the Braves. In the opener, Matty relieves Rube Marquard in the 9th with the score at 2 – 2 and tosses three shutout innings. Larry Doyle ends it with a 3-run homer in the 12th. Matty coasts to his 19th win in the nitecap after the Giants chase Ed Doheny with five runs in the 3rd.  Pitch counts?  We don’t need no stinkin’ pitch counts!
1951 – Tony Ponce of the Phoenix Senators (Southwest International League) hurls his 38th consecutive complete game in beating Yuma 4 – 2 for his 25th win of the season.  Relief pitchers? We don’t need no relief pitchers!
1965 – Mickey Mantle hits a 1st inning homer with two on as New York scores five runs on their way to an 8 – 1 win over the Angels. Whitey Ford is the winner.  I think that Mantle guy was pretty good.
1968 – In the last Pacific Coast League game played in Seattle, WA, Jim Bouton of the Seattle Angels (a combined PCL team of the Pilots and California Angels) tops Spokane, 4 – 1.
2002 – The A’s defeat the Royals, 7 – 6, for their 19th straight victory to match the longest winning streak in American League history.  What few mention is the Angels went 14-6 over the same span, staying in the playoff race.
Happy b-day:
1863 – John Henry, outfielder (d. 1939)  The current Red Sox owner.  (he hasn’t realized he’s been dead for 70 years).
1960 – Rex Hudler, infielder. Happy five-o to the Wonderdog.

They screamed bug-eyed:

Los Angeles Angels

Hitters
AB
R
H
RBI
BB
SO
LOB
AVG

Reggie Willits, LF
4
1
1
0
0
0
0
.285

Alberto Callaspo, 3B
4
1
1
1
0
0
1
.288

Howard Kendrick, 2B
4
0
0
1
0
1
0
.278

Torii Hunter, RF
4
0
1
0
0
3
0
.291

Mike Napoli, C
3
1
1
0
1
1
0
.248

Juan Rivera, 1B
4
0
0
0
0
0
3
.247

Hideki Matsui, DH
2
1
1
2
1
0
0
.262

Brandon Wood, SS
3
0
0
0
0
1
1
.162

Peter Bourjos, CF
3
0
0
0
0
1
0
.195

Totals
31
4
5
4
2
7
 
 

Batting

2B – Reggie Willits (6, Vargas), Torii Hunter (31, Vargas), Mike Napoli (21, Vargas)

HR – Alberto Callaspo (10, S. White), Hideki Matsui (18, Vargas)

RBI – Alberto Callaspo (54), Howard Kendrick (65), Hideki Matsui 2 (73)

2-OUT RBI – Alberto Callaspo (22), Hideki Matsui 2 (31)

Team LOB – 2

Fielding

DP – Wood-Kendrick-J. Rivera

E – Mike Napoli (11, Throwing), Juan Rivera (6, Misplayed grounder)

Seattle Mariners

Hitters
AB
R
H
RBI
BB
SO
LOB
AVG

Ichiro Suzuki, RF
5
0
2
0
0
1
1
.310

Chone Figgins, 2B
3
1
2
0
0
1
1
.247

Franklin Gutierrez, CF
4
0
2
1
0
0
1
.251

Russell Branyan, DH
4
0
0
0
0
4
3
.235

Jose Lopez, 3B
4
0
0
0
0
1
2
.241

Casey Kotchman, 1B
4
0
1
0
0
0
0
.224

Michael Saunders, LF
4
0
1
0
0
1
1
.221

Adam Moore, C
4
0
1
0
0
2
3
.200

Josh Wilson, SS
3
1
1
0
0
1
1
.249

   a- Ryan Langerhans, PH
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
.198

Totals
36
2
10
1
0
12
 
 

a-struck out for Wilson in the 9th

Batting

2B – Franklin Gutierrez (20, Bell), Casey Kotchman (19, Bell), Adam Moore (4, Bell)

SH – Chone Figgins (12)

RBI – Franklin Gutierrez (51)

SB – Chone Figgins (34, 2nd base off Bell/Napoli), Michael Saunders (4, 3rd base off Bell/Napoli)

CS – Franklin Gutierrez (3, 2nd base by Bell/Napoli)

Team LOB – 8

Fielding

DP – Figgins

Los Angeles Angels

Pitchers
IP
H
R
ER
BB
SO
HR
ERA

Trevor Bell (W,2-4)
6
9
2
2
0
6
0
4.85

Jordan Walden (H,1)
1
1
0
0
0
2
0
2.25

Kevin Jepsen (H,21)
1
0
0
0
0
2
0
4.93

Fernando Rodney (S,8)
1
0
0
0
0
2
0
3.79

Pitches-Strikes – Trevor Bell 93-61, Jordan Walden 21-15, Kevin Jepsen 17-11, Fernando Rodney 20-13

Ground Balls-Fly Balls – Trevor Bell 5-6, Kevin Jepsen 1-0, Fernando Rodney 1-1

Batters Faced – Trevor Bell 26, Jordan Walden 4, Kevin Jepsen 3, Fernando Rodney 4

Seattle Mariners

Pitchers
IP
H
R
ER
BB
SO
HR
ERA

Jason Vargas (L,9-8)
7
4
3
3
2
4
1
3.55

Sean White
1
1
1
1
0
2
1
5.24

Brian Sweeney
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
3.42

Pitches-Strikes – Jason Vargas 106-74, Sean White 14-10, Brian Sweeney 10-6

Ground Balls-Fly Balls – Jason Vargas 5-11, Sean White 1-0, Brian Sweeney 1-1

Batters Faced – Jason Vargas 26, Sean White 4, Brian Sweeney 3

Poll
Dodger divorce news in Halolinks….

• Keep it. It’s interesting (in a “car wreck” sort of way)
• Don’t want to hear about it.

  187 votes | Results

There’s a lot of talk, justifiably, about Napoli on this site at the moment. There’s SubOp’s cruel bedtime stories, and Downing Rules’ case (from the negatives of Nap’s defense) for Napoli at DH next season. 

Like Downing Rules, I’ve been a fan of the concept of Napoli as full-time DH for two to three seasons now. It’s why I was very meh on the Matsui signing in the offseason.

One, I hate the zero sum game that places Mathis against Napoli, simply because individuals got it into their minds that each is a catcher, and each is a catcher only. It’s the same sort of zero sum game that led fans to devalue Chone Figgins‘ performance in his prime with the club, because they were dreaming hard on some false vision of Brandon Wood’s professional dominance (or that of Dallas McPherson before him). Had everyone set aside positional expectations, we could’ve all truly appreciated a year like 2009 where Figgins delivered a majestic 6.1 wins above replacement from third base, instead handwringing about fictional opportunity costs related to the deferment of Wood’s eventual Season of the Whiff (Donovan, forgive my lisp) . 

Two, Napoli remains a very cheap bat. At $3.6M, his cost was just over half that of Matsui’s ($6.5M), and he’s performed well in the limited chances he’s had as a DH (.980 OPS). One could imagine an alternative off-season where the Angels FO directed that $6.5M toward someone like Beltre, and installed Napoli in the obvious slot at DH.

So with that, I’d like set aside the talk and take that case a little further by just looking at the numbers from 2010 for a moment. How would Naps have compared with Godzila, given equal opportunity?

Counting Stats

Matsui: 17 HR 71 RBI 47 Runs in 474 PAs

Napoli: 21 HR 60 RBI 48 Runs in 417 PAs

(Napoli projected to 474 PAs : 24 HR 68 RBI 55 Runs)

Matsui: Runners on base:  .880 OPS (66 RBIs)  193 chances

Napoli: Runners on base:  .815 OPS (50 RBIs)  152 chances  

(Napoli projected to 193 chances: 64 RBIs)

Advanced Metrics (from FanGraphs)

Matsui:  1.0 WAR .341 wOBA Positional Value: $4M

Napoli:  2.2 WAR .342 wOBA Positional Value: $9M

We can set aside a bit of that WAR differential and attribute it to positional valuation. Not all of it mind you, but WAR gives Napoli some positional credit for the fraction of his season spent at catcher, and it also subtracts some value for the time Matsui spent playing the outfield, which really was not a good idea in the end.

Outside of that, however, what we see here, normalized for playing time, is nearly equivalent performances. Napoli unquestionably has the higher power ceiling, and if one is only interested in runs created via crossing the plate and via the RBI, Naps has a small edge in aggregate. The only place where Matsui outperforms Napoli is hitting with runners on base — but in terms of RBIs, even that almost completely washes out given equivalent playing time. Not that hitting with RISP is a consistently repeatable skill (Napoli, for example, had a 1.012 OPS with runners on in the 2008 season).

So, with equal time, equal performance, with a slight edge to Napoli for power and “run production”. 

But it’s interesting, of course, how management views the relative value of these two players. Here’s Scioscia in the LA Times earlier this week on Matsui:

“Hideki’s production is very close to what we anticipated,” manager Mike Scioscia said. “As a group, we’ve underperformed. Some guys who are well below what you’d expect. Hideki is not one of those guys.”

So, Matsui has met expectations, but as we’ve seen, Napoli has not. This is considered a bad season for Naps, arguably the worst of his career as regular player – if not from the player himself, at least from the vantage of the coach:

(H)is frustration was evident when asked whether he was beginning to feel like the opportunity to play every day was not going to happen in Anaheim.

“Yeah,” said Napoli, who shares catching duties with Jeff Mathis and the first base job with Juan Rivera. “I’m having one of the best years of my career, and I’m not playing much. I guess I don’t get it done on the defensive side. I have to clean things up.”

***

“We’ve talked about my setup, my target,” Napoli said. “I’m trying to get my ERA and walks down.”

One could point out here that it was Napoli who had to catch Kazmir on July 10, 2010, the day Scioscia let him rot in Oakland to the tune of 13 earned runs in five innings. This was Kazmir’s last outing before his DL stint. He also had to catch Kazmir on May 6, 2010 in Boston, where Kazmir gave up 7 ERs in 4.1 innings. Those two games alone account for more than half of the differential between Wilson’s and Napoli’s CERA behind the dish — and it was managerial “discretion” that allowed the pitcher to stink it up to that extent on those occasions.

Nonetheless, it’s pretty clear what Scioscia’s message is to Napoli here: if he wants to be in the lineup consistently, it will still depend on his pitcher’s performance on those days Napoli’s in the lineup as a catcher. Napoli needs to improve “his” CERA and get “his” walks down (meaning those of the pitcher he’s catching). His fate is married to the injuries that Kazmir hides, the developmental progress of Bell, and every other pitching project Reagins can come up with. I don’t need to revisit the lunacy of this. Suboptimal does it all too well.

Meanwhile , a good, rational manager would set aside the positional expectations, and get Napoli into the lineup consistently for his bat — it’s clear he underperforms when played inconsistently. He’s a streaky hitter — to not ride out the cold streaks is as often as not to miss the hot streaks as well — it’s like trading out of a volatile stock during the troughs instead of at the peaks.

Some fans are already encouraging the organization to “cut bait” on Napoli due to the $4-5M he’ll be likely to make next year in arbitration. This, by the way, was the exact same argument made to get rid of Darren Oliver last season (who ultimately would have made under $4M given the eventual market for relievers). It’s a demonstrably bad argument.

If Napoli will not be worth $5M as a DH next season, how do folks view Matsui at $6.5M this season? Fans that don’t think Napoli is worth $5M for his bat should be calling for Reagins’ head right now.

Direct link to Lunch Time Halo Talk

The archive recording of Thursday’s 90 Minute LUNCH TIME HALO TALK is linked at this widget:

Listen to internet radio with Halos Heaven on Blog Talk Radio

WiHalofan and myself co-hosted LUNCH TIME HALO TALK earlier TODAY (Thursday, September 2) and we did it LIVE! For 90 minutes, we discussed the Angels from the voice of the intelligent and emotional fan.

• Our Guests Were:
  
• Eric Denton of the LA Angels Insider Blog
• Sam Miller of the Orange County Register Newspaper’s Angels Blog

Enjoy the replay at your leisure.

What bothered Napoli more than the waiver-claim chatter was the fact that his name was not on manager Mike Scioscia's lineup card for the second straight day.

The Angles acquired 7-foot-1 Minor League pitcher Loek Van Mil on Wednesday as the player to be named in the Brian Fuentes trade and activated Jason Bulger and Brian Stokes from the 15-day DL.

Angels end scoring drought with late home-run flurry against Mariners – Seattle Times Newspaper

Mariners manager Daren Brown said. “I thought Pauley really did a nice job for five innings. In the sixth inning, he left some pitches up in the zone and they didn’t miss them.” Pauley took a two-hit shutout — one of the hits a bunt single — into the sixth. But leadoff hitter Peter Bourjos, the rookie center fielder whose arrival pushed Torii Hunter into right field, blasted a 1-0 pitch over the center-field wall. That ended the Angels’ scoreless streak at 31 innings, two shy of the club record. They liked it so much that Bobby Abreu, with two outs, hit a copycat homer to virtually the same spot in center. And after a Hunter single, Hideki Matsui crushed yet another round-tripper to right for two more runs. “It’s frustrating,” Pauley said of his recent propensity for a mid-game meltdown. “The first five innings are good, and all of a sudden the game speeds up. It’s hard to explain, but very frustrating.” Fernando Rodney picked up his first save since the Angels traded closer Brian Fuentes to Minnesota last week, preserving Santana’s 14th win. But it didn’t come without adventure.

Weren’t we saying the same things about Jered Weaver last previous couple seasons that Pauley mentioned above, that a pitcher could be cruising along and then all of a sudden…game over.  I thought it was interesting the way he puts it, “the game speeds up”.  Anyway, I’m sure we’re all glad Weaver’s been able to avoid the big inning.  Also, it should be noted that Peter Bourjos is hitting over .200 and has one less home run than Jeff Mathis.  Get your highlights here:  Angels get the out to make up for a miscue – Juan Rivera applies the tag to Franklin Gutierrez after an error by Peter Bourjos nearly cost the Angels in the bottom of the ninth (looked safe to me), Bourjos breaks the ice with a solo dinger – Peter Bourjos breaks a scoreless tie with a big fly to center field in the top of the sixth, Abreu adds on with a long ball to center – Bobby Abreu follows Peter Bourjos’ homer from earlier in the sixth with a solo blast to center field (almost to the exact spot as Bourjos’), Matsui doubles the lead with a two-run shot – Hideki Matsui rips a two-run long ball to right field for the Angels’ third home run of the inning, Abreu (Bourjos) catches Gutierrez trying for third – Bobby Abreu (no, Peter Bourjos) corrals a double over his (Abreu’s) head and throws out Franklin Gutierrez trying for a triple.  Whoever writes the descriptions at MLB completely got this one wrong.  The play was in left field, where Abreu was playing, but Bourjos came all the way over from center to make the play.

Angels-Mariners Preview -  FOX Sports on MSN
With their extended scoreless-inning stretch behind them, the Angels try for a fifth consecutive road victory over Felix Hernandez and the Mariners on Tuesday night. The right-hander allowed eight runs, three homers and walked four in 3 1-3 innings of an 8-0 loss in his last home start against the Angels on May 7. Hernandez, however, has allowed eight runs – one earned – and struck out 40 over 30 innings while winning three of his last four starts overall. He gave up that earned run and struck out nine in 7 1-3 innings of a 4-2 win at Boston on Wednesday. He also became the fourth pitcher in Mariners history to record 1,000 strikeouts. The Angels counter with Dan Haren (2-4, 4.02), who will try to win two straight starts for the first time since joining the Angels last month. After allowing seven runs in seven innings of a 7-2 loss at Minnesota on Aug. 20, Haren gave up one and three hits while striking out eight in a 12-3 win over Tampa Bay on Wednesday. The Angels had scored 14 runs in his previous six starts since being traded by Arizona on July 25.

Jered Weaver has faced Hernandez three times this season, winning twice (he had a no-decision in the other game which the Angels won).  Let’s see if Haren has ace-stuff and can do as well against Seattle’s stud.

No deal by Sox, Angels for Napoli – WEEI.com
The Red Sox, after being awarded a waiver claim last week on Angels catcher and first baseman Mike Napoli, did not reach agreement with Los Angeles on a deal involving the catcher by the time that Monday’s deadline for an agreement passed, according to a major league source. As a result, the Angels have pulled Napoli back from waivers, and he will remain with the Halos.According to a second source familiar with the situation, the Angels were “not really looking to move” Napoli right now. Even so, the team could revisit that stance this coming offseason.

I understand teams will place most of their players on waivers during this time of the season, but I’m puzzled as to why they’d place a player like Napoli on waivers if they’re “not really looking to move” him.  The only reason I can come up with is they were hoping Nap’s would clear and then the club would be able to negotiate with any team.  I’ve also read that a team can find out who’s interested in the player by seeing who claims him.  This is a lame excuse as I’m sure teams are well aware of who’s interested in their players.  Also this just leads to the question; why are they interested in trading him?

Mike Napoli remains with Angels — and on the bench – latimes.com
Asked before Monday night’s game in Seattle what the odds were of him being an Angel next season, Napoli said, “It could go either way; I’d say it’s 50-50. Napoli, like many Angels fans, can’t understand why a team that scored all of one run — on a balk — in three games against the lowly Baltimore Orioles over the weekend would not want its home run leader in the lineup.The Angels say Napoli has had ample opportunity. “He’s played virtually every day,” Manager Mike Scioscia said. “A lot of guys are fighting for at-bats. Mike has been in there a lot, and he’s driven the ball for us.”

Last week I wrote Mike Scioscia was insane and he keeps adding to my proof.  Or so I thought when I read his above quote.  I almost sprayed coffee all over my laptop when I read “he’s played virtually every day”.  I was thinking the key word in that quote was “virtually” assuming Scioscia was talking about Napoli’s season on his Xbox, but then I looked into it and Napoli has played in 113 of the Angels 132 games.  Of the catchers in the major leagues, he ranks 5th in games played and although he’s played just 63 games behind the plate, when (if?) he plays in his next game, it’ll match his career high in games played.  Many of us think that total should be higher considering the opportunity to fill in at first base, but at least he has played in more games than Juan Rivera.

Reagins shrugs off waiver-claim chatter – angelsbaseball.com
Three quotes from the linked article:
“That’s the system,” Scioscia said. “When it’s leaked out, a lot of people who don’t understand the system sensationalize stuff. That’s routine. Don’t read a lot into it. Just about every player on this team has been put on waivers.”
“It’s something that’s out of my control,” Napoli said before Monday night’s game at Safeco Field against the Mariners. “It’s good to know that other teams are interested in you. It’s good that I didn’t go unclaimed.”
“He (Joel Pineiro) had a great session today,” Scioscia said. “He’s passing every checkpoint with flying colors. He turned it loose to day on the mound. We’ll see how he comes out of it. We’ll see if we can get him in a sim game, hopefully by the end of the road trip.”

Angels ” Win Probability ” Monday, August 30, 2010 – FanGraphs Baseball

A digital salute to pitch grips – The Hardball Times
One thing I have come to realize is that while a picture is worth a thousand words, a catalog of pitch grip images quickly becomes unwieldy for search and comparison among pitchers. For this task, a table of quantitative descriptions of each pitchers’ pitch grips would be desirable. For a single given pitcher, four or five selected images still provide the most accurate and easily understood way to communicate how he grips the baseball. But if I want to know how his four-seam fastball grip compares to the fastball grips of other pitchers in the league, a digital record is needed.

Pretty cool article showing different pitchers and the way they grip their pitches.

Cain is shaken up making a leaping catch – Video – MLB.com
Lorenzo Cain is shaken up as he crashes into the left-center field wall making an amazing leaping catch, Cain remains in the game

Wrigley’s peanut-free suite clears way for one fan’s special day – Big League Stew -  Yahoo! Sports
Yes, for the first time in team history, the Cubs are hosting a group of fans who are allergic to peanuts in a special suite that will be peanut free. That the mere presence of peanuts makes a ballpark completely off-limits to a certain group of people is often hard for some to understand. During Friday’s game, Cubs announcer Ron Santo exhibited a lack of knowledge when he laughed and poked fun at the peanut-free night. “Wait, why don’t they just not eat the peanuts?” Santo said. “They can’t even be around it?” No, Ron, they can’t.

I too was completely unaware that a peanut allergy could be so severe.

During tantrum, minor league manager pulls up 1st base, signs it – Big League Stew – MLB  – Yahoo! Sports
Robinson immediately return to the field in a frenzy that included yelling, screaming, kicking dirt on home plate, covering home plate with dirt using his hands and kicking dirt on the umpire. Robinson then jogged to first base and pulled it out of the ground. Was he going to have a Lou Piniella moment and throw it any old place? Better. Robinson instead reached inside the front of his jersey and pulled out a pen — like the kind any manager would use to make notations on a lineup card — and he signed the bag.

Scioscia needs to be more like this guy.  JUST KIDDING!

Clemens swaggers through his arraignment -  Yahoo! Sports
Clemens barely moved as his attorneys and the prosecutors determined when they could start the trial. Walton’s calendar seemed to have a sense of irony when it suggested April 5, 2011, which will be the first week of next year’s baseball season. The date was sealed. April 5 it will be. Clemens always loved the big stage and what could be better than taking on his accusers on opening week?

Two different takes on Manny Ramirez from Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal:

Chicago White Sox make good move acquiring Manny Ramirez -  FOX Sports on MSN
The White Sox didn’t surrender any players. They didn’t commit to the mercurial Manny beyond the end of this season. They did, however, improve their fading postseason hopes. That’s enough to make this move worthwhile. If you can’t fathom why anyone would want to take on Manny and his many headaches, I would invite you to check the American League Central standings. The White Sox trail the Minnesota Twins by four games.

Is Manny Ramirez an improvement for White Sox? -  FOX Sports on MSN
He quit on the Red Sox. He quit on the Dodgers. The Hall includes its share of miscreants, but Manny has routinely engaged in conduct detrimental to his team.  Yes, he produced great numbers. Yes, he was a joy to watch. But certain standards of decency apply.

My take?  I think it’s a good pick up by the Sox, especially since they didn’t have to give up any players.

And a couple takes on the McCourts:

McCourt divorce trial makes departing Manny Ramirez look normal – Lee Jenkins – SI.com
The Dodgers could apparently handle only one freak show at a time, so Manny Ramirez had to go, ceding the stage to Frank and Jamie McCourt.With the Dodgers virtually eliminated from the playoff race, this divorce hearing is all their fans have left, a chance to watch those who brought down the franchise disintegrate along with it. Here is the rare opportunity for folks in the cheap seats to laugh at ones in the owners’ box. The Dodgers lead the league in lawyers, and they will be out in force starting today, as Frank tries to keep the club for himself, and Jamie tries to keep a share, and fans root for both of them to lose. This was no place for Manny Ramirez. He was the normal one.

There are no winners in McCourt trial -  FOX Sports on MSN
You want to know why a team in America’s second biggest market has a payroll less than the Minnesota Twins? Because now as ever, Frank doesn’t have the bank for this. In his opening statement, Susman admitted that the acquisition of the Dodgers “turned out to be one of the most highly leveraged acquisitions in the history of major league baseball.” Never mind that he pays himself — in addition to all the monies and tax breaks he takes from the team — $5 million per (as opposed to Jamie’s mere $2 million as CEO before he fired her). This will go on for a couple more weeks, the preening and posturing. Then Judge Scott Gordon will make a decision. One hopes it balances the laws of community property with a sense of the community’s interest. Either way, the guy’s got a hard choice, declaring a winner from two losers.

Wow.  Are the McCourts a couple “freaks” and “losers”.  I admit from the things I’ve read leading up to this divorce trail that they seem, how should I put this, outrageous, but not much different than other people with too much money. 

Can this be over yet?:

American League West

Team
W
L
Pct.
GB

Texas
74
57
.565
-

Oakland
65
65
.500
8½

L.A. Angels
64
68
.485
10½

Seattle
51
80
.389
23

August 31 – BR Bullpen
Events, births and deaths that occurred on August 31.
1964 – Ground is broken for Anaheim Stadium, future home of next year’s California Angels.  The REAL “happiest place on earth”.
1979 – The Angels regain 1st place in the AL West by beating the Indians, 9 – 8. California scores five runs in the 8th on three homers, then watch as Cleveland scores four to tie.
1990 – Ken Griffey and Ken Griffey, Sr. become the first father and son to play in the same major league lineup.
1999 – Down 12 – 4, the Indians rally for 10 runs in the bottom of the 8th inning to defeat the Angels, 14 – 12.
Happy b-day:
1935 – Frank Robinson, outfielder, manager; All-Star, Hall of Famer
1961 – Me
1979 – Shane Loux, pitcher
1979 – Tim Raines, outfielder
R.I.P.:
2001 – Crash Davis, infielder (b. 1919)

Finally, runs!:

Los Angeles Angels

Hitters
AB
R
H
RBI
BB
SO
LOB
AVG

Alberto Callaspo, 3B
5
0
0
0
0
0
2
.286

Howard Kendrick, 2B
4
0
0
0
0
1
1
.280

Bobby Abreu, LF
3
2
1
1
1
0
0
.255

Torii Hunter, RF
3
1
2
0
1
0
0
.292

Hideki Matsui, DH
2
1
1
2
2
0
1
.262

Juan Rivera, 1B
4
0
0
0
0
0
1
.249

Erick Aybar, SS
4
0
1
0
0
0
3
.265

Jeff Mathis, C
4
0
0
0
0
1
1
.196

Peter Bourjos, CF
3
1
2
1
0
0
0
.211

Totals
32
5
7
4
4
2
 
 

Batting

HR – Bobby Abreu (16, Pauley), Hideki Matsui (17, Pauley), Peter Bourjos (2, Pauley)

RBI – Bobby Abreu (67), Hideki Matsui 2 (71), Peter Bourjos (7)

2-OUT RBI – Bobby Abreu (27), Hideki Matsui 2 (29)

SB – Peter Bourjos (4, 2nd base off Pauley/Moore)

Team LOB – 5

Fielding

Outfield Assists – Peter Bourjos 2

Seattle Mariners

Hitters
AB
R
H
RBI
BB
SO
LOB
AVG

Ichiro Suzuki, RF
4
0
2
0
0
0
0
.308

Chone Figgins, 2B
4
0
0
0
0
0
2
.244

Russell Branyan, DH
4
0
2
0
0
1
0
.239

Jose Lopez, 3B
4
1
1
0
0
1
3
.241

Casey Kotchman, 1B
3
1
0
0
1
1
2
.223

Franklin Gutierrez, CF
4
1
3
0
0
1
1
.251

Michael Saunders, LF
4
0
1
1
0
0
1
.223

Adam Moore, C
3
0
0
1
0
0
0
.189

Josh Wilson, SS
3
0
0
0
0
0
1
.244

Totals
33
3
9
2
1
4
 
 

Batting

2B – Russell Branyan (18, Santana), Franklin Gutierrez 2 (19, Santana, Rodney)

SF – Adam Moore (1)

RBI – Michael Saunders (28), Adam Moore (9)

SB – Ichiro Suzuki 2 (34, 2nd base off Santana/Mathis, 2nd base off Santana/Mathis)

Team LOB – 5

Fielding

DP – Kotchman-Wilson, Wilson-Figgins-Kotchman

Los Angeles Angels

Pitchers
IP
H
R
ER
BB
SO
HR
ERA

Ervin Santana (W,14-9)
7.2
8
2
2
0
4
0
4.05

Kevin Jepsen (H,20)
0.1
0
0
0
0
0
0
4.50

Fernando Rodney (S,7)
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
3.86

WP – Ervin Santana (8), Fernando Rodney (4)

Pitches-Strikes – Ervin Santana 111-70, Kevin Jepsen 4-3, Fernando Rodney 19-9

Ground Balls-Fly Balls – Ervin Santana 8-10, Kevin Jepsen 1-0

Batters Faced – Ervin Santana 30, Kevin Jepsen 1, Fernando Rodney 4

Seattle Mariners

Pitchers
IP
H
R
ER
BB
SO
HR
ERA

David Pauley (L,2-6)
6
6
4
4
1
1
3
4.25

Jamey Wright
1.1
1
1
1
3
0
0
4.67

Sean White
1.2
0
0
0
0
1
0
5.13

HBP – Bourjos (by David Pauley)

Pitches-Strikes – David Pauley 99-56, Jamey Wright 33-16, Sean White 17-11

Ground Balls-Fly Balls – David Pauley 11-4, Jamey Wright 3-1, Sean White 2-2

Batters Faced – David Pauley 24, Jamey Wright 8, Sean White 5

Poll
What’s more interesting?

• McCourt’s divorce trial
• Roger Clemens perjury trial.
• Paint drying.

  324 votes | Results

Since bottoming out at .122 in Boston with a hitless performance on Aug. 17, center fielder Peter Bourjos has been showing all the right stuff that got him promoted by the Angels.