As unexcited as I am normally when this series happens, this year could be pretty good. The series pits two top teams from their respective leagues who have played well recently. Depending on the outcome of tonight's games (the Angels also have a day game Thursday) it could be a first place versus first place matchup. I'm hoping for it. As a fan, I've been pretty pissed off that the Padres are playing so well when clearly they are a horrible squad, offensively at least. It would make me happy if we could distance ourselves by another game tonight (I'll be in attendance, with a sense of foreboding and delight as it's Wainright versus Kershaw. Why foreboding? Because Wainright is great and Pujols doesn't have a hit yet this series. The delight is directly due to seeing Kershaw pitch, though that might not be so fun if he keeps walking people at the rate he has).
The Angels are also a great team, despite what ESPN or The MLB Network or my co-worker and Angel fan Billy tells you. They've had a slow start, but their roster is stacked and their division is unproven. Seattle did their dance of getting everyone hyped about them preseason, then flopping around like all the fish they catch up there. I swear that Oakland is just a bunch of smoke and mirrors. They seem prime to hover around 500 before dropping off at the end of the year. Texas has improved pitching and their hitting is still pretty good. Yet, as maybe Tommy will attest to, it's hard to believe in them. The Angels pitching is good, but has not lived up to expectations. Yeah, they lost the big Cuban, an TLSF favorite, but their lineup is leaps and bounds ahead of anyone else in their division, and among the top in the league.
Instead of me trying to give you a breakdown of the entire series, I implore my colleague, blog foreman, and Angel fan Tommy to break down the Angels' lineup, while I try and give you an account of the Dodgers. That way, maybe we can get a bit more of an insider's view into the series. Plus, it kind of sounds fun to me (or maybe I just don't want to spend time making assumptions about Angels players I haven't heard of).
1.) Rafael Furcal-started hot, but injuries forced him to the DL. Seems primed to break out, but don't hold your breathe. He hit his first home run of season recently, but that is not his game. His bunting is amazing, his OBP isn't up to par, and that spells less runs. He feels like the type of guy that could make or break a sweep, either way.
2.) Matt Kemp-his banner year behind him, Matt came out of the gates red hot and every Dodger fan had visions of grandeur. Then Colletti called him out for "not being the same Matt Kemp" (while he was leading the league in runs, home runs, and RBIs, mind you). Was it because he was getting caught stealing a bunch? He has dropped off significantly and I expect him to strike out many times against the Angels. His defense, along with his undeserved Gold Glove, have left a lot to be desired.
3.)Andre Ethier-While the fans were drooling over Matt Kemp's power display, Andre was quietly destroying everyone's face. Then, once Kemp started to struggle, Ethier's hype went through the roof. People were seriously talking triple crown, as he had a big lead in RBIs, a ridiculous lead in average (hitting over .370), and tied with an overproducing Kelly Johnson in home runs. Then he hit the DL after a pitching coach tagged his pinky with a ball before a game. A two week DL stint will dash even Ted Williams' hopes of the triple. He struggled after his return, but his power and hitting have increased of very late, so maybe we're back to a lethal (though not .370, that was just inhuman) 'Dre. Then again, he hasn't walked much since his return, so maybe he's trying to do too much and make up for lost time.
4.) Manny Ramirez-Is he this season's biggest disappointment? Well, not really. If you remember that he's really old and has been declining every year, maybe you should have seen this coming. He isn't hitting for average, power, or getting on base nearly as much as Dodger fans hoped. Nevertheless, they still love the shit out of him. Don't think of him as an easy out just yet, he will pop one on you if you get too greedy (and then marvel at it), but he's not the feared HOFer we're used to.
5.) James Loney-Basically a not as good Rod Carew-high average, no power. He has picked it up in the walks department and his base running has taken a great upturn, but if you have to point at someone's average or RBIs to prove their worth, you aren't seeing the whole picture. I mean, even Brandon Wood would drive in runs with Kemp, Ethier, and Manny getting on base in front of him all the time (sorry, I told myself I wouldn't take any shots; then again, he's down in the minors again, so all the best to him). Nevertheless, there's something to be said about actually driving those runs in at a good rate and hitting (singles) well.
6.) Casey Blake-The victim of an early season super slump has somewhat righted the ship. I still feel like he strikes out twice a game every game, but he does rake the pill over the left field fence if you get lazy with one. Steady defense at third and a beard to end all beard make him a fan favorite.
7.) Blake DeWitt (aka Blake DeHitt aka Casey Blake Griffin DeHitt Jr.)-Some of us felt coming out of Spring Training that this guy would be a pleasant surprise and a sturdy two bagger. And hey, he has! Well, of late he has been super good, but he seems like that +.280 bottom of the lineup hitter that gets those hits you really don't think are coming. Needless to say he is rough, notably on defense. His error (that for some unknown and confounding reason [home scoring] was not ruled such) at the game I was at in Colorado almost made me throw myself from the top of the upper deck into that cool (and quite inviting) little pond in the outfield. Don't expect anything crazy from him against the 'gels, but maybe, just maybe, he'll Craig Counsell you.
8.) Russell Martin (aka The Scourge of the Season)-Do you remember when this guy was being argued as one of the best catchers in the game? Silly in retrospect, right? Well, when he hasn't been assaulting babies on the field, he's been sucking on the field. It's just an embarrassment to watch. I mean, yeah, he might be a little better than some starting guys in the league, but he's just a total disappointment. But, let's try to say something nice here. He did offer to pay for all the little girl's medical bills, so he probably felt bad (who wouldn't?). He isn't as bad as Garret Anderson (no one in history is [this year, look it up], am I wrong?) and is hitting around .250, which isn't reason enough for me to hate him as much. I guess the only saving grace is that he's not Napoli (Ugh, pot shot number 2. Sorry, man. In all honesty, Napoli has been way better than Martin.).
Pitchers you'll see starting for us:
Friday: Chad Billingsley-If you need to have those silly numbers, Chad would qualify as our number 2, though he's pitched well enough of late to be the one on most squads. It didn't start pretty: Chad's first start was on a muggy, cold, windy day in Pittsburgh where he walked too many Pirates and just eked through five innings. It was the sole victory of my Pitt Trip, so we'll give him a reprieve. But we won't for the way he came out his next few starts, continuing to walk way too many, strike out few, throw too many pitches, and, the worst thing, give up too many runs. He has finally started nailing it down, though, so beware. Chad has arguably been our best starter over the past month and change. His strikeout numbers are up, ERA down. My predictions for him against The Angels Angels, though, are mixed. Two things come to mind for me. The first is Chad as the lesser talked about winning pitcher in the no-hitter thrown against the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium two years ago (then again, Matt Kemp's reaching on an error was probably a hit). Speaking of that, what has happened to Jose Arredondo? The second thing I think about is Orlando Cabrera ruining Chad by stealing home off him at Angel Stadium. This is probably the Dodgers' best chance at a dominating start. That being said, I have the feeling that he could get lit up, the Dodgers lay an egg, and then we're down 0-1. Conversely, this game is at Dodger Stadium. So maybe the Angels throw another no-hitter, lose, and Chad calks up a quiet victory.
Saturday: John Ely-The brightest spot of the early season and the subject of a twitter phenomenon (my favorite twit, or tweet, if you suck, was "from" Frank McCourt in which he "said" that if his wife had cheated on him with Ely, he'd be ok with it.), Ely has a string of quality starts under his belt. The biggest part of the Juan Pierre deal, Ely has exceeded his nonexistent expectations. But he has gotten lucky, and honestly it feels like it could catch up with him really quick. Look, I don't think he is a fluke, just not a guy who's going to rack up a sub-3 ERA in his career. Plus, he's coming off his worst start of the season. This guy's fully capable of keeping the Angels off the bases, though I don't know if he can keep them in the park. I feel like a 19 pitch Abreu walk is definitely going to happen, and either a Kendrick or Nap-piece jack. If we lose Friday, there's going to be some pressure on him. Let us (me) hope that he can keep it cool.
Sunday: Carlos Monasterios (aka Monk)-I like this guy way more than I should. A Rule-5 pick that has been sparsely used, but with great results. That being said, if we get to Sunday victory-less, you might expect a sweep, and in a big way. Torre does not keep this guy in the game long, he has been shut down good, with no precedent for this success in his past. But what do I know? This little known pitcher could fool or confuse Angels hitters, and pitch 5 great innings. Just expect a lot of bullpen usage Sunday.
Bullpen-Broxton has been one of the best pitchers in baseball and Kuo has been obscene. Kuo has not given up a hit to a lefty this year, Broxton strikes out around two an inning. The rest of the pen is relatively unreliable. Outside of Jeff Weaver able to come in and get a big out here and there, and Belisario looking decent of late, we have issues. Ramon Troncoso has been run into the ground by Torre, and it's now starting to hurt us. He's giving up jacks waaay too much, and putting people on base. Sherrill is out, but wasn't good any way this year. Our knuckler Haeger is now pitching out of the pen, but he's had nothing but problems as a starter. The rest of our guys are minor league call ups, so I guess that could go either way.
Bench-A slight step up from years past, but nothing to write home about. Jamey Carroll has been quite serviceable and might get a start in this series. He's a slap hitter and that guy everyone says "plays the game the right way," which is just annoying. I look at him as a mini-Casey Blake. Reed Johnson apparently hits lefties well, but hasn't really this year. He's a good left fielder and will likely spell Manny on the Sunday day game. Backup catcher A.J. Ellis is a backup catcher, Ronnie Belliard is nothing but a strikeout machine who closes his eyes and swings as hard as he can, and Garret Anderson is pretty much like a mini-9/11. The bench is not where the Dodgers go to win games in late innings.
My predictions: Well, I think the Angels are just too hot to sweep, plus with the Monasterios Sunday game, you'd be a fool to pick Los Doyers. There's a chance we take the series 2-1, but I feel like Sunday's going to be a rubber match, and that it'll take a lot for us to win there: Angels 2-1. A sweep would make me really sad.
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