SB Nation - Jason Bulger

Angels Frozen in Place, Drop Game 1 to Yankees

Rev Halofan — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 03:17:30 -0000

More photos » by Kathy Willens - AP

2 months ago: New York Yankees' Alex Rodriguez collides with Los Angeles Angels' Jeff Mathis as he tries to score on a double by New York Yankees' Hideki Matsui during the fifth inning of Game 1 of the American League Championship baseball series Friday, Oct. 16, 2009, in New York.(AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

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Final Score in New York: Angels 1, Yankees 4

A night of sloppy fielding from the normally sharp Angels gifted the Yankees enough runs to take Game 1 of the 2009 ALCS. The Angels had the tying run on deck in the 9th, so it is not like they got dominated, in fact, the Yankees were pretty flat all night and a precision defensive outing would have yielded a win.

But just like in the 2002 and 2005 postseason, the Yankees took game 1 of the series form the Angels. John Lackey pitched fantastic, Jason Bulger and Matt Palmer each did the job of holding things in place, but CC Sabathia scattered hits far enough apart from each other to avoid any trouble.

It didn't look like the Angels when Erick Aybar and Chone Figgins looked at each other on a first inning popup instead of looking at the ball. The national broadcast hardly named them as it was so intent on stroking the Yankees. A FOX broadcast truck in the Yankee Stadium parking lot had gallons of lube at the ready should the game have gone into extra innings, but it wasn't necessary, as the Angels threatened but did not score off of Mariano Rivera.

The Angels got a RBI single from Kendry Morales in the 4th inning to score Vladimir Guerrero who had led off the frame with a double that almost cleared the plexiglass centerfield wall. It was that kind of night for the Angels ... a lot of invisible almosts that are now just whisps blowing around the L in the scorebook.

Poll

Blame of the Game

Aybar

235 votes

Figgins

212 votes

447 votes | Poll has closed

Yankees Batters vs. Angels Pitchers

Rev Halofan — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 07:45:49 -0000

Here is a brief, almost random rundown on some matchups that the Angels are best left to closely examine before they face the Yankees on Friday night for game 1 of the ALCS. As my Yankee-loving friend Roy Grillo said the other day on Facebook: We guarantee that Alfonso Soriano doesn't take the field in this series.

Hideki Matsui versus:

Joe Saunders: 1 for 1, 1 HR

Jason Bulger: 1 for 2, 1 HR

Godzilla can bang Lefties and Righties.

Derek Jeter versus:

Ervin Santana: 10 for 23, 2 HR

Joe Saunders: 7 for 15, 1 HR

John Lackey: 15 for 44, 1 HR

~~Probably~~ Definitely more annoying to opposing pitchers than Figgins has been lately...

Alex Rodriguez versus:

Jered Weaver: 5 for 15, 4 HR

Joe Saunders: 7 for 14, 2 HR

Brian Fuentes: 1 for 2, 1 HR

Jason Bulger: 1 for 1, 1 HR

Probably want to avoid throwing fastballs down the middle or hanging a curveball on a tee.

Poll

Angels Starters for ALCS Games 1 and 2

Lackey and Weaver

172 votes

Lackey and Kazmir, Weaver pitches best at home

266 votes

Kazmir and Saunders, Lefties have an edge in Yankee Stadium

41 votes

Palmer and Quinlan. Dude, nobody will have scouted them, Shhhh.

59 votes

538 votes | Poll has closed

Jason Bulger Stiff Shoulder Scrambles Angels Bullpen Roster

Rev Halofan — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 04:31:52 -0000

More photos » by Chris Carlson - AP

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Jason Bulger was pulled early from Saturday's game when he complained of a Shoulder tightness to Angels pitching coach Mike Butcher. There is no word on whether or not he will be added to the postseason roster.

The Bullpen is easily the Angels biggest question mark headed into the postseason. Bulger was an integral part of the late inning relief corps.

Without Bulger, the Angels Bullpen Depth looks lke this:

Brian Fuentes: Closer

Kevin Jepsen: 8th / 9th

Darren Oliver: 7th / 8th / Lefty Situational

And then the ambiguities form: Ervin Santana will be called in if a starting pitcher falters, traditionally the role of Matt Palmer this season. Palmer may get a more important role and his 2 shutout innings on Saturday illustrate his effectiveness. Sean O'Sullivan could be a possibility and threw out of the pen the other day quite effectively.

A four man rotation and the six pitchers listed here leave room for other relievers, none of whom should get you too excited: Jose Arredondo, Trevor Bell, Rafael Rodriguez and Rich Thompson should only get the ball in the postseason with ten-run leads or 8-run deficits.

Poll

ALDS, 7th inning, Angels ahead by one run, Oliver just pitched the 6th, Bulger unavailable, Jepsen/Fuentes the obvious choice for the 8th/9th... who you gonna call?

Another inning from Cousin Oliver

144 votes

Magic Matt Palmer

175 votes

Black Magic Ervin Santana

392 votes

Ghostbusters

79 votes

790 votes | Poll has closed

Rangers Can't Move Thru Kazmir or Angels

Rev Halofan — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 03:06:10 -0000

More photos » by Mike Fuentes - AP

2 months ago: Los Angeles Angels' Vladimir Guerrero trots home after a home run against the Texas Rangers in a baseball game during the third inning in Arlington, Texas, on Friday, Sept. 18, 2009. (AP Photo/Mike Fuentes)

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Final Score in Arlington: Angels 2, Rangers

It took Scott Kazmir 3 weeks and 4 starts as an Angel to get his first win with a Halo. His first W lowered the Angels' Magic Number to 9 to win the American League West.

The 6 hits the Angels managed on Friday night were enough. One was a solo HR by Vladimir Guerrero to lead off the 3rd inning. The other was a bloop single by Torii Hunter in the 1st inning that scored Maicer Izturis. Guerrero was in the middle of that, having extended the 1st inning by striking out but reaching first base on a Wild Pitch.

Kazmir allowed 6 hits in 6 IP, striking out 5 Rangers. If there was one blemish, his pitch count of 104 was a little high. Jason Bulger pitched a hitless inning of relief, Kevin Jepsen got into some trouble, lowlighted by a rare Torii Hunter throwing error, but an Andruw Jones fly to the warning track with the bases loaded was pretty much the end of the Rangers' season. Brian Fuentes got his 43rd Save of the season, the 5th most single season in Franchise History.

If there was one bright spot for the Rangers, the phenomenal Neftali Feliz Pwnaged the Angels and should give Texas fans a glimmer of hope for their future after an impressive job of hanging on during a season where they could have easily folded in June, July or August. The almost full house in Arlington served as a reminder that Dallas is the 5th largest media market in the nation and with an owner who has not robbed the team's coffers in place in a few seasons, the Rangers could be more than a late season hold on the Los Angeles champagne of Anaheim.

Poll

Panther of the Game

Vlad Guerrero

41 votes

Scott Kazmir

337 votes

378 votes | Poll has closed

Angels Five Starters Superb Despite Disappearing Bats

Rev Halofan — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 17:00:17 -0000

More photos » by ED ZURGA - AP

3 months ago: Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher John Lackey throws in the first inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals Saturday, Sept. 5, 2009, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)

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Here is how awesome the pitching has been for the Angels...

Monday night’s game was the only time thru the order in the past 15 games that inherited runners left by an Angels starting pitcher scored. What follows is all of the scoring that has occurred with an Angels starting pitcher on the mound in each of their past three starts (15 games, 3 starts each).

John Lackey

D. Barton scored on J. Lackey's throwing error
B. Butler singled to second, W. Bloomquist scored

Joe Saunders

B. Pena singled to shallow center, D. DeJesus scored
M. Olivo homered to deep left
J. Nix homered to deep left

Ervin Santana

M. Sweeney singled to shallow left, F. Gutierrez scored
M. Jacobs singled to shallow right, D. DeJesus scored
A. Callaspo singled to shallow right, M. Maier scored
B. Butler homered to deep left, M. Maier scored
B. Butler singled to shallow right, J. Anderson scored
G. Beckham homered to deep left center
S. Podsednik hit an inside the park homerun to deep right
M. Kotsay safe at first on right fielder B. Abreu's fielding error, G. Beckham scored

Scott Kazmir

B. Hall doubled to deep center, M. Sweeney scored
B. Hall scored on M. Napoli's throwing error
F. Gutierrez homered to deep center
C. Quentin singled to shallow left, G. Beckham and P. Konerko scored

Jered Weaver

A Callaspo tripled to deep right center, M. Jacobs scored
K. Johjima homered to deep left center
J. Lopez homered to deep left
N. Swisher homered to deep right
M. Teixeira tripled to deep center, N. Swisher and J. Damon scored

THE TOTALS FOR THE STARTING STAFF SINCE AUGUST 30:

Runs Allowed on…
ERRORS: 2
SINGLES: 7
DOUBLES: 1
TRIPLES: 2
HOMERS: 9
SOLO HOMERS: 8

Of 19 hits that have batted in a run, only 3 have brought more than 1 run across the plate, a Billy Butler 2-Run HR in KC (by Santana), a Carlos Quentin 2-Run single in Anaheim on Saturday (by Kazmir) and the Mark Teixeira 2-Run triple last night (by Weaver).

The Angels are 10-5 in this stretch and most of that is entirely due to a singles-hitting offense that peaked in mid-August with many betters on quick regressions, especially Mike Napoli, Juan Rivera, Chone Figgins, Bobby Abreu and our hero Kendry Morales.

On the plus side, the last time the bullpen allowed an inherited runner to score before last night was August 25, when Jason Bulger allowed a sac fly to score a runner on 3rd in the 7th inning of a home game against Detroit.

WEDNESDAY HALOLINKS: Erick Aybar Delivers

WiHaloFan — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 15:49:30 -0000

by Chris Carlson - AP

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Up next for Angels: Wednesday vs. Seattle -- latimes.com
Ian Snell vs. Jered Weaver

Aybar has clutch hit to save Fuentes - OCRegister.com
Manager Mike Scioscia decided to stick to the bullpen's roles and summoned left-handed closer Brian Fuentes. Mike Sweeney hit a tying home run to center and Scioscia yanked Fuentes in favor of Jason Bulger as boos rained down from a segment of the 37,725 fans. That was a far cry from the way the previous Angels lefty was treated.

Aybar's RBI single leads Angels past Mariners - USATODAY.com
More than 90 feet after the game ended, Erick Aybar was still sprinting around second base with his arms flapping. Running away from some celebrating teammates and toward another pack, he looked like a striker who had just scored a World Cup-winning goal. His Los Angeles Angels have been putting soccer-style numbers on the scoreboard all too often lately, yet they're still finding ways to stay on top of the AL West.

Mariners-Angels Preview - FOX Sports on MSN
The AL West-leading Angels try to improve to 6-0 all-time at home with Weaver on the mound against the Mariners when the division rivals continue a three-game set Wednesday night.

Team Reports - CBSSports.com
Going into Tuesday's game, the Angels led the majors with a .301 batting average with runners in scoring position -- that was a full 16 points higher than anyone else in baseball and 38 points higher than the major league average. But that statistic has been on a steady decline recently with the team struggling in the clutch. The Angels were hitless in 10 at-bats with runners in scoring position Tuesday before Erick Aybar's game-winning RBI single in the 10th inning.

Team Reports II - CBSSports.com
RHP Kevin Jepsen might have emerged as the answer to the Angels' setup problems. After a scoreless eighth inning Tuesday, Jepsen had a 1.50 ERA (five earned runs in 30 innings) with 12 holds in 12 chances since July 1.

It's All-Opinions Day - Angels Unplugged - Los Angeles Times
The situation with shaky Brian Fuentes isn't that he has been overworked. It might be that he hasn't had enough work lately . . . Either way, this is definitely now a major problem for Scioscia . . .

Alot of good stuff at angelsbaseball.com today...

Baseball Video Highlights & Clips - 09.08.09: Angels take 10 to fly past the Mariners - angelsbaseball.com
Daily Recap: Mike Sweeney homered to lead-off the ninth to tie the game at 2 before Erick Aybar won it in the tenth for the Angels

Baseball Video Highlights & Clips - SEA@LAA: Halos walk off in the 10th on Aybar's single - angelsbaseball.com
Erick Aybar chops a single up the middle and Bobby Abreu scores to give the Angels the extra-inning walk-off win over the Mariners

The All-Time 9 - angelsbaseball.com: Fan Forum
The All-Time 9 What's your dream lineup of Angels? It's time for you to decide. Vote for the best single-season hitting performances by position in Angels history.

Figgins dressed to the nines - angelsbaseball.com: News
The numbers have aligned themselves nicely for Figgins all season long, giving him his first All-Star Game nod. Free of injuries for the first time since 2006, he has busted out with a career year, improving across the board in almost every category offensively while putting himself in contention for a Rawlings Gold Glove with his spectacular play at third base.

Weaver among Angels' MVPs - angelsbaseball.com: News
The Angels have had more than their share of Most Valuable Player candidates bubble to the surface this season, from Torii Hunter to Chone Figgins to Bobby Abreu to Kendry Morales. Jered Weaver probably won't appear on any official American League MVP ballots, but a case can be made that he's been as valuable as any of his teammates.

It's time to jump on the Rangers' bandwagon - FOX Sports on MSN
If you're a fan of meaningful September baseball, if you're a fan of teams returning to the playoffs after a decade drought, if you're a fan of pretty much anyone other than the Angels and Red Sox, then I predict you will be a fan of the Texas Rangers. For the next few weeks, at least.

Insider Subscribers Postseason Tickets - angelsbaseball.com: Tickets
angelsbaseball.com Insider Subscribers are given priority, subject to availability, to order Postseason tickets, after Season Seat Holders and after Mini-Plan buyers but before the general public, for select 2009 Postseason Angels games played at Angel Stadium of Anaheim.

If you're planning on going to any of this season's play-off games, you might want to check that out.

September 9 - BR Bullpen
Events, births and deaths that occurred on September 9.
1965 - The Angels waive Lou Clinton and both the Indians and the Athletics claim him. Since the rule on waivers is that the team lowest in the standings gets first dibs, Clinton joins the Athletics. He arrives in mid-game and appears as a pinch-hitter, striking out, as California beats the A's, 7 - 2. He and the Athletics then learned after the game that Clinton has been awarded to the Indians because the Athletics' claim was filed after the 24-hour claiming period had expired. Charlie Finley knew this before Clinton reported to the Athletics, but manager Haywood Sullivan, fed up with Finley's second-guessing, didn't answer the telephone during the game, and therefore didn't find out.
1970 - California's Alex Johnson becomes the 3rd player in history to put one into the CF bleachers at Comiskey Park when he connects in the 6th against Chicago's Billy Wynne in a 2 - 1 loss in eight innings.
1989 - California's Devon White steals four bases including 2B, 3B, and home in the same inning in the Angels 8 - 5 win over Boston. The Angels score three in the 8th to break a tie.

Poll

Brian Fuentes...

... should not be the closer.

117 votes

...just had a bad day.

178 votes

295 votes | Poll has closed

Erick Aybar Walk Off Single Beats M's in Extras

Rev Halofan — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 05:24:40 -0000

More photos » by Chris Carlson - AP

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Final Score in Anaheim: Los Angeles Angels 3, Seattle Mariners 2

After closer Brian Fuentes choked up a beautiful pitching performance by Scott Kazmir, the Angels bats finally awoke in the bottom of the 10th. Matt Palmer was the pitcher of record and got his 10th win of the season. The Angels were almost 0 for 10 with Runners in scoring position when Erick Aybar singled home Bobby Abreu, who had led off the 10th inning with his 10th extra inning hit in the past 10 somethings. It was Aybar's 52nd RBI of the season, 2 more than Mike Napoli has all year.

Kaz was denied his first Angels victory after pitching brilliantly, allowing only 1 run, a solo homer to the 2nd batter of the game. After 7 innings of 3-hit ball, Kevin Jepsen had a quick 8th inning, but the Fuentesaurus looked absolutely lost, yielding a monster blast to Center Field to Mike Sweeney and then walking two of the next three batters. Scioscia came and got him and Jason Bulger put out the fire, and as sweet as it was for Palmer, Kaz showed off something special to Angels fans.

Bibby Abreu scored the wining run and was at the plate to drive in the other 2, one on a bases-loaded sacrifice fly and the other on an error by Seattle Shortstop Jack Wilson.

But don't get the impression that there was a lot of Wood in this game. It was yet another night of dominated Angels bats, understandable of late with 3 of the past 6 games has been 2 servings of Queen Felix and 1 of Zach Greinke, but at some point, Maicer Izturis and Vlad Guerrero really should take a pitch with men on base. Chone Figgins made a routing error and could really, really use a day off, although he walked twice on a hitless night. The Rangers swept a doubleheader in Cleveland and trail the Angels by 4.5 games.

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Total Users: 113
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Poll

Panther of the Game

Scott Kazmir

268 votes

Bobby Abreu

11 votes

Erick Aybar

89 votes

368 votes | Poll has closed

Erick Aybar Triples twice; Angels win again

scottnak — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 21:15:05 -0000

More photos » by Charlie Riedel - AP

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Final Score: Angels 7, Kansas City 2

The Angels finally found a way to get some runs going when their starting pitcher, Joe Saunders, throws another great game. Saunders got into a bit of trouble in the 6th, but Jason Bulger comes in and takes care of a bases loaded jam (OK, he might've contributed to that due to an error, but the point is it got taken care of). And of course, converting 4 double plays is also nice too.

On top of that, offensively, Erick Aybar was able to TRIPLE not once, but twice in the game!

With this win, the Angels have taken all 9 games so far against the Royals this season. As well as cushioning the AL West lead to 5.5!

Tomorrow's game is also an 11:10 AM start time!

Poll

POTG?

Aybar (3/5, 2 Triples)

205 votes

Saunders (5.1, 2 ER)

27 votes

Abreu (3 RBI)

48 votes

Bulger (gets outta the jam)

15 votes

295 votes | Poll has closed

Minor League Report: Sean Rodriguez. Mashing. Waiting.

rghan — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 18:51:08 -0000

More photos » by Paul Battaglia - AP

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AAA Salt Lake Bees, 62 and 66

Sean Rodriguez, 2B, SS, OF - (32 AB's) .375/.512/.813 with 3 Dbls, 3 HRs, 8 RBIs, and 2 SBs

The stat line above really boils down to three unbelievable games, where S-Rod went a combined 10 for 11 (.909) and accumulated every double, HR, RBI and SB of the period. His other 7 games were notable only for the 7 walks he accrued. He remains a talented but very streaky player, difficult for both scouts and sabermetricians to value.

Freddy Sandoval, 3B - (29 AB's) .448/.543/.621 with 2 Dbls, 1 HRs, 6 BBs, and 1 SB

Sandoval raked in his AAA return, despite managing only a paltry .263/.417/.316 in his ASL rehab stint. He continues to put up great numbers - he's compiled a 129 and 136 OPS+ over the past two years while batting third on offensively-talented Bees clubs - but is still awaiting a legitimate big league opportunity.

Rich Thompson, rhrp - (5 appearances) 1 W, 8 IP, 3 hits, 0 ER, 9 K/3 BB

It's just a matter of time before Thompson and his blogging wife, Ashley, are back in So Cal. I know the man's put up an unpromising 8.17 ERA in 25 big league innings so far, but his fastball/curve combo is reportedly as legit as Jason Bulger's stuff, so hopefully the 25-year-old Thompson gets another chance to stick.

Tommy Mendoza, rhsp - (2 starts) 10 IP, 12 hits, 4.50 ERA, 6 K/2 BB

The shellacking Mendoza received in his August 18 Pacific Coast League debut - which took place on his 22^nd birthday - was not as bad as the boxscore reads: he coasted through four innings, yielding just a walk and a knock before getting hammered for 5 hits, including an HR, without recording an out in the fifth. Maybe we can chalk it up to the New Orleans heat and humidity? At any rate, Mendoza put together a season in AA broadly similar to Trevor Bell's, who provides a good comp in terms of stuff and ceiling.

AA Arkansas 24 and 30 (second half)

Here's one blogger's frustrated summation of the Travs' season.

Marco Albano, rhsp - (3 starts) 1 W, 19 IP, 10 hits, 1.89 ERA, 19 K/8 BB

A L B A N O. Remember this name, because the buzz around him may start soon. He was an all-but-forgotten 33^rd round pick out of Boston College in 2005, who at best looked like a marginal utility player, but then the guy spent the past two years reinventing himself as a pitcher. His '08 High A stats were unimpressive - he had some control issues in addition to being hittable, a nasty combination - but this year he pitched well enough out of the Travs' pen to earn a rotation slot. He's been nails ever since his conversion to starting, throwing 4 quality starts in 7 tries, despite tight pitch counts, while sporting a 3.22 ERA with 35 strikeouts in 36 innings. He's only 5'11", so his future may still be in the pen, but he's a guy to watch. I'm still waiting for a decent scouting report on him.

Mark Trumbo, 1B - (50 AB's) .352/.375/.481 with 4 Dbls and 1 HR

Is Trumbo's .318/.351/.497 second half, which includes 6 homeruns, impressive enough to make the 23-year-old a top Halos prospect? You be the judge.

Alex Torres, lhsp - (3 starts) 1 W, 1 L, 14.1 IP, 16 hits, 3.77 ERA, 14 K/10 BB

Torres has found the going tougher in the Texas League. He continues to battle his command - his 14 walks in 20 AA innings is a huge red flag - and his GO/AO ratio has declined from an effective 2.66 in High A to a less dominant 1.50 in AA. As a result, his BA against has risen all the way to .280. His past two starts have been strong, however, so he appears to be making the necessary adjustments.

High A Rancho Cucamonga, 26 and 30 (second half)

Mike Kohn, rhrp - (4 appearances) 1 W, 6 IP, 3 hits, 0 ER, 10 K/4 BB

Pitcher A Pitcher B

IP 86.2 84.2

ERA 3.12 1.81

Hits/9 7.37 4.57

Walks/9 5.19 3.72

K/9 12.36 14.88

Pitcher A is Troy Percival in his age 21-23 minor league seasons, and Pitcher B is Mike Kohn in his age 22-23 minor league seasons. While Percival was getting most of his outs in the upper minors and Kohn has only made it to High A, I think the comparison is indicative of Kohn's potential, to say the least.

PJ Phillips, CF, SS - (38 AB's) .342/.419/.477 with 1 Dbl, 1 HR, and 3 SB's

Just when you're ready to give up on the guy, he goes out and earns another look. Brandon Phillips' little brother and the Halos' second round ‘05 draft pick has hit .291/.333/.457 since the allstar break, quite possibly salvaging his career. His strikezone judgment remains abysmal - his second half 40 K's to 12 BB's representing an improvement over his first half numbers - but the power/speed tools are still there, tantalizing enough for the Halos to try Phillips in the outfield.

Abel Nieves, 2B - (38 AB's) .368/.478/.605 with 1 Dbl, 1 Trpl, and 2 HRs

Our 2005 50^th round draft pick continues to mash in his third stint at High A. He's a minor league vet at this point, though he did hold his own reasonably well at AAA in a brief look early in the season.

A Cedar Rapids, 24 and 18 (second half)

Roberto Lopez - (62 AB's) .371/.391/.597 with 5 Dbls, 3 HR and 14 RBI's

Lopez hit .341 in August, looking more and more like the guy who raked .400 last year in the Pioneer League. He battled through injuries and defensive experiments this spring, so his .798 OPS in a half season worth of A ball doesn't wholly reflect what he's capable of, but at nearly 24 he's got to keep hitting.

Andrew Taylor, lhsp - (4 appearances) 3 Svs, 5 IP, 1 hits, 0 ERs, 10 K/2 BB

Taylor has a 24 inning scoreless streak that goes all the way back to June 21^st. He's fanned the side in his last two appearances, while his last outing without recording a k was way back on July 5^th. His track record before this year isn't amazing: he's been relieving with only intermittent success in the minors and at North Carolina State since 2006, but his 14.8 K/9 for the Kernels just screams out for the lefty to get a look at the higher levels.

Tyler Chatwood, rhsp - (3 starts) 3 W's, 17.2 IP, 8 hits, 1.53 ERA, 18 K/7 BB

The opposition mashed Chatwood at a .338 clip in June and a .314 clip in July as his groundball percentages fell to 43% and 41% respectively. He's recovered in August, inducing groundballs on 60% of the balls in play while getting his K-rate back up to a batter an inning. He's still just 19 and he's making adjustments, so I'd say he's progressing reasonably well.

Darwin Perez, ss - .370/.431/.522 with 4 Dbls, 1 HR, and 3 SB's

The 20-year-old Perez endured an abysmal first half, hitting just .196/.307/.239 and very nearly losing his starting job. Since the allstar break, he's rebounded with a solid .297/.377/.392 line, basically replicating what he did last year in the Pioneer League. His main problem appears to be hitting right-handed pitching, which is a tough blemish to have if you make your living as a switch-hitter. He's still young enough to improve, but is just as likely to see the wheels come off entirely against tougher High A righties.

Torii Hunter Returns Triumphant; Angels Down O's in Extras

Rev Halofan — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 22:05:33 -0000

More photos » by Rob Carr - AP

T O R i i

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Final Score in 13 Innings in Baltimore: Angels 17, Orioles 8

After a month+ on the disabled list Angels All Star Centerfielder Torii Hunter returned to the lineup and had a clutch base hit in the top of the 13th inning to open the scoring floodgates for the Angels on Sunday afternoon after their starting pitching and reliable relievers had allowed the Orioles back into the game on three separate occasions.

(Try to write a better run on sentence than that without cutting and pasting a Steve Physioc mid-at-bat anecdote of a game other than the one he is being paid to describe)

Angels starter Sean O'Sullivan blew a 4-run lead and had to be relieved by Matt Palmer with nobody out and 2 runs across in the 6th inning. Darren Oliver pitched 1.1 scoreless to take the Angels and a two run lead into the 8th.

Palmer was in line for his 10th win of the season but Kevin Jepsen let one run come in during the 8th and Brian Fuentes let another one in during the 9th inning for his 5th Blown Save of the season. One of the outs Fuentes recorded was an Adam Jones bomb to the warning track caught by Juan Rivera to score the tying run as a sac fly, but, well, it was scary.

In extra innings, though, the Halo arms got serious. Jose Arredondo pitched 2 scoreless frames of 2 hit, 2K ball and Jason Bulger tossed the 12th and 13th for the Win.

Chone Figgins went 4 for 7 with 3 runs scored and 3 RBI. Erick Aybar scored 2 and had 3 RBIs as well in a 3 for 6 afternoon effort. The Angels loaded the bases at will in extra innings only to see each effort end in a disheartening double play, but finally they broke thru.

In addition to being responsible for creating 6 runs in the game, Figgy had the 1,000th hit of his career in the game. He is only the 7th Angel with at least that many hits. Vladimir Guerrero has 987 so, expect another party by the end of the week. Guerrero had Sunday off.

The other six Angels with more than 1,000 hits under the Halo are: Garret Anderson (2368), Tim Salmon (1674), Brian Downing (1588), Darin Erstad (1505), Jim Fregosi (1408) and Bobby Grich (1102).

Poll

Panther of the Game

Arredondo

76 votes

Aybar

15 votes

Bulger

74 votes

Figgins

137 votes

Hunter

100 votes

402 votes | Poll has closed