So I was looking at the probable starters for the next five games while the Angels are playing the Yankees and Blue Jays at home. I see that they're throwing Moseley against Hughes, Escobar against Mussina, and Lackey against Pettitte. Some very good matchups. Then I see Santana against Litsch, another good matchup for us. I then see the fifth game, Jered Weaver against Roy Halladay. So, it got me thinking and looking into the books.

Of his 21 starts this season, they've broken down like this when going against the opposition: Chad Gaudin, Mike Maroth, Jon Garland, Gil Meche, Paul Byrd, Kevin Millwood, Mark Hendrickson, Tyler Clippard, Felix Hernandez [x2], Boof Bonser [x2], Todd Wellemeyer, Jason Schmidt, Jorge de la Rosa, Jamey Wright, Brandon McCarthy, Nate Robertson, and Curt Schilling [x2].

In the five games where he's faced true ace's (Felix, Curt, Meche), Weaver has gone 0-2 with a 7.33 ERA and 1.92 WHIP while he's struckout 22 batters in 27 innings pitched. Ironically, he's also allowed 22 earned runs in those 27 innings pitched. Problem is, he's never gone more than six innings in any of those five starts. So it looks like that we'll either see the solid Weaver against a staff ace [6.0 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 9 K, 0 HR] or the horrible Weaver against a staff ace [6.0 IP, 12 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, 0 HR].

On a side note, Weaver is 1-0 with a 4.76 ERA and 1.59 WHIP in his career against the Blue Jays with eight strikeouts in 5.2 innings pitched. Add that into his 9-3 with a 3.00 ERA and 1.21 WHIP at Angel Stadium, and it looks like that maybe Weaver can outlast Halladay. Hopefully, for our sakes, Napoli [.225/.288/.364] is back in time to catch for Weaver because he's shit with Mathis [.311/.343/.466] back there. Generally August has been the worst month in Weaver's career, sporting a 3-3 record while posting a 4.58 ERA and 1.32 WHIP over his career.

Should be interesting, one way or another.

If you guys don't mind reading a lengthy post that I made on sports forum about why Derek Jeter is not a Hall of Fame caliber player, then go on over there to read all about it. I detail all of the Hall of Fame voting criteria and make what I think is a pretty solid case against Jeter belonging in the Hall of Fame.

So, just let me know what you guys think of it and let me know if I'm being an idiot. Thanks!

Well, the date is now August 17th. Our record is 70-49 (.588). We lead the American League West by 3½ games over the Seattle Mariners. I decided to go back and look at where the Angels teams in the last decade stood at this point in the season, after the games were played on August 16th and going into August 17th. So, here goes . . .

2006: 62-59 (.512), 2nd in AL West, 6.5 GB
2005: 69-50 (.580), 1st in AL West, 2.0 GA
2004: 65-53 (.551), 3rd in AL West, 1.0 GB
2003: 59-64 (.480), 3rd in AL West, 15.0 GB
2002: 73-48 (.603), 2nd in AL West, 0.5 GB
2001: 64-57 (.529), 3rd in AL West, 23.0 GB
2000: 62-58 (.517), 3rd in AL West, 6.5 GB
1999: 48-69 (.410), 4th in AL West, 21.0 GB
1998: 66-57 (.537), 1st in AL West, 0.5 GA
1997: 68-54 (.557), 2nd in AL West, 0.5 GB
1996: 56-65 (.463), 4th in AL West, 13.5 GB
1995: 64-39 (.621), 1st in AL West, 10.5 GA
1994: 51-63 (.447), 4th in AL West, 5.5 GB
1993: 54-63 (.462), 5th in AL West, 10.0 GB
1992: 53-66 (.445), 6th in AL West, 19.5 GB
1991: 56-59 (.487), 7th in AL West, 12.0 GB
1990: 58-60 (.492), 5th in AL West, 17.0 GB

The 1994 season was strike shortened and the season ended on August 11th of that year.

From 1990 to 1993, the AL West was comprised of seven teams -- Angels, Athletics, Twins, Mariners, Rangers, Royals, and White Sox.

This is the third best record that the Angels have had on this date since 1990, in terms of winning percentage. It's the second best record that they have had on this date since 1990, in terms of wins. It's the second largest lead that the Angels have had at this point in the season since 1990, outside of their demolishing of the American League West in 1995. This is the fourth time that they've been leading the AL West at this point in the season, so that's not too bad when you really think about it. Our worst record at this juncture took place in 1998, when we were 48-69 (.410) at this point in the season. Our most games back at this time of the season occured back in 2001, where we were 23.0 games back of the untouchable and unbeatable Seattle Mariners. We're definitely ahead of last year's pace, that's for sure. And we're one game ahead of our 2005 pace. So, even with the offense sputtering at times this season, let's be thankful that we're this good at this juncture of the season.

Well, if you didn't, here are some pictures that I took off of the television.

Picture #1: Click Here
Picture #2: Click Here
Picture #3: Click Here
Picture #4: Click Here
Picture #5: Click Here
Picture #6: Click Here
Picture #7: Click Here

What the hell kind of person leaves their house with hair like that? That's all I want to know.

Chris Pettit was the 582nd player taken in the 2006 MLB Entry Draft. He was selected in the 19th round. In 2003, as a freshman at Loyola Marymount, he had a great year. He hit .328/.403/.476 with 2 HR, 29 RBI, 36 R, 18 2B, 2 3B, and 17 SB in 19 attempts. In 2004, he regressed by hitting .272/.380/.384 with 2 HR, 21 RBI, 29 R, 7 2B, 2 3B, and 4 SB in just 6 attempts. In 2005, he really broke out with a great season. He batted .329/.419/.553 with 9 HR, 44 RBI, 62 R, 20 2B, 1 3B, and 21 SB in 28 attempts. In his senior season, 2006, he batted .281/.360/.456 with 5 HR, 38 RBI, 44 R, 19 2B, 2 3B, and 15 SB in 17 attempts. In his entire college career, he grounded into only eleven (11) double plays. Shows how quick he truly is.

On August 9th of this year, he was named Angels Organizational Player of the Month for July after hitting .383 with 8 HR, 37 RBI, 30 R, and 9 SB during the month. It marked the second time he was named the Angels Organizational Player of the Month. The first time occurred in May, where he batted .374 with 2 HR, 13 RBI, 20 R, and 14 2B in 27 games.

Last year for Orem in the Rookie League, he got off to a hot start. He finished the season by batting .338/.446/.569 with 7 HR, 54 RBI, 41 R, 25 2B, 3 3B, and 5 SB in just 67 games (225 ABs). He also walked 31 times while striking out just 47 times. Amazing discipline for a first year player in the minors. He was also hit by a pitch 14 times in Orem and grounded into just five (5) double plays while there.

He started off 2007 in Cedar Rapids. He batted .346/.429/.579 with 9 HR, 41 RBI, 47 R, 24 2B, 1 3B, and 17 SB while walking 23 times compared to 41 strikeouts. He was also hit by a pitch 12 times in Cedar Rapids and grounded into just four (4) double plays. He did that in just 64 games (228 ABs). He got called up to Rancho Cucamonga towards the end of June. In his time in Rancho Cucamonga, he has batted .355/.437/.585 with 9 HR, 48 RBI, 44 R, 17 2B, 1 3B, and 12 SB while walking 27 times compared to just 32 strikeouts. He's done so in just 50 games (200 ABs). Thankfully, at least for him, he's only been hit by a pitch three (3) times so far at Rancho Cucamonga since his call-up there. He's also grounded into three (3) double plays there.

He may stand 6'0" and weigh 193 pounds. He may be from nearby Pasadena. He may be a right-handed speed demon who has considerable power, thus comparing him to a more powerful Reggie Willits by the time he makes into the majors. He may be 22 years old, but tomorrow he will be 23 years old. For his birthday is August 15th and I was just thinking that it would be nice to acknowledge his birthday since he may be our best player in the minors this season. It's even more of a surprise when you see that he has actually gotten better with each promotion that he has received in the minors. He's currently playing center field at Rancho Cucamonga, by the way. With last night's 0-4, he dropped his average down to .350 while also grounding into a double play. His fourth while at Rancho Cucamonga. However, he did have an outfield assist.

So, I'm here to give an early Happy Birthday salute to Chris Pettit. You, my friend, have earned it.

It seems like certain A's players don't want him. Would you like him on the Angels? I wouldn't mind him, but I wouldn't like him. I just wonder what would happen when we have to put in Anderson or Guerrero as the designated hitter during some games. You can't have two designated hitters, that I know of. And what happens to Juan Rivera for that matter? Do we just trade him plus other players for a huge bat in the offseason to go with Guerrero and Bonds? Too many things would be screwed up, I think. We could trade Izturis, Santana, and Rivera to a team that needs young players that will help their team build for now and the future while getting back a player of a good talent level, someone like Miguel Cabrera perhaps. That's just one thought. Who knows, though.

UPDATE: Matt Harvey threw two complete game wins in the Connie Mack World Series that took place in New Mexico. His fastball, supposedly, was clocked around 95 miles per hour. Can we just sign this kid already? Please!

What, you ask, does this have to do with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim? It means that the player the Angels took in the third round, Matt Harvey, will be getting a deal worth about three to four million dollars less. Matthew Harvey had talent comparable to Rick Porcello. Some scouts even went as far as to say that Harvey had better talent than Porcello. He was a projected top ten pick, with every scouting service having him go in the first round. So, Porcello signed the biggest guaranteed deal for a high school player. That means that the Angels are going to have to shell out some money to get Matthew Harvey. Do I wish that they would do that? Yes I do. Do I think that they will do that? Probably not. He was touted as the steal of the draft for the Angels. I can only hope that Eddie Bane and the Angels management get him signed before the August 15th deadline.

Anyone think we get him signed before the 15th? There's only about 47 hours left to get all the picks signed. I hate this new deadline.

I'm currently debating a guy on Football's Future about who the American League MVP would be. He only listed Magglio Ordonez and Alex Rodriguez in the poll, showing he is an idiot. He then stats that it's Magglio Ordonez's award to win. We've been arguing for two pages, so far. The guy (on Page 1) will use some retarded variables to say that Ordonez is the guy because he simply just believes he is. He thinks that batting average and Runs Created Per Game (which is a great stat) is the be-all and end-all of all debates when talking about who is the Most Valuable Player. He continues (on Page 2) by saying that Gary Sheffield doesn't make a difference on the Tigers despite being tied for fifth in the American League in Runs Created Per Game. I have continued to smash him in the debate by posting things that are totally hard to refute. I even added in Ichiro Suzuki into the debate, because he deserves to be in there.

So, I was wondering who you guys would vote for if the MVP voting were to take place today. I think it'd be hard to go against Alex Rodriguez personally. I hate the Yankees but I think he's the only reason that they even stayed as close as they were to the Red Sox. He was their only offense early on. I have Vladimir Guerrero in second because his stats are a little lacking but his true value to the team is unmatched in the American League. I have Ichiro Suzuki third because of how much of an impact he has on that team and then you add in his stats. I have Magglio Ordonez fourth behind the other three, but slightly behind Ichiro. So, who gets your vote?

So I was looking at Baseball Reference's Team Inning Summary for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and was noticing some pretty interesting things. The Angels have 28 comeback wins but have 22 blown leads. Their largest comeback is five runs while their largest blown lead is four runs. They have seven walk-off wins and just two walk-off losses. The Angels are 52-3 when leading going into the 7th inning. They are 62-0 when going into the 9th inning with the lead which is the best in baseball.

Looks like the Angels are doing just fine and they're ahead of the Seattle Mariners in some those same categories. The Mariners have 35 comeback wins but have 22 blown leads. Their largest comeback is five runs while their largest blown lead is five runs, as well. They have only three walk-off wins but just one walk-off loss. They're 51-2 when leading going into the 7th inning. They're 56-0 when going into the 9th inning with the lead.

I frequently visit another forum. It's mainly a football site but there are other sections for baseball, basketball, and other sports (NASCAR, Soccer, etc.). The Yankees fans at this site are generally okay to deal with, except for one. This guy actually believes that Derek Jeter is better than Orlando Cabrera or any other shortstop in the American League because he [Jeter] gets it done in the "pressure cooker" that is the Bronx. Without mentioning how full of shit he truly is, I took it upon myself to own him in an argument while using Orlando Cabrera and a few other shortstops from the American League.

WARNING: Major idiocy about to be ingested. Please prepare the Tums.

http://www.footballsfuture.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=153574

Note: Incase anyone couldn't tell, I am Big7BenMVP. It's two pages long with the main portion on the 2nd page. This is why Yankees fans shouldn't be allowed to speak.

July 22nd (at Sacramento): 7.0 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 6 K's, 1 HBP, 90 pitches (50 strikes)
July 27th (vs. Omaha): 6.1 IP, 11 H, 6 ER, 2 BB, 4 K's, 1 HBP, 112 pitches (69 strikes)
August 1st (at Albuquerque): 6.0 IP, 13 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 7 K's, 1 HBP, 101 pitches (72 strikes)
August 6th (at Round Rock): 7.0 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 10 K's, 1 WP, 106 pitches (69 strikes)

He's 1-1 with a 5.13 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, and .305 BAA in 26.1 IP while striking out 27 batters, walking 7 batters, hitting 3 batters, and having 1 wild pitch. In the four starts, Santana has thrown 409 pitches with 63.5% (260) going for strikes. He's given up 32 hits over those 26.1 IP, as well as three home runs. It's actually weird to realize that batters are hitting better against him in the minors (.305) than they were in the majors (.303) this season. He's had two solid starts and two horrible starts. I guess it remains to be seen if he can be consistent enough to be a competent starter in the league from here on out.

His next start should be August 12th or 13th against Portland, at home.

On October 30th of 2003, the Boston Red Sox put Manny Ramirez on irrevocable waivers because he said he no longer wanted to be there. He had five years and $104 million remaining on a $160 million, eight-year contract, and was scheduled to make $20.5 million in 2004. If a team had claimed Manny Ramirez by the 2 p.m. deadline on October 31st of 2003, Manny Ramirez would have been property of that team for the sole price of $104 million dollars over the course of five years. If he was indeed claimed off of irrevocable waivers, the Red Sox could not pull him back nor could they negotiate a trade with the team that claimed him. As we all know, no team claimed him over that period of time. He was coming off of a great 2003 campaign.

Manny Ramirez (2003): .325/.427/.587, 37 HR, 104 RBI, 117 R, 97 BB, 94 K, 9.24 RC27, 160 OPS+, 67.9 VORP

My question to you guys is: If you were the Angels general manager at the time, would you have put in the waiver claim and picked him up for your team? You have to base this on what you knew then, not what you know now. You don't know how he would have done for you, is what I'm getting at. We don't know if we would have still signed Vladimir Guerrero. If you could do things over again, would you have claimed Ramirez off of the waiver wire?

I think this should be any interesting thing to talk about. We were one of the teams mentioned while this was going on.

Eric Byrnes is going to get a nice contract in free agency at the end of the year. Few players play with his passion, heart, and hustle while still putting up great production.

Eric Byrnes [2007]: .310/.373/.503, 16 HR, 61 RBI, 67 R, 21 2B, 7 3B, 27 SB, 122 OPS+, 35.7 VORP

His MLV (Marginal Lineup Value) is higher than Derek Jeter and Jose Reyes. His VORP (Value Over Replacement Player) is higher than Ryan Howard and Manny Ramirez. His PMLV (Positional Marginal Lineup Value) is higher than Alfonso Soriano and Mark Teixeira. He plays the same position as Alfonso Soriano yet has outproduced him this season in nearly every category --minus HR (by one), R, and SLG-- including in the sabermetrics.

I'm just wondering here (and maybe I do too much of it), but he does fit the Angels system nicely. He's a hustle player. He steals bases, he hits for solid power, solid average, gets on-base at a reasonable rate, and plays solid defense. He just seems like one of those players who gets the most out of their talent (i.e. Figgins, Willits). Would anyone be opposed to signing him in free agency this season? He's 31 years old. He'll be 32 by next season. He's making $4.575-million this season which will probably jump him up to around $8-million during free agency this season. We signed Gary Matthews for five-years, $50-million. He's making $6-million this season in salary. I'm saying that so people understand where I'm coming from with inflation and performance. We wouldn't have to give Byrnes more than a two-year deal. He'd be able to play LF next season should Anderson get injured next season at all. I know we have Willits, but Byrnes would be better than Willits next season for us for all intensive purposes. His [Byrnes] versatility in the outfield makes him very valuable to us on days where Vlad, Matthews, and Anderson need days off. He hits great off of lefties, righties, at home, on the road, at night, and during the day. His only downfall might be that he is notoriously dead in the second half of the season. He's a .290/.352/.499 hitter in the first half of the season before dropping to a .240/.300/.400 hitter in the second half of the season.

Would anyone be opposed to signing him, other than the fact that he is a former Athletic? I guess that's my question.

Maybe we should have really tried to pick him up after he was deactivated by the Houston Astros. I even wrote a blog about how we should have gone after him. Well, we didn't. The San Diego Padres ended up getting him and in his first game as a starter for the Padres, he went 3-4 with 2 HR and 4 RBI while also scoring 2 runs. I'm not saying that we were dumb to not try to get him, but at the same time he could have been our designated hitter at the very worst. Maybe I'm just venting, but I wouldn't have minded him. He would have supplied a decent amount of power at a relatively cheap price. It's a win-win situation. If he didn't pan out for us, it wouldn't have really hurt us.

The Minnesota Twins didn't add any players but did subtract their starting second baseman at the trade deadline. And after watching his front office's inactivity, ace Johan Santana reportedly didn't hide his disappointment. Santana can be a free agent after the 2008 season.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2956943

If the Angels could sign Alex Rodriguez in the 2007 offseason and then Johan Santana in the 2008 offseason, that'd be nice.

Although, it's probably just a pipe dream.

I was just watching the 2 A.M. SportsCenter and heard him say that the Angels were one of the two trade deadline losers. The other was the Cleveland Indians. The reason that the Angels were one of the two trade deadline losers? Well, it wasn't because they failed to pickup a power bat, which would be the most logical reason.

But, rather, it was because the Angels failed to pickup a starting pitcher. Yes, a starting pitcher. He said that because Colon is injured and Santana was horrible this season which led to him getting sent down to the minors, the Angels needed another starting pitcher.

I guess having John Lackey (13-6; 3.07), Kelvim Escobar (11-5; 2.87), Jered Weaver (7-5; 3.68), and Joe Saunders (4-0; 3.16) is not good enough. We have to go out and get that fifth starter who won't get a chance to go in the postseason. I mean, Brandon Wood for Jon Garland would sure be a steal.

And, this is why 46-year old ex-Phillies should not be analysts on SportsCenter.

What are some trades that you would love to happen involving the Angels but you know that they never would?

Brandon Wood, Nick Adenhart, Joe Saunders, Jeff Mathis, & Orlando Cabrera to Florida for Hanley Ramirez & Miguel Cabrera: The Angels would get their SS and 3B of the future while having to give up some of the best prospects in the game today. And, the Marlins get what they love which are prospects to develop. They'd get a future SS/3B prospect in Brandon Wood, a future ace in Adenhart, a future C in Mathis, a future number two in Saunders and a shortstop like Cabrera who still has some solid years ahead of him.

Kendry Morales & Reggie Willits to Kansas City for Billy Butler & Joakim Soria: The Angels would get their LF of the future in Butler who could hit for average and for power while playing solid defense. The Angels would get another bullpen guy who could shorten the game for the Angels in Soria, who is also only 23 years old and a relative unknown among baseball inner circles. The Royals would get a future switch-hitting 1B that can do a lot of things in Morales while also getting a solid outfielder in Willits who gets on base and makes things happen while also playing terrific defense.

Like I said, I know they'd never happen but I can dream.

A number of sluggers have appeared on the Angels' radar, including Adam Dunn, Mark Teixeira, Jermaine Dye and Mike Piazza. But the Angels refuse to part with their top prospects to land a proven hitter, and deals continue to fall apart. Stoneman said the desire to retain top prospects is not exclusive to the Angels.
http://www.dailynews.com/sports/ci_6491246

Can't say I blame him. Lackey, Weaver, Anderson, Kotchman, and Kendrick are all top prospects that have worked out for us.

Any chance the Angels pick him up for some sort of low-level prospect considering his All-Star year back in 2005? He has shoulder issues but it's a low-risk pick up and he might be able to be our third baseman for the remainder of the season considering he has more HR and RBI than any of our third basemen.

Should the Angels try and get him?

   * The Mariners have been scouting the White Sox "religiously" lately.  If they saw Javier Vazquez beat the Tigers on Tuesday, they came away impressed.  They were on hand to watch Jose Contreras tonight; the Tigers had batting practice with him and his ERA is up to 6.22.  Did you hear that?  That was the sound of Contreras' remaining ounce of trade value evaporating.
    * As you know, the Ms watched Dontrelle Willis on Monday.  Compared to Contreras, Willis pitched well - four earned runs, nearly seven innings.
    * The Ms also had a scout on hand to see Livan Hernandez twirl a gem over the Marlins on Tuesday.  Hey, at least he takes the ball every fifth day.  That has to be worth something.
    * Hickey says Seattle has also been monitoring the Astros, perhaps in hope of acquiring Dan Wheeler or Chad Qualls.  He speculates that Wandy Rodriguez would be a coup for the Mariners.  Wand-Rod has thrown up stinkers in his last two outings but tossed a complete game shutout over the Mets in the game prior.  He's inconsistent like that.  The Astros' #2 starter for 2008 wouldn't come cheap.
http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/baseball/archives/118720.asp

If only the Mariners would be stupid enough to trade Adam Jones and Jeff Clement for Dontrelle Willis.

The Angels are being pushed by the Mariners, and that's pushing Bill Stoneman. Stoneman has stood pat for a couple seasons, losing some trade value on his top prospects in the meantime. That seems to be making it harder for him to make a deal now that he finally seems ready to do so. The Angels are looking for an "impact bat," and so far haven't been able to find anyone to match up with. One player that seems truly off the table in talks is Nick Adenhart, but Adenhart and Brandon Wood seem are the names that other teams seem most interested in getting back.
http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=6490

Glad to hear this. Only if they said that Wood was untouchable, that would have made me happier.

If Angels GM Bill Stoneman has his way, perhaps long balls will not be as scarce down the stretch this season. Stoneman said that Saturday's trade of Jose Molina to the Yankees was small time compared with what he is trying to get done. Angels are once again pursuing the type of heavy hitter that has eluded them on the trade market. The Reds' Adam Dunn is the standout player in that category. Other big bats who have had trade rumors attached at some point include former Angel Troy Glaus, now with the Blue Jays, Texas' Mark Teixeira and the White Sox's Jermaine Dye. Kansas City's Reggie Sanders sits a notch below those players.
http://www.dailynews.com/sports/ci_6440326

So, it looks like Stoneman is going to get someone done. I see it being for Teixeira.

"Mark Teixeira is now more likely to be dealt than Eric Gagne.  Sherman sees the Angels as perhaps the best possibility here; they'd have to include Casey Kotchman.  I imagine Ervin Santana's stock is down far enough that the Rangers would not settle for the two."
http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2007/07/joel-shermans-t.html

Santana, Kotchman, and another piece for Teixeira? I don't like it. I'd rather keep Kotchman, although having Teixeira would be like having a three-year older Kotchman who actually has better power and better numbers while not having any type of dip in defensive play. Let's face it, adding 30 HRs and 110 RBIs per year is not exactly horrible for this squad. Guerrero could use a little helper, and Teixeira wouldn't exactly be the worst of helpers. We could have Figgins (3B), Cabrera (SS), Teixeira (1B), Guerrero (RF), Anderson (LF), Matthews (CF), Napoli (C), Kendrick (2B), and Wood (DH) as our lineup, but that'd be too powerful for our liking probably. Oh well, I just don't like the prospect of trading Kotchman right now. It also depends on what that other piece is in the deal. I'd give up Aybar, but that's probably about it.

Anyways, I'm just sharing the news.

NYY trade SP Jeff Kennard to the LA Angels for C Jose Molina.

It'll be all over the newswire in a little bit.

300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300!

I was thinking that if we were to trade Bartolo Colon, and eat 75% ($10.5-million) of his salary, what could we possibly get for him?

Here are the five teams where I could see Colon traded to, should he get traded ..

Boston: Perhaps Boston would be interested in him since Julian Tavarez is actually worse than Colon and could be moved back to the bullpen for the Red Sox. Then, it got me thinking. Who would we get for in exchange for him? I thought of one guy in particular, Justin Masterson from Double-A Portland. A 6'6" pitcher with solid upside, compares to a Derek Lowe type. It'd be a medium-risk, high-reward type of situation for the Red Sox. So, it might get them interested.

Los Angeles: Maybe, just maybe, the Dodgers would listen to an offer for Bartolo Colon. Lest we forget, they don't really have a solid fourth or fifth starter that they can count on. Outside of Lowe, Penny, and Billingsley, they have no one. Tomko and Hendrickson are just average, at best. I then thought of who could we get for him. Delwyn Young, from Triple-A Las Vegas, came to mind. He's an outfielder-infielder who has power and hits for average. But, they have no spot for him in Los Angeles with Kemp, Ethier, LaRoche, and Abreu taking up spots that he might play at for the future. So, he could be expendable. It'd be a low-risk, high-reward situation for them.

San Diego: Let's face it, Justin Germano ain't going to cut it in the postseason. They need a guy who can round out that rotation of Peavy, Young, Wells, and Maddux. That guy could be Colon. And, it wouldn't cost them much. It'd only cost them Cesar Ramos from Double-A San Antonio. He is a lefty and Jered Weaver's former teammate from Long Beach State. Could be a pretty good trade for both teams, seeing how Ramos is not one of their top prospects but rather an intermediate prospect for them.

Atlanta: This might be the most logical destination for Colon, when you think about it. Outside of Smoltz and Hudson, they have no one that they can count on should they try to make a postseason push. Because of that, they might give up the most for Colon. That player could possibly be Brandon Jones. He's an outfielder for Double-A Mississippi with solid power, solid average, and solid speed. Kind of like a typical Angels player. Could develop into a pretty good player down the road. This might be a higher risk for the Braves than most other teams, but they do need the help.

St. Louis: Look at their rotation. Braden Looper is their number one guy. Not good. Not good at all. They have the offense to compete in the National League, but their rotation needs a boost. A major boost. A potential player to target would be left-hander Jaime Garcia of Double-A Springfield. Solid stuff, good strikeout pitcher, and a good makeup. This would actually be a high-risk, high-reward situation for the Cardinals since Garcia is only 21 years old and has the potential to be pretty good in the majors while Colon could potentially not pay off for them.

I know I'm probably just hitting the pipe too much here, but it doesn't hurt to consider the possibilities.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/draftdb/2007xteam.php?team=laa

There's the list of players we drafted, the bolded one's are the guys that we have signed so far. It makes me wonder if we will ever sign Matt Harvey. If we can sign him, we would be left with the steal of the draft. He should have never fallen that far. Hell, one site (Click Here) had him going 17th overall to the Texas Rangers in the draft. He fell 101 picks past that and into our laps. Another site (Click Here) had him going 18th to the Cardinals. He fell exactly 100 spots past that prediction and into our waiting laps. Another site (Click Here) had him going 8th overall to the Colorado Rockies, 110 spots past that prediction and into our waiting laps. A lot of people even believe that his upside is bigger than that of Rick Porcello, the top high school pitcher in the draft who fell far because of signability issues. He's a future stud if brought up correctly, much like Weaver was.

So, is there any chance that we sign him? I can only hope that we do. Much like Jered Weaver, who fell to us in the first round back in 2003, he is a Scott Boras client, so who knows. I say we drop the bank on him and make it happen. But, that's just me.

http://www.minorleagueball.com/story/2007/7/19/19459/1445

John Sickels posted this at his blog, so I figured people could head on over there and tell them what the Angels should really do. Like, not trading Brandon Wood for Barry Zito or Adam Dunn. Or, trading Kotchman, Santana, and Saunders for Teixeira. Or, Wood, Adenhart, and another player (Aybar?) for Glaus and Burnett.

Some idiots over there.

Don't believe me? Just jump on over to see John Sickel's blog about Ryan Braun and the look into the crystal ball.

As a member of the Angels, he'll hit 241 home runs with 814 runs batted in, all while batting at a .292 clip during his ten years here in Anaheim.

At least we know how good he'll be ahead of time so we can't be disappointed or enthusiastic.

http://www.minorleagueball.com/story/2007/7/8/165453/6543

I just got the newest edition of Sports Illustrated, and in there was a five page article on how the Angels "have a chance to dominate in a way that no club has since the Braves and Yankees in the '90s". It's a pretty good article, I just hope the vaunted SI jinx doesn't come back to haunt the Angels.

I just received the latest issue of Sports Illustrated and in the "Major League Workout" section there was a feature on Kelvim Escobar performing yoga in order to stretch out his muscles to get ready for his starts. He learned from Tim Salmon, apparently. What a stud!

300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300! 300!