SB Nation User Blog: highlandhalo

Represent YOUR HOOD in the "fan base"

highlandhalo — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 05:06:31 -0000

Suddenly Godzilla stompts into our yard, highlighting the global nature of today's baseball biz, and Hideki Matsui will hopefully hit a ton of ropes into the RF bleachers and make us forget about tears for Vlad, GA, The Kingfish, the Ryan Express, and all the other dear departed. On a pure baseball footing, Hideki Matsui looks to be a superb signing for us.

Big Hideki not only adds countless fans to our "fan base" from the Land of the Rising Luminous Power, but he is also a Damn Good Baseball Player. Happy to have him ... and so should be Halos fans from everywhere. (btw ... Mr Matsui, please help get us the services of Mr Yu Darvish, from your native land.)

But we all come from somewhere called home ... This is what makes up the the Angels' "fan base".

Where does this so-called fan base of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim actually exist? OK, I am biased towards areas near the Stadium, and my own belief is that the Angels' fan base emanates from St. Joseph Hospital of Orange (circa 1964), but what do I know? For all I know, the Angels' fan base may have actually started circa 1888 when Vladimir Guerrero was born on a whaling ship in the Caribbean Sea.

So where is YOUR Angels fan base? Express your bad-ass self and represent YOUR hood in the poll below and comment with the explosive speed of a moon shot off the bat of Mr Matsui ...

HH Player Ratings: Game 5, ALCS. Angels 7, Yankees 6

highlandhalo — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 06:32:05 -0000

I had to wait for my heartbeat to slow down before I could even think about posting anything, but here we go with highland's fearless and completely ~~unbiased~~ biased player ratings for Game 5.

Bring it on, Spanks ... and we''ll see you all on Saturday .... ~ highland

NEW YORK YANKEES OF THE BRONX
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Derek Jeter, SS: Not as instrumental with the bat in this game but HOFer is having a very solid series. 164 postseason hits and this shows why ... very patient ab against Lackey in 7th. Whiffed against Weaver but it was a great pitch. Rating: 7

Johnny Damon, LF: Batting .657 in this series and he scares the hell out of me. His bat is still dangerous. Popped up with Lackey on the ropes in the 7th but hardly did anything else wrong. Rating: 7

Mark Teixiera, 1B: Big deal, U-Haul. Huge gapper in the 7th but you're still a money-grabbing asshat. Go screw yourself. Rating: 5.

Alex Rodriguez 3B: How do you rate a guy who is a proven juicer? Almost impossible, but let's look at the figures. Dude had a good game including a ringing double off the wall with no outs in the 6th. Rating: 6.

Hideki Matsui DH: This guy continues to frustrate, produce and intimidate. Great discipline to draw walk with 2 out in the 6th against Lackey. 2 for 3 against Fuentes. And a great walk against Fuentes in the closing frame. Rating: 8.5

Robinson Cano 2B: Just good enough to cause enough trouble. A weak grounder to SS in 6th against a tiring Lackey but played good D and didn't give up. Rating: 5.

Nick Swisher RF: The most (and almost only) likeable Yankee had 100 percent no effect whatsoever. Girardi should have had the balls to pinch-hit for this guy. With two outs in the Yankees' 6-run 7th, he pops out for the last out. Always tried hard but not good enough. Should stick to pitchingor stand-up comedy. Rating: 1.

Melky Cabrera, CF: Good job for a No. 8 hitter. Delivers 2nd extra base hit in a key spot. Why can't we get this guy out? Was due for a good game and had one. Rating: 7

Jose Molina, C: Former Halos backstop was almost no factor. Rating: 4.
SUBS:

Jorge Posada: PH-C: No factor. Tap out against Weaver. Rating:4

Freddy Guzman: Runs for the intentionally walked A-Rod. No rating.

Brett Gardner: PR for Matsui. No rating.

PITCHING:
AJ Burnett: Absolutley lit up in the first and almost give his team no chance. Settled in after that though, glad we won't have to see him again. Rating: 5

Damaso Marte: Got his ass kissed by the ump in the 7th. No rating.

Phil Hughes: Brought in with two out in the 7th to face Hunter and Vlad. Cocked it all up. Rating: 2.

Joba Chamberlain: Gave up a massive gapper to Rivera but whiffed the red-hot Mathis. Rating: Incomplete.

Mariano Rivera: Comes in 1st and 3rd with 1 out in the 8th, runners on 1st and 3rd, Figgins up Did his job as usual. Rating: 8.

Management:

Joe Girardi: Extremely patient with Burnett. Went into stall tactics to get Mariano Rivera ready in the 8th but outmanaged by the Soth in this one. Rating: 5..

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LOS ANGELES ANGELS OF ANAHEIM:

Desmond Figgins, 3B: Started the first inning with a walk. Offered the usual great D. Huge AB in the 7th, getting a good bunt down. But we are still waiting for our sparkplug to catch fire. Rating: 5.

Bobby Abreu, RF: Where have you gone, Bobby Abreu? OK a base hit but not much else. Neeeded a clutch hit out of him in with two on the the 7th, but screwed by the umpire. His game is the next one. Rating: 5

Torii Hunter CF: Enjoying a good series and finally the bat came through. Hitting in the clutch finally and great walk against Hughes in the 7th. Rating: 8

Vladimir Guerrero, DH: Good game. Tied the game at 6-6 after we coughed up the lead with a silly little single. Nice job big man. Rating: 7.

Kendry Morales: 1B: Off and on game but huge hit for the go-ahead run. What can you say. I'll smoke a Cuban cigar in celebration. Rating: 7

Maicer Izturis, 2B: Not a great game for the Mighty Mouse. A non-factor, would rather have seen Howie's bat in there tonight to be honest. Rating: 4

Juan Rivera, LF: Was having a horrible series until he delivered the cracking 2B against Joba in the 7th. Goes to show how tough it is to be consistent in this game of baseball. Rating. 5.

Jeff Mathis, C: When did Joe Mauer inhabit this guy's body? Why is he suddenly so good, so unflappable, so courageous, so confident. Batting .625 in this series. Simply exuding confidence out of every pore of his body. Doesn't he know he is supposed to suck? .... I'll take it, any day ... Rating: 9

Erick Aybar, SS: Played a damn good short and nothing to complain about. Great patient walk to get rid of Burnett in the 8th. We'll see the best of him yet in this series, which is NOT OVER. Rating: 6

Substitutes:

Reggie Willits: Pinch-ran for Rivera in the 8th. No rating.

PITCHING:
John Lackey: Great curve ball and a huge effort with our backs against the wall. Showed how much he cared when the Soth took the ball off of him. Robbed of a strikeout call in the 7th but what is new, and Big Thunder lost his temper. Pleaded to stay in the game and it seemed like a mistake by the Soth to take him out but it worked out OK. Will be ready for the ball in Game 7 if there is one. Rating: 8

Darren Oliver: Normally old reliable, was absolutely hittable in this game. U-Haul jumped on a curve ball and then gave up game-tying hit to Matsui, giving Angels fans everyone coronary symptoms. Rating: 1

Kevin Jepsen: Got no love from the ump but gave up the tie on Cano's gapper. Unacceptable. Rating: 2.

Jered Weaver: In an incredibly rare relief appearance WTY was superb. Whiffed Cabrera and Jeter when we really needed it. Superb. Rating: 8.5

Brian Fuentes: What a spot he was in! A 1-run lead with the heart of the Yankees order up. Lucky to get a seeing-eye out on Damon's rip but popped up Teixeira. What a spot! Hold this 1-run lead Held the lead and looked like he really wanted it. Rating: 7.

MANAGEMENT:

Mike Scioscia: Some weird decisions but somehow it all worked out for him. I guess John McGraw and Casey Stengel must have had games like these. Rating: 7

HH player ratings: Game 3: Angels 5, Yankees 4

highlandhalo — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 21:50:01 -0000

Our Halos are still struggling at the plate but managed to gut this one out. Abreu, Rivera, Kowbell and Desmond were all swinging limp sticks. Fortunately, we had enough to carry this to Game 4 ...

Sorry I'm so late with these player rankings but a) I broke my ankle b) lost my laptop and c) these last 2 games have taken nearly 10 hours to complete. That, said, here are my completely ~~biased~~ unbiased player rankings from Game 3 ... As usual please feel free to flame me and post your own player rating below. .... Ratings will be quicker after tonight's game against the Devil Rays :)

NEW YORK YANKEES OF THE BRONX:

Derek Jeter SS: Hardly put a foot wrong. Set the tone for tough day with his first AB dong. And played great defense despite the reputation. Rating: 8
Johnny Damon LF: Another overall good game for one of the Yanks' veterans. Tough out and his HR got into Weaver's head and wanted to win. Rating: 8
Mark Teixeira 1B: Well U-Haul tried hard but despite how much he puffs out his cheeks to show how much he's trying, he was basically a non-factor, except on D. Rating: 3
Alex Rodriguez 3B: Steir-Rod hit a lazy fly ball then a bomb that seemed to rattle Weaver. Made a bad throw on Vlad's chopper but got away with it thanks to ump/Tex. Rating: 6
Hideki Matsui DH: Always looks dangerous. I am seriously scared about this guy swinging the old pipe. Not much impact yesterday but he strikes fear into pitchers: Rating: 5
Jorge Posada C: As usual a solid game behind the plate and yanked solid home run off Jepsen. Rating: 6
Robinson Cano 2B: A pest but Bulger made him look silly. Decent defense. Rating: 5
Nick Swisher RF: The only likeable Yankee had a horrific game. With runners on first-and-third, Swish popped out to LF and whiffed. Should switch to pitching, because he's better on the mound. Rating: 2
Melky Cabrera CF: This guy is just not a very good player. Period. No impact whatsoever except for catching a few fly balls. Rating: 3

Pitching:
Andy Pettitte: Gutsy performance that you would expect from the veteran who stares over his glove before every pitch. Left a hanger to Vlad and that what ruins his overall. Rating: 6
Joba Chamberlain: Overblown. Coughed up the lead in the 7th. Rating: 1
Damaso Marte: No rating.
Phil Coke: No rating.
Phil Hughes: Damn good in the 9th and looks tough. Rating: 7
Mariano Rivera: Spitball was doing no good for one-inning Mariano as was not as dominant as before. Shouldn't have to rely on defending his own position but what a horrible throw to third. Rating: 3
David Robertson: No rating.
Alfredo Aceves: Anybody who gives up a game-winning double to Jeff Mathis deserves what he gets. Rating: 1

Subs:
Francisco Cervelli: Who is this guy? No rating.
Brett Gardner: Nailed stealing but superman Mathis. Rating: 1
Jerry Hairston Jr.:: Whiffed. Rating: 2
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LOS ANGELES ANGELS OF ANAHEIM:

Chone Figgins 3B: Still no fire from the top of our lineup apart from the 1st inning single. Hitting the ball hard but could use a phone call from Nate Haynes. Defensively a gem as usual which drives his ... Rating: 4
Bobby Abreu RF: How can a guy be great and horrible in the same game? This guy can. Worked counts brilliantly but never came through. Baserunning gaffe was a potential huge factor. Rating: 3
Torii Hunter CF: Looks tough, talks tough, didn't get it done with the bat. Great glove may have saved a run or two though. Rating: 5
Vladimir Guerrero DH: Old man is done, huh? How about the single up the middle, the patient walk against Pettitte, and of course the massive, soaring, towering Vlad-like bomb with 2 outs to tie the game. Didn't swing at 8 of the first 9 pitches he saw. Calm. Rating: 9
bunt
Kendry Morales 1B: Smoked the ball a couple of times but killed a rally with a tailor-made DP ball in the 2nd and didn't look comfortable until he got to swinging from the left side. Rating: 4
Howie Kendrick 2B: What can you say? Formerly banished to the Salt Lake City Bees, red-hot Dude is tearing the cover off the ball and it showed up in his bomb to LF and triple off the wall. Nice D too. Great job, Howie ... Rating: 9
Mike Napoli C: Never looked comfortable with either Weaver or in the batter's box. Pettitte make him look the fool on the K in the 5th. Rating: 4
Erick Aybar SS: Good game. Standard good defense and got a great jump on his steal. Handled the bat well and Got the bunt DOWN for once!. Rating: 7

Pitching:
Jered Weaver: Well our Weaver the Younger didn't have it when we needed it. Lost command of his fastball and fell behind in the count way to often. Oliver was warming up by the 4th, that's what the Angels staff felt about his stuff. Pouted and stomped into the clubhouse when relieved by the Soth. A bad performance from a pitcher of his caliber. Minus-1 deduction for pouting and stomping into the clubhouse when rightfully reilieved by the Soth.. Rating: 3
Darren Oliver: Unflappable as usual. Should have started this game. Rating: 9
Kevin Jepsen: Is going to be great but not yet. The bearded one walked Matsui and grooved one to Posada to give up a hard-earned lead. Ratteld by 45,000 in the seats and a playoff atmosphere? Possibly. Rating: 3
Brian Fuentes: Outstanding inning in the 9th for the man with unusually short arms. Rating: 8
Jason Bulger: Fell behind Posada 3-0 and then whiffed him. Got a nice ground-ball out when he needed it. The definition of relief pitching. Rating: 8
Ervin Santana: Looks great coming out of the pen and showed awesome command. If the game would have gone 17 innings Voodoo would have finished it. Rating: 8

Subs:
Maicer Izturis: Why not bring on the Mighty Mouse in a clutch spot? Want a guy who can put the bat on the ball and give you a sacrifice fly? The Boy King is your man. Rating: 7
Jeff Mathis: Well, what can you say about this performance? Does it justify the Soth's mancrush on him? I suppose so, because Jeff Mathis delivered one of the best playoff performances in Angels history. A great throw on the pitch-out to nail Jason Gardner, then one of the worst hitters in the major leagues doubled up the gap to off Hughes to lead off the bottom of the 10th. And we all know what his double against Aceves did. There are no 10's unless it's a shutout, no-hitter, 5-for-5, but hell. Mathis is getting laid. Rating: 9.5

MANAGEMENT:
Joe Girardi: May have overmanaged this game. His lineup sets itself, but he may come to regret using seven (7) relievers in this one. He was going for the jugular but didn't count on the clutchness of Jeff Mathis. And who can blame him? Rating: 5
Mike Scioscia: Lucky or great? This is the question we ask of the great managers. Every big move the Soth made -- the pitchout on Gardner's steal attempt, Izturis PH-ing for Napoli, intentionally walking A-Rod --came out just right and the Angels got the win to get back in the series. The Soth Knows. Rating: 9

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GO HALOS IN GAME 4. .... CMON NEWCOMER!

HH player ratings: Game 1: Halos 1, Yankees 4

highlandhalo — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 05:40:19 -0000

Well, let's start off these player rankings with this non-sequitur: 46 degrees fahrenheit is not cold. That's 8 degrees celcius, which is warm in Inverness, Scotland, where I lived for two years. So all you wimpy millionaire players wearing your balaclavas ... Man up! It was only 3 hours, 18 minutes of baseball in a teeny-weeny bit of cold ... Now go hit the jacuzzis and the ho's.

Overall game rating 5: Not very good. Had it rained, it would have washed out CC's brilliant start. But no HRs fell in the launching pad that is Yankee Stadium (v 2.0). Spahn and Sain and pray for rain? I pray for no rain and Hokie Joe v. Burnett on Saturday.

That said, here are highland's completely unbiased ~~biased~~ player reviews for the series in which the Angels will eliminate the Yankees:

LOS ANGELES ANGELS OF ANAHEIM:

Chone Figgins, 3B: Partially at fault for the defensive miscue with Aybar that led to a 2-0 deficit. Offensively, our sparkplug needs to get his gap adjusted. Player rating: 1.

Bobby Abreu, RF: Chupacabreau is meant to be a bad-ass nickname, but chupa in Spanish means "suck" and that's what Bobby did in the Bronx in Game 1. Made one nice play on D stopping Tex but absolutely was dominated by CC (Chupacheeseburger Sabathia). Player rating: 1.

Torii Hunter, CF: Went out there like he wanted to play. Made Sabathia feel human in the 1st but was also his last victim. Robbed on the bad call on his bunt-single attempt in the 6th by ump. The Gold Glover, however, was not called upon to climb walls in this one. Player rating: 5.

Vladimir Guerrero, DH: Could have done better. Great double against an otherwise unhittable Sabathia but blown away by Mariano Rivera in the 9th when we could have had him on the ropes. Hustled well for a gammy-legged old man. Player rating: 5.

Juan Rivera, LF: Three things stick out: a really bad throw in the 1st, a weak tap-out in the 4th, and losing the battle of the Riveras in the final frame. Played hard, but too slow to be a factor unless he hits the ball with authority, which he didn't. Player rating: 3.

Kendry Morales, 1B: Played damn fine defense at first (better than some guy named Tex), and delivered a clutch two-out RBI, not to mention drawing CC's walk in the 7th. Acuda needs to get out his blow-up doll, Christopher Walken needs to say "I need more Kowbell" and we'll be fine.. Player rating: 6.

Howie Kendrick, 2B: Didn't have much to do but had good at-bats and hit the ball hard. If HK swings the lumber like that in the rest of this series, we'll be fine. Player rating: 5.

Jeff Mathis, C: The most pathetic of all offensive players stood up to one of the best home-plate crashes of recent post-season history by holding his ground and the ball in a bone-jarring collision at the plate with the 230-pound Alex Rodriguez barrelling into him and knocking his helmet into the stratosphere. Called a good game for Lackey. Player rating: 5.

Erick Aybar, SS: Ummmm. Not only did he wear a lame-ass hood thing (I come from a hot climate too, but come up, be macho mang!). Should have come up with Matsui's line drive. Strong relay throw (although short-hopped) allowed Mathis to come up with a highlight film collision clip. Some decent ABs and would have scored a 3 except for that stupid hood. Player rating: 1.

Subs:

Mike Napoli, (C for Mathis). Should have started probably and if he was blocking the plate might have put A-Rod out for the rest of the post-season. 4.

Pitching:

John Lackey, RHP: The cold conditions did not suit the Texan but he deserved better for a typical balls-out effort. Made Jeter look silly on a curve-curve-fastball whiff in the 4th. Threw too many pitches though and the walk to No. 9 hitter Cabrera with 2 out in the 6th is really not acceptable.Nor was the throwing error. Was (and IS) hard on himself though he wasn't in Sabathia's class tonight. I like his chances when there is a rematch. Player rating: 7

Jason Bulger: Cleaned up Lackey's shit and was nerveless in his first playoff outing against the heart of the Yanks' order. Made A-Rod look like an A-hole but this is nothing anyone of is not aware of. Right? Player rating: 7

Matt Palmer: Not dominating and put in a tough spot, but got Jeter and shut down the traitor Tex. Player rating: 6.

Management:

Mike Scioscia: Some curious choices by the Soth. Why start Mathis when you can set the tone with a better offensive player in Napoli? Why order/let Hunter bunt? Why let John Lackey throw too many pitches? On the plus side, gave 1B ump Laz Diaz a serious blast of shit on his bad call on Hunter's bunt. And he has gotten us this far. Knowing the Soth, he'll also say "turn the page, tomorrow's another game" and motivate his team to win Game 2. Manager rating: 5.

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NEW YORK YANKEES OF THE BRONX

Derek Jeter, SS: Love him or hate him, the Yankees captain and future HOF-er hardly but a foot wrong even though he stuck his butt out annoyingly on every at-bat. Tough AB to give Lackey trouble from the start. Clutch single to RF on a two-strike count. Played Angels-style baseball going hard first-to-third . Player rating: 7.

Johnny Damon, LF: Typical Damon game from the old-school days, when he was a pain-in-the-ass for the Royals.. Broken-bat doinker to left gets the Yankees going. Great AB against Lackey in the 5th when it seemed like John was in a groove. Gets a serious extra point for referring to the Angels as "Anaheim are going to give us a tough time" in his post-game interview. If he would have called us the California Angels, he'd have a 10.. Player rating: 7.

Mark Teixeira, 1B: The U-Haul took a U-Haul in this post-season matchup against his old "mates". Looked like he was pressing, popped out in the 1st with runners on second and third in the 1st inning. Looked stupid on a Lackey hook in the 5th and definitely pulled his foot off the bag in on Hunter's disputed bunt single call. Rookie reliever Bulger took him down. Whiffed against an under-par Palmer in the 8th with a chance to put the game away. Couldn't happen to a nicer Yanke$$$$$ player. Player rating: 2.

Alex Rodriguez, 3B: Hit a pro sac fly in the 1st but wouldn’t have hit it as hard without the needle up his ass. Terrible baserunning and rightfully got nailed. The mouth-breather actually was seen yawning on national TV during his 3rd inning at bat. Why show up? zzzzzzzzz? No ... $$$$$$ Player rating: 2.

Hideki Matsui, DH: Tough patient veteran made himself a rugged patient out. Not entirely instrumental but always seemed in control and dangerous. This guy scares me, but so does Godzilla. Player rating: 6.

Jorge Posada, C: You get what you're gonna get from this rugged veterano, and this was a typical performance. No real factor with the bat but called a great game and kept Sabathia focused. Player rating: 5.

Robinson Cano, 2B: Played damn fine D, especially on the diving stop on Kendrick's rocket shot as one second baseman robbed the other. Still, I like the Angels' 2B (2Bs?) better. Wore a wussy face-mask and body armour and thus for loses two points. Player rating: 3.

Nick Swisher, RF: Hard to not like this guy ... but the the scruffy Moneyball hero whiffed with the bases loaded against a labouring Jason Bulger. Should stick to pitching or stand-up comedian rather than baseball. Player rating: 4.

Melky Cabrera, CF: Name sounds like something they are going to serve up at Starbucks, but played a good game. Good patient walk against Lackey in the 4th inning. Had a nice base hit, but my (deceased) grandmother could have hit that meatball Palmer gave him for his single. Player rating: 4.

Subs:

Brett Gardner, (CF). Caught the last out. No rating.

Pitching:

CC Sabathia, LHP: For a 290-pound fat bastard he pitched a great subtle game. He must have had some special "secret sauce" on his pre-game double-bacon cheeseburgers. Great job navigating through a couple dodgy innings but overall delivered a mature performance that showed great command and most of the night was on cruise-control. And defensively he was a gem, covering his ground beautifully for such a big man. Player rating: 9.5.

Mariano Rivera: Walked his first batter and struggled with his control early but then won the key battles of Rivera vs. Guerrero, and Rivera vs. Rivera. We've gotten to him before, but not tonight. Better to not let him have the ball. Player rating: 7.

Management:

Joe Girardi: Didn't have much to do except chew sunflower seeds and lean on the dugout rail and try to look tough, while Sabathia and Rivera and the Yanks lineup, which sets itself, got it done. No strategy to compare with Scioscia, but that is bound to happen down the line in this series. Still, Joe loses a point for the FOX announcers sucking him off and him sucking up to them in a "dugout interview" when he should have been watching the damn game. (BTW, is it a new rule that all Yankees' managers have to be named Joe? Manager rating: 5.

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UMPIRING CREW

Typically terrible in any post-season series which involves the Angels. Laz Diaz's botched call on Hunter's bunt base hit may have changed the game -- OK, the throw beat Hunter but Tex pulled his foot. .... And as for Tim McClelland's strike zone, that moved around like crank-dealer's trailer in the San Bernardino Valley. Crew rating: 3.

Player of the game: CC Sabathia.

Final thoughts: That one's over and as the Soth says "turn the page." GO HALOS! Can't wait for Game 2.

HH player ratings: Game 3, Halos v. Boston

highlandhalo — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 02:22:13 -0000

Only three moments in my life match the way I feel right now 1) the birth of my son Ethan 2) my marriage to Elizabeth and 3) Game 7 of 2002.

Old highland is going to to give his unbiased ~~biased~~ player ratings on Game 3 at Fenway on Sunday. I want to finish this off so that I can get drunk, so it might be a quickie. Keep in mind that big-game heroics carry a lot of weight, these ratings are for this game only, not the series ... so feel free to disagree. BTW, I said I was not going to hand out any 10s in this series, but .... tonight changed my mind. ~ highland

Ratings below the jump ...

LOS ANGELES ANGELS OF ANAHEIM
Chone Figgins, 3B: When is the real Chone Figgins going to step up in the playoffs? This guy is starting to make me embarrassed about my signature and mancrush. No threat whatsoever till 2 outs in the 9th when his patient walk against Papelbon gave the Halos 2 runners on base in the ninth. Could have been a 2, instead, he's got ... Player rating :4

Bobby Abreu, RF: If anyone is more relaxed playing baseball I would like to know who it is. Worth every dollar the Angels paid him. Never rattled, worked pitchers as he always does and his double off the Green Monster in the last inning to cash in Aybar kept us in the game when we easily could have lost. Mistakes? I don't remember any. A .566 average in the playoffs without ever seeming to break a sweat is seriously impressive. Post-game quote: "When you never surrender anything can happen." (in English) Player rating: 10

Torii Hunter, CF: Great D in CF and his influence in the clubhouse cannot be underestimated. His danger factor led Francona to intentionally walk him in the ninth, which was about the most important command decision of the game. If they don't walk Hunter, Vlad doesn't get a chance to be the hero. Player rating: 8

Vladimir Guerrero, DH: These player ratings are subjective, not objective, but Vladimir Guerrero delivered one of the most important clutch hits in Angels history on his go-ahead single in the 9th inning. If that does not help cement his Hall of Fame credentials, it certainly cements his place in Halo history. Massive hit, making him an Angel legend. So clutch. Player rating: 10

Kendry Morales, 1B: Hit a bomb Where would we be without him? Left a lot of guys on base when he could have cashed somebody in. Based on this game alone ... Player rating: 6

Juan Rivera, LF: Juancho had a good game. A couple of solid hits and despite his complete lack of speed, hustled again. Turning into a guy why can rely upon, too bad he's so damn slow. Player rating: 7

Maicer Izturis, 2B: Not really a great game from the Boy King but the little Mouse is always a pest, simply because he plays the game of baseball so well. The Angels definitely got the right Izturis. Player rating: 5

Mike Napoli, C: Called a damn good game but this guy is in there for his bat, not for his work behind the dish. Player rating: 5

Erick Aybar, SS: Made to look silly in early at bats, but his at-bat (and hit) against Papelbon were almost as huge as
Guerrero's clincher. Showed maturity and how much he cares by playing Angels cheerleader after Guerrero's hit and after the end of the game. Can't remember him really being challenged on defense, but we all know that's not an issue. Player rating: 9

Pitching:
Scott Kazmir: Expecting him to step it up, but still not bad, and a tough assignment to shut down the Red Sox in a decider. Command was a bit of an issue, hence one strikeout versus 3 walks for a pitcher of his caliber. Can do better but not bad in his first playoff game for a brand-new team. Player rating: 6
Jason Bulger: Got jobbed by the ump and looks healthy. Player rating:7
Kevin Jepsen: Does this rookie have some balls. A rookie pitching in Fenway in the late innings. Dealt heat but was understandably wild. Player rating: 6
Darren Oliver: Only retired one batter but it was necessary. In the playoffs, outs are more important than runs. Does Darren Oliver have a nervous system or does he run with heroin in his veins? Rating: 7
Brian Fuentes: He never looks good but damn he got it done again. 48 regular-season saves, and this one was as big as any, particularly in contrast to Papelbon. How can you argue with an inning pitched in Fenway, no baserunners? His ninth inning was massive. Player rating: 9

Subs:
Reggie Willits: Aggressive and did what he was ordered to do by Scioscia as a pinch-runner. But as a pinch-runner, taking too big of a lead and getting picked off is inexcusable. Looked like the cause was lost when he got picked off first. I love this player, but ... Player rating: 2
Gary Matthews Jr: Got screwed by the umpire if I recall correctly. Not enough P/T for a rating. No rating.
Jeff Mathis: Likewise. No rating.
NICK ADENHART: Looking on from above in Halos Heaven and he would have loved this one. Player rating: 10.

Management:
Mike Scioscia: Not a great game from the probable AL manager of the year. Too much cheese in his lasagna last night? Other than sticking to his guns, and being such a great man-manager and calm inspirational figure ... His decision to pitch to Lowell in the bottom in the 8th with first base empty really was really dumb. But in retrospect, who cares? Management rating: 6

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BOSTON RED SOX

Other than saying, "enjoy golfing and fishing this October", here's what I remember. For such a "superior" team they sure are going home early.

Jacoby Ellsbury, CF: Great player but no influence. Solid defensively. Still one player I wouldn't mind having on my team. Player rating: 5

Dustin Pedroia, 2B: Pesky little bastard never gives up and drove in two runs to put the Sox on the board in the 1st against Kazmir. Hate him but would love to have him on our team. Player rating: 6

Victor Martinez, C: Caught and called another good game, but this guy was really irrelevant in this game other than his work behind the dish. Kept a shaky Buchholz calm, but not much of a threat with the bat for the No. 3 spot. I mean what other team has a worse No. 3 hitter other than the Royals? And maybe not even them. Player rating: 5

Kevin Youkilis: 1B/3B: Got to love this guy's willingness to cross the diamond and swap corners in a must-win game for the Red Sox, but otherwise basically did f---all. Except be ugly. Player rating: 4

Jason Bay, LF: Was this guy in the game at all? I can't recall, and my memory is not that short. Let's hope Tony Reagins never does enough crack to think that this guy is an answer to our OF needs in the offseason. Millions and zillions? Please no. Player rating: 2

David Ortiz, DH: Well, what can you say? Please retire Big Papi. Big hit in the 8th but is a liability because his fat ass had to pinch-run for by Joey Gathright. Turning quickly into the BoSox version of Mo Vaughn -- a bit fat juiced pile of stinking chicken tikka masala. Player rating: 3

Mike Lowell: 3B: Delivered some of Boston's few clutch hits. I like the Angels' 3B-man a lot more, who is more valuable in so many ways. Still, had a good game and never shows quit. Player rating: 6

JD Drew: Funny thing, my Angels fan friend from San Juan Capistrano confused him for JT Snow and said he wished he was still on the Angels. After that jack against Kazmir in the 4th to give the Sox a chance to get back in the series, I thought maybe he was right. Player rating: 7

Alex Gonzalez, SS: A glove. A body who sort of stands between the second base and third base bags. No influence whatsoever. I think the Red Sox were better with Orlando Cabrera at shortstop. Player rating: 3

Pitching:
Clay Buchholz: So-so from a guy who can have no-hitter stuff when he's on. Awfully young guy to have to take the ball in Game 3 of an elimination game. Not looking forward to facing him in the future however. Player rating: 5
Daniel Bard: Absolutely filthy especially for a rookie. Player rating: 8
Billy Wagner: Can do a hell of a lot better this for a guy with his experience and was not impressive. Rating: 4
Jonathan Papelbon: Exactly what you don't want out of your closer in a must-win game. Despite some VERY generous ball/strike calls by home plate ump Eric Cooper, could not get the job done. In a word, Papelbon sucked. Had no command and looked very nervous and one of two of these players are going to the Hall of Fame (Guerrero/Papelbon anybody?) On the other hand, there was a very pretty girl in a Papelbon jersey at the pub tonight, who was very respectful and congratulated the Angels fans for our win. She asked us to kick the Yankees' asses for them. Class. Maybe she should have pitched to Vlad. Player rating: 1.
Hideki Okajima: Got one out. No rating.

Subs:
Joey Gathright: Pinch-runner scared the crap out of us and scored a run. Player rating: 6, which ain't bad for a sub.
Brian Anderson: Apparently this guy was in the game. I don't remember, so no rating..
Casey Kotchman: Defensive replacement. He would have had it, if the ball would have been hit to him. No rating for ex-Halos. Goatee is perfect for the Red Sox though.
Jed Lowrie: Does this guy even have a baseball card? No rating, even for a guy who can allegedly play shortstop.

Management:
Terry Francona: Much more imaginative than his Angels counterpart Mike Scioscia on this night. Managed the game right and pulled all the right strings, it's not his fault that Papelbon sucked. Had his team ahead 6-4 going into the top the ninth and had his team poised to get back into the series. Not sure what sort of man-manager he is because the Red Sox showed very little spirit in this series. Is that Francona's fault? Not sure. Managers aren't on the field unless there is a disputed call and Francona did his best. But his team are playing golf from tomorrow on. Management rating: 6

Estimated Red Sox average golf handicap: 18.7. Enjoy it boys.

Christmas comes early in London

highlandhalo — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 22:43:32 -0000

Christmas comes early in London

The scene where I was, as a Halo fanatic, couldn't have been better. An expensive sports bar in central London packed with Chowds and wanna-be Chowds.

I heard one guy clapping in a far corner of the busy Sports Cafe when Kazmir delivered a strikeout. I gravitated to him. His name is Mike from San Juan Capistrano. I was the only person in the joint wearing an Angels cap, but the place was packed with Sox fans wearing full regalia.

It was a fan ratio of about 30-1. Two Angels fans, plus two Yankees fans who hate the Red Sox, versus countless chowds.

To their credit, the Red Sox fans accepted defeat with grace. The Angels fans (myself and Mike) ran around like maniacs high-fiving after the last out, but we did not gloat. We tried to handle victory with as much grace as they handled defeat.

Oddly, out of the 30 or so Red Sox fans at the Sports Cafe, about 10 were women and none had mustaches. None were drunk. In fact, every female Sox fan at the Sports Cafe in London was dead-on HOT. And the guys were cool too.

Not surprisingly, they wished us luck against the Yankees and in fact some of them congratulated me and asked us to kick the Yankees' ass for them.

All in all, not what I expected at all. A lot of hanging heads from the Sox fans but I can't think of one that did not conduct themselves with class.

All in all, a perfect evening watching baseball in mixed company. Postgame player ratings coming later after I have a much-needed beer.

~ highland

HH player ratings: Game 2, Boston v. Halos

highlandhalo — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 07:01:19 -0000

Well here is old highland celebrating a 2-0 lead going to Fenway for Game 3 on Sunday. I'm back on the job to give my completely ~~biased~~ unbiased player reviews for Game 2 in the old-school sports journalism style.

Please have a crack at me if you want to, that's what this is all about, would love to see your comments/corrections. After all, these are only my player ratings and until Scottnak devises some evil genius method of doing post-game player reviews, I'm afraid you're stuck with this ancient form of journalistic review.

Let's finish this on Sunday! Ratings below the jump ...

BOSTON RED SOX
Jacoby Ellsbury, CF: Again one of the BoSox best players on the night, but did a hell of an impression of a flounder chasing Aybar's triple. Got screwed on a bad call in the 6th on a check-swing K, but forced Scioscia's hand with an infield hit in the 8th. Player rating: 6

Dustin Pedroia, 2B: Easy work against the rat-face tonight. Made a great diving defensive stop but tapped out weakly to the mound in the 6th against Weaver. Rats spread the plague? If this is the kind of plague this Rat, this Angels nemesis, is spreading, let's have more of it. Player rating: 4

Victor Martinez, C: At least this guy is putting in some effort for the 'Roids Nation. Behind the plate he was pretty damn good, calling a good game with a cocky SOB of a pitcher on the hill and made a great throw on the pitchout to nail Abreu stealing in the 8th. Player rating: 6

Kevin Youkilis, 1B: How can somebody so tough and mean-looking pop out like a wussy so often? No factor whatsoever. Player rating: 2

David Ortiz, DH: Where have you gone, Joe Needle-in-my-ass-imaggio? Second straight terrible and ineffective game. Shadow of former self. Player rating: 1

Jason Bay, LF: This guy tries to be good and wants to be good, but Weaver whiffed him on a ball in the dirt in the 2nd. Got hold of a high fastball from Weav a couple innings later but it ended up in Torii Hunter's sure-handed glove. Player rating: 4

Mike Lowell, 3B: Hell, he tries hard. Made a great play on Hunter's line drive. Could have been a game-changer but did not come through in the 5th. Player rating: 5

JD Drew, RF: Had several weak cuts against Weaver and looked thoroughly dominated and confused. Victim of strikeout No. 7 by Dream Weaver before getting pulled. Player rating: 4

Alex Gonzalez, SS: Well when you get a shortstop from the Reds, what can you expect? Davey Concepcion? No, Alex Gonzalez, which means a decent defensive game. But was blown away by two high fastballs with the count in his favour in the 5th with a runner on base. Player rating: 3

Pitching:
Josh Beckett: Love him or hate him, he's a hell of a pitcher. Made us work for everything we got. Great two-seam fastball and though he is a painfully slow pitcher and a cocky gum-chomping SOB, he's damn good. Tough gritty effort for Beckett, who still managed to whine like a baby after hitting Napoli with a pitch. Lost focus and control in the 7th. I hate him, but I would rather have him in Angels red rather than facing him. Player rating: 7
Billy Wagner: Is this guy still alive? Or is it Honus I'm thinking about. Thanks for the meatball to Abreu. Rating: 5
Jonathan Papelbon: A cameo in a losing cause. No rating.

Subs:
Jed Lowrie: No rating

Management:

Terry Francona: Beaten by Mike Scioscia in every move in this game. Management rating: 4

-------------------------
LOS ANGELES ANGELS OF ANAHEIM
Chone Figgins, 3B: No factor again in this game for the Angels offensive sparkplug, and his flashy glove was not really called upon. Basically was invisible. Except for looking lame striking out on a Beckett four-seamer in the 6th. Danger factor is always there, so highlandhalo's mancrush makes him a 5 instead of a 4. Player rating: 5

Bobby Abreu, RF: Is this guy old? Is he any good? Clutch hit starts the 5th and typical brilliant plate patience, forcing Beckett and Wagner to throw too many pitches. Solid D but not challenged. You are a superb human being and you must be loved more, Chupa. Player rating: 8

Torii Hunter, CF: Well you can't expect him to work miracles every day. Should have made the catch on the triple by Jacoby Ellsbury. Positioned wrong? Got robbed of a hit by Lowell but popped out weakly in the 6th. Player rating: 6

Vladimir Guerrero, DH: A weak popup against Beckett in the 2nd ... but had a great shot through the hole on the hit-and-run play in the 4th to help give Weaver a run. Also took a walk ... A WALK? Intimidation factor still works. Against Beckett in the 7th. Player rating: 6

Kendry Morales, 1B: Sacrifice fly in the 7th inning was huge. Those kind of plays win playoff ballgames. Made a great play with the glove on Jepsen's poor throw to end the 8th. Is this guy under-rated? He might be the definition of just that ... but let's ask Acuda. Player rating: 7

Juan Rivera, LF: Punched out looking by Beckett in the 2nd and killed the 5th inning with an infield-practice ground out to SS. Had a big chance in the 7th with Kendrick running on 2nd, but hit a seeing-eye shot to Lowell. Player rating: 4

Maicer Izturis, 2B: What more can be said about the Boy King? The smallest player on the team played a huge role, running up Beckett's pitch counts and playing solid D. Comes through with the huge hit to give the Angels the lead. And after driving in the go-ahead run and stealing second base, managed to give Pedroia a sneaky shot to the nutsack (anyone else see that?) 'Twas a thing of beauty, a perfectly executed "dirty" play". Love you Maicer. Player rating: 8

Mike Napoli, C: Weird seeing the Strongest Man in OC batting 8th, but did a better job of impersonating Jeff Mathis with intelligent pitch-calling. Kept Weaver in check. Once again, Mike Scioscia knows something about catching that we don't. Player rating: 7

Erick Aybar, SS: This guy continues to amaze. Rips a nice opposite-field hit in the 3rd to let Beckett know he is human, then the 2-run triple for a 4-1 was absolutely huge. We love you, Erick Aybar. Player rating: 9

Pitching:
Jered Weaver: Why don't we stop calling him Weaver the Younger instead of Weaver the Better? Outstanding mature performance, beautiful location most of the night, controlled the counts and the Boston at-bats. Gave a nice hat-tip after whiffing Drew before the Soth went to the bullpen. Even a more ace-like performance than Lackey yesterday. Superb. Player rating: 9

Darren Oliver: Pitching like a man on crack. Rating: 8
Kevin Jepsen: Ballsy effort for a rookie in his first post-season game. Morales bailed him out with a good dig on the bad throw in the 8th. Rating: 7
Brian Fuentes: Nobody has any faith in the 48-save man but he did what he was supposed to do and retired Big Papi easily. A K-Rod style walk to keep things interesting but GOT the job done. Player rating: 7

Subs:
Howard Kendrick: Great jump and great stolen base. Whiffed by Papelbon but will have better AB's this series, we reckon. Player rating: 7

Management:
Mike Scioscia: Lucky or brilliant? Every move our lasagna-loving boss made seemed to work out for him, from starting Izturis at 2B, bringing on Kendrick to PR for Vlad and putting on the running game to rile a tiring Beckett late on. Management rating: 9

HH player ratings: Game 1, Boston v. Halos

highlandhalo — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 06:15:18 -0000

My player rankings for Game 1 of the ALDS. In the grand tradition of British soccer writing, I am going to assign a rating of 1-10, with 10 being the highest, based on the individual players' performance in the game.

Feel free to argue ... but these are my damn player ratings. Of course I am elated that we've got a 5-0 victory over the Red Sox but I tried to be very unbiased on these player rankings, journalist-style (non ESPN) ... Keep in mind these are my own ratings alone, and please feel free to disagree or agree with me, or give your adjustments or own ratings in the comments below. ~ highland

BOSTON RED SOX
Jacoby Ellsbury, CF: Did his best and made a Willie Mays-like catch to put out the fire in the 6th. Good job working counts and tried to be a pest. Best player on the Sox tonight. Player rating: 7

Dustin Pedroia, 2B: Hit the ball hard but most of his hits found gloves. Good opposite field hit against Lackey. Player rating: 6

Victor Martinez, C: Did a hell of a good job calling the game but had several poor at-bats for a guy in the No. 3 slot. Player rating: 4

Kevin Youkilis, 1B: Looked really bad for a cleanup hitter on the strikeout against Lackey in the 4th. But when has anyone ever said Youkilis looked good? Player rating: 3

David Ortiz, DH: Angels put the Ortiz shift on him. Didn't matter because he couldn't hit anything anyway. Lackey couldn't throw strikes in the 4th but whiffed him anyway. Destroyed by a tiring Lackey in the 7th. Whiffed against Oliver for the final out. Poetic "Juice-tice". Player rating: 2

Jason Bay, LF: Indifferent. Did a nice job on a Lackey mistake pitch for a solid hit, but was baffled by Lackey for a backwards K in the 7th. Player rating: 5

Mike Lowell, 3B: For someone who was supposed to terrorise the Angels, Lowell looked intimidated by Lackley, managed to ground into a beautiful 6-4-3 DP. Airmailed a throw, but got robbed on a bad call by ump Bucknor. More noodle-arm shit in the 7th. Great beard though. Player rating: 4

JD Drew, RF: Did a decent job all around and had a nice hit against Lackey to open the 9th. Player rating: 6

Alex Gonzalez, SS: Off an on both offensively and defensively. Nice patient AB in the 3rd for a base hit, but looked like crap in his AB in the top of the 8th. Player rating: 4

Pitching:

Jon Lester: This guy is as tough as advertised. For the Angels to win 5-0 in a game started by a sharp Jon Lester is interesting indeed. Kept his team in it and the Angels off balance. Got rattled in the 3rd until Vlad Guerrero got himself out. Made a 94-mph mistake to Torii Hunter in the 5th and paid for it hardcore, bye-bye Game One. Player rating: 7

Ramon Ramirez: Power arm. Uhhhhh. Rating: 1
Takashi Saito: Awkward but has guts. Rating: 6
Daniel Bard: I hope the Angels don't have to face this guy again in a tough spot because he is simply filthy. Rating: 8

Subs:

Jed Lowrie, Casey Kotchman: No rating

----------------------------------
LOS ANGELES ANGELS OF ANAHEIM
Chone Figgins, 3B: Nothing much on the offensive front from the Angels sparkplug (he did lay down a nice bunt in the 5th) and looked silly against Bard. But still was patient with the stick. Shined defensively as usual. Ended the 6th with a hell of a throw and was basically flawless on D. Best arm on the field other than Bard. Player rating: 7

Bobby Abreu, RF: This man played the game as if was easy as a friendly game of ping-pong. Like a man on valium. He was smiling when facing Ramirez in the 8th. Plate discipline? Try four walks, Sox. Player rating: 8

Torii Hunter, CF: Leadership from the front and the huge three-run bomb in the bottom of the 5th to bust up a pitcher's duel. Don't you love guys who can "hit mistake pitches"? The Angels can't hit fastballs? Ask Torii. Player rating: 8

Vladimir Guerrero, DH: Hacking with men in scoring position. Overanxious. A bad game for a player of Vlad's standards. Player rating: 4

Juan Rivera, LF: Juancho had bat at-bats in the 2nd and 4th innings, but showed a hell of a lot of hustle to score in the 7th inning. Player rating: 6

Kendry Morales, 1B: No bombs from the big Cubano but he did a damn good job with the glove at 1B, picking some tough throws from the cannon arms of Figgins and Aybar. Roped Saito for an RBI in the 7th which was a huge help. Player rating: 7

Howard Kendrick, 2B: Looked more dangerous than he was at the plate. Weak-ass ground out in the 4th. But ... made a hell of a nice turn on the DP in the 5th with Jason Bay barreling into him. Player rating: 5

Jeff Mathis, C: Ummmm, Mike Scioscia knows something about catching that we don't. Mathis did a great job behind the dish, blocking balls in the dirt, etc. Completely overpowered by Lester in the 4th and by Bard in the 8th. Player rating: 4

Erick Aybar, SS: Great feed to start the DP on Lowell in the 5th. What a gloveman. Ripped a nice stand-up doublek past Lowell to start the 5th after fouling two pitches back (Abreu influence, anybody?) Vacuum cleaner at shortstop. Player rating: 7

Pitching:
John Lackey: Well hell, what can you say? Big John took the ball like it was the 7th game of the 2002 Series and showed what he is all about. A few shaky moments but overall ... Command. courage. Confidence. In charge. Ace. Player rating: 9

Darren Oliver: Cousin Oliver is the pitching equivalent of Bobby Abreu. Goes about his business like a man on valium or stoned and completely effortlessly effective. Player rating: 8

Subs: None.

What Desmond needs for .300

highlandhalo — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 10:10:32 -0000

OK, it's time for my one stat-head post of the season, and on the last day! ... Chone Figgins is currently sitting on a .298 batting average, and it's really splitting hairs, but let's face it -- a .300 average looks way better than a .299 average on the back of a baseball card.

So with my rudimentary mathematical skills (I can use a calculator), I have figured out what our Desmond needs to do today in the regular season finale to finish at .300 or over.

2-for-2 gets him over .300. So does almost any combination of three hits (3-for-3, 3-for-4, and 3-for-5 do it, and 3-for-6 just barely gets it done, leaving him him at .299837, which rounded up would technically make him a .300 hitter).

So let's say you're Mike Scioscia and Figgins gets hits in his first two at-bats. Do you pull him out of the game to preserve the .300 average? Or, what if Figgins goes 2-for-3 do you leave him in so that maybe he could go 3-for-4?

Do you pull a Napoleon Lajoie and have him try to bunt for a base-hit his first two at-bats ....? (In 1910, the St Louis Browns manager so hated Ty Cobb that he played his third baseman on the cut of the outfield grass, allowing Lajoie to bunt for six straight singles. He still lost the batting title to Cobb ...)

An interesting subplot to an otherwise inconsequential game before the nailbiting and ulcer medication kicks in ...

Poll

What do you think will be Desmond DeChone Figgins' final batting average of 2009?

.297

6 votes

.298

20 votes

.299

39 votes

.300

22 votes

.301

9 votes

96 votes | Poll has closed

Angels pics: Cool or lame?

highlandhalo — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 06:37:03 -0000

Now you may have noticed that MLB.com have an army of photographers with digital cams at each and every game. Hence, while flipping through our roster and our stats, I noticed that each player's page comes up with an "action" photo". Flipping through these is kinda like flipping through a mini baseball card collection. So I've corralled them all on photobucket to flip through at your leisure.

The thing that bothers me, is with the wealth of awesome digital photography at MLB's disposal, why is the picture of Chone Figgins on the Angels official website so lame? It looks like he's striking out on a curveball in the dirt, rather than being the Desmond we love, running first to third, sliding into home, making a great stab at third base. My point here is that the photo editors at MLB could have done a much better job.

So I've collected all these pics onto photobucket, so as not to crash Rev's server. They can be viewed two ways:

1) Old school way (thumbnail gallery)

2) Or slick new school slideshow way

Either way, flick through the pics and let us know whether you think the MLB photogs or the photo desk editors have done their job well by voting by simply saying COOL or LAME in the comments below and say which pics you think are cool or lame and why .... Peace, highland

Poll

Are these pics cool or lame?

Cool!

30 votes

Kinda cool

61 votes

Who are these guys?

5 votes

Kinda lame

26 votes

Lame!

8 votes

130 votes | Poll has closed

SB Nation User Blog: highlandhalo

Represent YOUR HOOD in the "fan base"

So where is your Angels' "HOOD"? ... (sorry, top billings in the answers go to old-school communities near the yard).

HH Player Ratings: Game 5, ALCS. Angels 7, Yankees 6

HH player ratings: Game 3: Angels 5, Yankees 4

HH player ratings: Game 1: Halos 1, Yankees 4

HH player ratings: Game 3, Halos v. Boston

Christmas comes early in London

Christmas comes early in London

HH player ratings: Game 2, Boston v. Halos

HH player ratings: Game 1, Boston v. Halos

What Desmond needs for .300

What do you think will be Desmond DeChone Figgins' final batting average of 2009?

.297

.298

.299

.300

.301

Angels pics: Cool or lame?

Are these pics cool or lame?

Cool!

Kinda cool

Who are these guys?

Kinda lame

Lame!