Just some tidbits:
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Only caught some of today's game, but some observations:
- The Angels stranded way too many runners.
- Kaz seemed to work better when his pace seemed quicker than normal.
- Mathis caught Kaz again. If Sosh sticks with this + having Mathis catch Ervin (like he has in the past), Jeff would be paired with the dynamic-but-erratic pitchers in the rotation.
- Aybar stole 2nd and 3rd in one inning (and was stranded!) but the play at 3rd was very close. I agree that Aybar is bound to be scary on the basepaths, but I think he'll be learning (trial by fire!) at least.
- Mathis hit the ball hard, following a recent trend. Yeah, it's just spring training, but is it too naive to *hope* for some improvement in his bat?
- Jose Mota and Terry Smith seem to be gelling together. At least there isn't anymore of the awkward silences or interupting each other. Mota, in particular, seems to be growing into the role, though he does the Angels's promotional statements too often.
- Mathis threw out two baserunners on two very good throws, but had three baserunners steal on bad throws. Interestingly, one of the outs was at third base when he threw from his knees, like he did on Thursday.
- Kaz looked good for the most part. Though I suspect even if he'd bombed, I'd stay firm with my belief in him. Chalk it up to irrational fan faith!
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Showing posts with label spring training. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spring training. Show all posts
30 March 2010
28 March 2010
thoughts: ST recap, organization rankings
Back in NorCal, where the rain is due to kickoff another quarter...
Just some (long) tidbits:
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Which Rodney are we gonna get - the one that was dominating on Saturday (no hits, two strikeouts) or the one that was wild today (4ER, 3BB)? Ah yeah, the inconsistancy is his trademark - but it's also been fitting considering the Halo's play this spring.
Other notables this past weekend was Matsui making his first put-out (surprisingly, didn't hear more about that), hitting his first HR and taking a (seemingly) bajillion walks. Torii and Howie seem to be getting into a groove and it was interesting to see Aybar take five straight pitches for a walk today. Abreu hit some homers recently, which was a pleasant surprise. The offense is scoring in bunches, so I guess we'll all see if that translates this season to the "offensive chemistry" that Sosh is looking for in the lineup.
On the pitching side, things are much the same. Some causes for optimism, some for worry. Saundo struck out SIX batters yesterday, which is a crapload for a pitch-to-contact guy. Don't really know what to make of that - he still allowed three ER over 4 1/3IP. Ervin was scratched last Tuesday but pitched four really good innings today before becoming unravelled in the 5th. I'm kinda curious why Sosh had Weav pitch in a minor league game in Tempe on Friday rather vs. the Giants. I know that the stated excuse was that the Halos wanted a more controlled environment where he wouldn't have to bat. But Weav has already "batted" this spring, and it's not like he'd be allowed to swing anyways. Reports said he felt good (the generic report from every pitcher in the spring!) and gave up some HRs. Maybe he's still working on those new pitches Pineiro taught him? Whatever it is, the Halos used the opportunity to showcase Reckling. It's seriously hard to wrap my mind around the fact that he's only 20 years-old. Ironically, the best performance from the rotation this past week goes to Pineiro (0ER, 5IP), though he was facing the Royals. And of course, the biggest news for me was missing the chance to see Kaz pitch after he was scratched with shoulder stiffness. He says he's fine, Sosh says he's fine, so I guess it won't do me much good to worry about it. We'll see when the regular season comes around.
And really, it couldn't come fast enough. I'm tired to having to temper my enthusiasm or concern with the required "Well, it's only spring training." I'm ready to start cheering on the thumping of the AL West and those teams from the East.
--------------------------------
Just some (long) tidbits:
--------------------------------
Which Rodney are we gonna get - the one that was dominating on Saturday (no hits, two strikeouts) or the one that was wild today (4ER, 3BB)? Ah yeah, the inconsistancy is his trademark - but it's also been fitting considering the Halo's play this spring.
Other notables this past weekend was Matsui making his first put-out (surprisingly, didn't hear more about that), hitting his first HR and taking a (seemingly) bajillion walks. Torii and Howie seem to be getting into a groove and it was interesting to see Aybar take five straight pitches for a walk today. Abreu hit some homers recently, which was a pleasant surprise. The offense is scoring in bunches, so I guess we'll all see if that translates this season to the "offensive chemistry" that Sosh is looking for in the lineup.
On the pitching side, things are much the same. Some causes for optimism, some for worry. Saundo struck out SIX batters yesterday, which is a crapload for a pitch-to-contact guy. Don't really know what to make of that - he still allowed three ER over 4 1/3IP. Ervin was scratched last Tuesday but pitched four really good innings today before becoming unravelled in the 5th. I'm kinda curious why Sosh had Weav pitch in a minor league game in Tempe on Friday rather vs. the Giants. I know that the stated excuse was that the Halos wanted a more controlled environment where he wouldn't have to bat. But Weav has already "batted" this spring, and it's not like he'd be allowed to swing anyways. Reports said he felt good (the generic report from every pitcher in the spring!) and gave up some HRs. Maybe he's still working on those new pitches Pineiro taught him? Whatever it is, the Halos used the opportunity to showcase Reckling. It's seriously hard to wrap my mind around the fact that he's only 20 years-old. Ironically, the best performance from the rotation this past week goes to Pineiro (0ER, 5IP), though he was facing the Royals. And of course, the biggest news for me was missing the chance to see Kaz pitch after he was scratched with shoulder stiffness. He says he's fine, Sosh says he's fine, so I guess it won't do me much good to worry about it. We'll see when the regular season comes around.
And really, it couldn't come fast enough. I'm tired to having to temper my enthusiasm or concern with the required "Well, it's only spring training." I'm ready to start cheering on the thumping of the AL West and those teams from the East.
--------------------------------
24 March 2010
thoughts: ST games, snuggies &more
Finals are over and I'm finally feeling the warm sun of SoCal. Not much stuff to comment on that hasn't already been beaten to death, just a bunch of notes...
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Spring training games haven't changed much from my last entry. The Angels have (finally) sprinkled in some wins with all those losses and have sent some of the youngins down to minor league camp. What has stood out the most for me is the inconsistancy of the Angels' play. I mean, for a long stretch of the losses, it seemed like they couldn't hit anything. A string of spring training games with only 3 or 4 hits is puzzling. But then they came back with multiple double-digit run games. And then the pitching! Ervin looks absolutely dominating in back-to-back games then gets hammered in a Triple-A game and the AAAA relievers alternate between horrible and capable. Like I've said, I don't really care about spring training wins/losses, but the inconsistancy can be quite annoying. I guess, it's just an extension of the unpredictability of the team this season.
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The announcement that the Angels are going to try to break a world record made me laugh. I'm pretty sure the the potential publicity doesn't outweigh the ridiculousness of it all. I mean, Snuggies - really? I'd rather that the marketing department find better ways to promote the Angels (and their fans) but at least it gave me (and others) a good laugh.
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Another article that gave me a good laugh - Bengie Molina was (once) a shortstop. It's definitely one of those "REALLY?" moments and, as a commentor noted, a revelation that even Bengie is probably faster than a great deal of fans.
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Spring training games haven't changed much from my last entry. The Angels have (finally) sprinkled in some wins with all those losses and have sent some of the youngins down to minor league camp. What has stood out the most for me is the inconsistancy of the Angels' play. I mean, for a long stretch of the losses, it seemed like they couldn't hit anything. A string of spring training games with only 3 or 4 hits is puzzling. But then they came back with multiple double-digit run games. And then the pitching! Ervin looks absolutely dominating in back-to-back games then gets hammered in a Triple-A game and the AAAA relievers alternate between horrible and capable. Like I've said, I don't really care about spring training wins/losses, but the inconsistancy can be quite annoying. I guess, it's just an extension of the unpredictability of the team this season.
--------------------------------
The announcement that the Angels are going to try to break a world record made me laugh. I'm pretty sure the the potential publicity doesn't outweigh the ridiculousness of it all. I mean, Snuggies - really? I'd rather that the marketing department find better ways to promote the Angels (and their fans) but at least it gave me (and others) a good laugh.
--------------------------------
Another article that gave me a good laugh - Bengie Molina was (once) a shortstop. It's definitely one of those "REALLY?" moments and, as a commentor noted, a revelation that even Bengie is probably faster than a great deal of fans.
--------------------------------
07 March 2010
thoughts: ST games, Rojas, GA, etc.
It's about time for me to go into my finals-studying isolation, so posting here should be quite sparse for a few weeks.
Just some tidbits:
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Cactus League play started this past Friday and the Angels pulled out an exciting tie (can you sense the sarcasm?). Then followed with two less-than-exciting losses (to the Rockies and A's). I don't really care about spring training wins/losses (you figure they've gotta win sometime, right?), but the real treat was having the opportunity to see young prospects like Reckling, Chatwood, Amarista, Trumbo, Conger, etc. I'm still waiting to see Chaffee and Smith in action, so it's not so fun that yesterday's game wasn't televised and today's game got rained out.
--------------------------------
Victor Rojas, the newly hired Angels play-by-play announcer, explained why he decided to leave MLB Network to come to the Angels. Well, mostly it was him explaining how he got the MLBN gig in the first place and how he grew into the role. Two thoughts - first, it speaks really well of him that, although he didn't have any broadcasting experience, he dove right into the work, was amendable to adapting on the fly, and never really shied away from trying new things. Secondly, that as much as he professes to have loved his work on MLBN, Arte got him to come to Anaheim. Specifically, "...most importantly [I left] because ... Mr. Moreno (I promise I will learn to call you Arte) wanted to make a commitment to me and the family." When the announcement was made and the resultant feedback in the halosphere was positive, I kinda wondered how the Angels enticed a national broadcaster to leave a network he helped build to come to Anaheim, where the west coast bias is in full swing. All indications point to it being a great hire and for all you doubters out there, here's another instance where Arte is doing all he can to make the Angels experience a great one.
I'm looking forward to seeing Rojas in action!
--------------------------------
Just some tidbits:
--------------------------------
Cactus League play started this past Friday and the Angels pulled out an exciting tie (can you sense the sarcasm?). Then followed with two less-than-exciting losses (to the Rockies and A's). I don't really care about spring training wins/losses (you figure they've gotta win sometime, right?), but the real treat was having the opportunity to see young prospects like Reckling, Chatwood, Amarista, Trumbo, Conger, etc. I'm still waiting to see Chaffee and Smith in action, so it's not so fun that yesterday's game wasn't televised and today's game got rained out.
--------------------------------
Victor Rojas, the newly hired Angels play-by-play announcer, explained why he decided to leave MLB Network to come to the Angels. Well, mostly it was him explaining how he got the MLBN gig in the first place and how he grew into the role. Two thoughts - first, it speaks really well of him that, although he didn't have any broadcasting experience, he dove right into the work, was amendable to adapting on the fly, and never really shied away from trying new things. Secondly, that as much as he professes to have loved his work on MLBN, Arte got him to come to Anaheim. Specifically, "...most importantly [I left] because ... Mr. Moreno (I promise I will learn to call you Arte) wanted to make a commitment to me and the family." When the announcement was made and the resultant feedback in the halosphere was positive, I kinda wondered how the Angels enticed a national broadcaster to leave a network he helped build to come to Anaheim, where the west coast bias is in full swing. All indications point to it being a great hire and for all you doubters out there, here's another instance where Arte is doing all he can to make the Angels experience a great one.
I'm looking forward to seeing Rojas in action!
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02 March 2010
news, but nothing new
So remember when I said that the start of spring training would mean that news will start flowing? Well I was only partially right. It's been a flow of news with mostly eye-rolling (in)significance. I don't want angels&aimee to be about reporting/rehashing news, but just to show you the absolute derth of stuff to comment on, here's a sampling of the news since I made that horrible statement:
- Mathis won his arbitration case and said the process was "interesting." Sosh added that Mathis has more offensive ability than he's shown.
- Matsui arrived in camp. The waiting Japanese media rejoiced that they didn't need to take video/pictures of his locker anymore.
- Kaz was sick with a sore throat and fever and was sent home for a day.
- Guns aren't allowed in the clubhouse.
- Rain washed out some workouts last weekend.
- Shields and Jepsen have been taking the slow track in workouts. Rodney has also been held back due to his shins.
- Matsui's Japanese media throng is a circus and they have an unsatiable need for Matsui news
- Torii is fine after offseason surgery.
- Rodney came to the Angels to try to win a championship, not to close.
- Abreu is gonna hit second in the lineup.
- Sosh says that BWood's defense is more important than his offensive production, in terms of keeping playing time. He also compared him to Glaus
- Saunders is looking forward to golfing with Smoltz next offseason.
- Naps is trying out a new, bigger glove to improve his defense and hopefully earn more playing time.
- More stuff about the lack of an ace in the rotation. And more stuff on why that doesn't really matter.
- Ervin is working towards more consistancy.
- Kendry switched agents (from the Hendricks brothers to Boras) after he discovered that $300K was taken from his bank account without his permission, allegedly by a (now former) employee of the Hendricks brothers.
- Q was surprised and pleased to be back with the Angels.
- The Angels had photo day.
- The latin players miss Vlad and his mom's food.
- Willits is once again organizing a toy drive for players' and coaches' children and a local school/shelter.
- Saunders is trying to get back to where he was in 2008.
- Kendry's still not in camp because of some immigration snafu.
- Rumors that the Angels signed Erstad were disproved.
- Kendry finally arrived in camp.
yawn.
I love that spring training is all about anticipation and optimism for the new season, but really, I'm becoming quite impatient. Baseball, please!
If you haven't already, check out the pictures from Tempe. It makes me envy those at spring training even more, especially when I'm sitting in class learning how a solid becomes a liquid.
- Mathis won his arbitration case and said the process was "interesting." Sosh added that Mathis has more offensive ability than he's shown.
- Matsui arrived in camp. The waiting Japanese media rejoiced that they didn't need to take video/pictures of his locker anymore.
- Kaz was sick with a sore throat and fever and was sent home for a day.
- Guns aren't allowed in the clubhouse.
- Rain washed out some workouts last weekend.
- Shields and Jepsen have been taking the slow track in workouts. Rodney has also been held back due to his shins.
- Matsui's Japanese media throng is a circus and they have an unsatiable need for Matsui news
- Torii is fine after offseason surgery.
- Rodney came to the Angels to try to win a championship, not to close.
- Abreu is gonna hit second in the lineup.
- Sosh says that BWood's defense is more important than his offensive production, in terms of keeping playing time. He also compared him to Glaus
- Saunders is looking forward to golfing with Smoltz next offseason.
- Naps is trying out a new, bigger glove to improve his defense and hopefully earn more playing time.
- More stuff about the lack of an ace in the rotation. And more stuff on why that doesn't really matter.
- Ervin is working towards more consistancy.
- Kendry switched agents (from the Hendricks brothers to Boras) after he discovered that $300K was taken from his bank account without his permission, allegedly by a (now former) employee of the Hendricks brothers.
- Q was surprised and pleased to be back with the Angels.
- The Angels had photo day.
- The latin players miss Vlad and his mom's food.
- Willits is once again organizing a toy drive for players' and coaches' children and a local school/shelter.
- Saunders is trying to get back to where he was in 2008.
- Kendry's still not in camp because of some immigration snafu.
- Rumors that the Angels signed Erstad were disproved.
- Kendry finally arrived in camp.
yawn.
I love that spring training is all about anticipation and optimism for the new season, but really, I'm becoming quite impatient. Baseball, please!
If you haven't already, check out the pictures from Tempe. It makes me envy those at spring training even more, especially when I'm sitting in class learning how a solid becomes a liquid.
18 February 2010
thoughts: ST starts, arbitration cases
Just some tidbits:
--------------------------------
Pitchers and catchers reported to Tempe yesterday. I could echo every other baseball fan in what a joyous occasion it is, but what it really means for angels&aimee is that it'll no longer be on life support!
When I began angels&aimee, I had a modest viewership, mostly cause I didn't really care to promote it - it was all for my own pleasure. I've been surprised and pleased to get the support of other bloggers and media, but now that I have actual readers, well it's been on me to actually produce stuff for them to read. And unfortunately, there hasn't been much Angels news for me to comment on. Unless of course, I really wanted to espouse about the Quinlan signing for a whole post. But now that Spring Training has begun, news should be free flowing, as evidenced by the bevy of stuff today. So new Angels news = more thoughts, opinions, comments = more posts!
This being my first season of angels&aimee, I'm especially excited.
--------------------------------
Arbitration cases are pretty much done with. Aybar settled for $2.05M before his hearing and Mathis's hearing occured this morning. I'm really glad that the FO settled with Aybar, but it really sucks that they couldn't settle with Mathis. Mathis needs some confidence to improve his production at the plate and an arbitration hearing is definitely detrimental to that. Furthermore, looking at their figures again, the FO may have low-balled him. Naps got $2M last year in his first year of arbitration and even if you account for the obvious difference in offensive production and arbitrations value on offense, is $700K really a winnable submission? BR lists Brandon Inge as a comparable at the same age and Inge recieved $1.35M in his first arbitration year, abeit when he was 28 and had improved his numbers. I think I'd feel better about the FO winning if they had submitted something closer to $900K, but I guess that's all a moot point now.
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The other Angels news today is that Rodney and Kazmir were kept out of pitcher fielding practice due to minor injuries. Irony aside, Kaz's injury is worrisome since supposedly his hamstring is what was bothering him last season. Sosh says its not serious, so let's hope that it won't be chronic either.
--------------------------------
Pitchers and catchers reported to Tempe yesterday. I could echo every other baseball fan in what a joyous occasion it is, but what it really means for angels&aimee is that it'll no longer be on life support!
When I began angels&aimee, I had a modest viewership, mostly cause I didn't really care to promote it - it was all for my own pleasure. I've been surprised and pleased to get the support of other bloggers and media, but now that I have actual readers, well it's been on me to actually produce stuff for them to read. And unfortunately, there hasn't been much Angels news for me to comment on. Unless of course, I really wanted to espouse about the Quinlan signing for a whole post. But now that Spring Training has begun, news should be free flowing, as evidenced by the bevy of stuff today. So new Angels news = more thoughts, opinions, comments = more posts!
This being my first season of angels&aimee, I'm especially excited.
--------------------------------
Arbitration cases are pretty much done with. Aybar settled for $2.05M before his hearing and Mathis's hearing occured this morning. I'm really glad that the FO settled with Aybar, but it really sucks that they couldn't settle with Mathis. Mathis needs some confidence to improve his production at the plate and an arbitration hearing is definitely detrimental to that. Furthermore, looking at their figures again, the FO may have low-balled him. Naps got $2M last year in his first year of arbitration and even if you account for the obvious difference in offensive production and arbitrations value on offense, is $700K really a winnable submission? BR lists Brandon Inge as a comparable at the same age and Inge recieved $1.35M in his first arbitration year, abeit when he was 28 and had improved his numbers. I think I'd feel better about the FO winning if they had submitted something closer to $900K, but I guess that's all a moot point now.
--------------------------------
The other Angels news today is that Rodney and Kazmir were kept out of pitcher fielding practice due to minor injuries. Irony aside, Kaz's injury is worrisome since supposedly his hamstring is what was bothering him last season. Sosh says its not serious, so let's hope that it won't be chronic either.
08 February 2010
thoughts: Saunders, PECOTA, &more
Back from a (seemingly) long midterm-studying hiatus.
Just some tidbits that I missed...
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Saunders signed a one-year deal, avoiding arbitration. It's good that they're not gonna argue over $250,000, but I was really hoping for that multi-year deal. Maybe the FO is just waiting to see what Joe does with a healthy full season.
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PECOTA came out with their projections, then realized that they screwed up. Um, yeah, didn't having the Nationals win 82 games make them pause and say "huh?" The use of statistics in baseball fascinates me (even if I don't want to be a stathead), but that's gotta put a dent in BP's credibility. Any good scientist can tell you that data can describe things, but if the math (and procedures) behind it isn't sound then the conclusions are worthless. To their credit, they did admit they screwed up and fixed it.
Just some tidbits that I missed...
--------------------------------
Saunders signed a one-year deal, avoiding arbitration. It's good that they're not gonna argue over $250,000, but I was really hoping for that multi-year deal. Maybe the FO is just waiting to see what Joe does with a healthy full season.
--------------------------------
PECOTA came out with their projections, then realized that they screwed up. Um, yeah, didn't having the Nationals win 82 games make them pause and say "huh?" The use of statistics in baseball fascinates me (even if I don't want to be a stathead), but that's gotta put a dent in BP's credibility. Any good scientist can tell you that data can describe things, but if the math (and procedures) behind it isn't sound then the conclusions are worthless. To their credit, they did admit they screwed up and fixed it.
