Halo Headlines – 2/25/10

  • The Story: Scot Shields, Fernando Rodney and Kevin Jepsen are all making progress.  The Monkey Says: All three have some sort of health concern and have extended their long-toss programs but could all begin pitching again in the next 10 days.  It seems that after a 2009 full of starting pitcher injuries, this year it is the relievers’ turn to constantly battle the injury bug.
  • The Story: Already, the Angels need to win now.  The Monkey Says: Columns like this, where a World Series is demanded but in a very tongue-in-cheek way, are why John Lackey takes his little digs at the Angels and their laid back fans.
  • The Story: Jered Weaver has been named the Special Olympics Sports Ambassador to Southern California.  The Monkey Says: I’m just going to say kudos to Weaver because if I make any of the jokes I am currently thinking of, I am going to to go directly to hell.
  • The Story: Kendry Morales is in Arizona but still waiting on a work permit.  The Monkey Says: Let’s just hope he is staying away from the drive-thrus while he waits for the government to let him go to work.  I like that Kendry can’t play pro baseball because of immigration legalities, but thousands of illegal immigrants do menial work every across this state every day.  I’m not picking a side in the immigration debate, I am just saying the INS might want to pick their battles a little better, it isn’t like Morales is taking a job away from some other hard-working American All-Star-caliber first baseman who is at home collecting welfare because he can’t find work.
  • The Story: Bobby Abreu is in camp with a new positive attitude.  The Monkey Says: That makes it sound like Abreu was a clubhouse cancer last year, but rather he was just upset about the contract he had to settle for in 2009.  I’m glad that Bobby is happy with his new deal as I am sure it was quite difficult to live on the $5 million he made last season.
  • The Story: An employee of Kendry Morales’ former agent may have stolen $300,000 from Kendry.  The Monkey Says: OK, I suppose that is a pretty good reason for changing agents.  Though I wouldn’t put it past Scott Boras being behind this nefarious scheme to trick Kendry into firing his agents and signing with him instead.
  • The Story: Mike Napoli is really focusing on his defense in hope earning more starts.  The Monkey Says: At least he knows he needs to step up that part of his game and it is pretty clear that he is serious about it as he is pulling out all the stops to make himself a better backstop, even resorting to using a bigger glove to help him better frame pitches.
  • The Story: Defense might be the key to Brandon Wood earning regular playing time.  The Monkey Says: That seems partially true at least, but I highly doubt Mike Scioscia is going to play Wood over Izturis if Wood isn’t hitting as I am sure Sosh considers Izturis a fine defender at third base in his own right.  Defense will be important for Woody though because if he struggles with the glove (which I doubt), Sosh definitely will use that as an excuse to pull him from the line-up.
  • The Story: Prospect guru John Sickels identifies a few Angel prospects as potential sleepers.  The Monkey Says: Alexia Amarista, Jon Bachanov, Ryan Chaffee, Carlos Ramirez and Andrew Taylor are all candidates to explode onto the prospect radar across baseball with big seasons this year.  Amarista is already an up-and-comer within the Angel system and it would not surprise me at all if he makes all the top 100 lists this time next year.
  • The Story: The Angels made a big signing of Dominican prospect Luis Jolly.  The Monkey Says: As the columnist points out, this is newsworthy because the Angels have been largely out of the international scouting game for the last season after some of their scouting personnel got in trouble for money skimming from prospects.  The Angels have really committed to reloading their minor league talent, so expect more of these signings in the near future.
  • The Story: The 2010 amateur draft order has been released and the Angels have five of the first forty picks.  The Monkey Says: 2010 could be another banner year for the Angels in the draft after what is shaping up to be an impressive haul in 2009.  The Angels got a number of compensatory picks after losing Chone Figgins and John Lackey via free agency, something I think Tony Reagins was keenly aware of when he let them walk away.
  • The Story: How do the Angels always beat their win expectations?  The Monkey Says: The article can’t solve that riddle despite some very impressive statistical efforts, which I find hysterical just because it underscores how the sabermetric community continues to be able to understand the Angels’ success.  I can’t say I totally get it either though.  If some statistician ever does crack the code, I suspect they will be the front-runner for the Nobel prize in mathematics.
  • The Story: Comparing Matt Palmer as a starter and as a reliever.  The Monkey Says: Personally, I think Palmer is best served as a reliever as I think his main problem is consistent mechanics, which is why he was so prone to the big inning as a starter.  When I see Palmer as a starter, I see a fat guy who gets fatigued and let’s his mechanics get sloppy, but as a reliever, fatigue is removed from the equation and he doesn’t have to pace himself, allowing him to throw harder and be more effective.
  • The Story: Key Spring Training questions for the Angels.  The Monkey Says: They forgot the key question for the Angels in camp: why is Arte Moreno sporting a scraggly beard?  Inquiring minds want to know.