- The Story: Brian Fuentes is likely to begin sharing save chances with Kevin Jepsen. The Monkey Says: The closer will be selected based on match-ups, so now the Angels officially have a closer-by-committee situation on their hands. I will delve into the impact of this decision a little later today, stay tuned.
- The Story: The Angels’ recent dominance over the Yankees has Joe Girardi concerned. The Monkey Says: I assume this excludes last night’s Angel choke job, but Girardi should be worried, especially given that the Yanks’ defense is average at best and thus a poor match for the Angels’ aggressive style of play.
- The Story: John Lackey credits part of his recent dominance to the rest of the staff stepping up to push him. The Monkey Says: Ever the over-competitive red-ass, Big John isn’t about to be outdone by his teammates, and he certainly won’t be with the way he has been pitching lately. Let’s just hope it carries over into the post-season.
- AL West Update: The Rangers got spanked by the Athletics last night, losing 9-0. The Monkey Says: Awwww, you hate to see that happen… or not. The pressure really seems to be getting to the Rangers who have now lost three of their last four, all at home. The Angel lead remains at six games and their magic number now stands at 14.