Dream Weaver could’ve been the key to the Angels getting a big series win and turning the season around, but instead, he ended up giving us all weeks worth of bad dreams.
Nobody wants me to sit here and recap this disaster of a game. Even if you didn’t watch it, the final score tells you everything you need to know. Once again, Texas took Weaver to the woodshed in a game that the Angels absolutely had to have. I’m not even going to pretend that this is just a poorly timed horrible performance for Weaver, he crapped the bed and the Rangers own him in Arlington. It is just that simple.
However, I’m also not about to start writing a eulogy for the Angels’ season. It may not feel like it right now, but this team has been showing signs of life. They just ran into a buzzsaw in the Rangers. They are the best team in baseball. They are going to walk away with the AL West. But the Halos still have life beyond that. As I mentioned before the series started, the Angels have a slate of pretty soft opponents coming up over the next two weeks. If they take advantage, they can put themselves over .500 by the end of the month and right back into the Wild Card hunt.
Now, it would’ve been nice to come out of this series with the Halos feeling good about themselves instead of feeling like a red-headed stepchild, but there’s nothing they can do about it now. Still, there is reason to dream of the Angels reaching the post-season. And really, dreaming is all we have after living through a nightmare game like tonight.
Game Notes
- RBI single or no, it is time to drop Pujols in the lineup. Actually, it was time a few weeks ago, but it is pretty evident that his homer last weekend isn’t what he needed to snap out of this funk. With Mark Trumbo looking like he has evolved into a bona fide slugger, the least the Angels could do is flip them in the order until Pujols finally figures out what the hell is wrong with him.
- I’ll say this in a more family-friendly way than I did on Twitter, but I fear that Wells getting a single and meaningless solo homer may have bought a few more weeks more of being an almost everyday player. This just has to stop. Just because Vernon can occasionally run into a pitch doesn’t mean he is any good. There are only two people in this world that think Wells might someday become the player he was back in Toronto, Wells himself and, unfortunately, Mike Scioscia.
- Once again, the bullpen bites the Angels in the ass. After mounting something of a comeback in the seventh inning, I can’t help but wonder what could’ve been had Pauley and Carpenter not combined to allow five runs. Eh, who am I kidding, six runs is this teams per game limit and we all know it.
Halo A-Hole
I’m not sure what’s worse, the way Weaver pitched or the way he reacted to pitching so poorly. He hulked out in the dugout after allowing the grand slam and then sang along to “Hit the Road Jack” as he got pulled the next inning. That’s not just him being upset with his poor performance, he looked like he has gone over the edge in terms of frustration with getting his ass kicked by Texas all the time. Can’t say that I totally blame him.