Daily Links for the LA Angels including Morales takes fielding drills and runs outside, the Halos drop both of their split-squad games, Kazmir to pitch in a B game to work on his delivery and confidence and much more…
The Monkey Says: This doesn’t sounds like much, but it actually is a huge step for Kendrys who had been limited to running on a treadmill with a vest that prevented the full weight of his body from being on his leg. This gives Morales ten days to continue to get himself into shape and prove to the training staff that he is ready for game action so that he can be fully ready for Opening Day.
The Story: The Angels had two split-squad games yesterday, losing 10-5 to the Mariners and losing 4-3 to the Royals.
The Monkey Says: The Mariner game is of little concern as most of the Angels participating were non-roster invitees, aside from Peter Bourjos who had a very good game. As for the Royals loss, fret not as Joel Pineiro had another strong performance and the reliever that blew the game was actually Loek Van Mil.
The Story: Scott Kazmir is going to pitch in a “B” game on the Angels’ off-day this Monday.
The Monkey Says: Making special arrangements for Kazmir to face a bunch of minor leaguers? I don’t like the sound of that one bit. The Halos clearly want Kaz to continue working on his game, but this sounds like a cheap attempt to get him some confidence as they very easily could just wait a day for Kazmir to pitch against more legitimate competition.
The Story: Arte Moreno checks in on the Forbes billionaire list at #1140.
The Monkey Says: Being a billionaire isn’t going to help him plead financial restraint the next time he cheaps out on a free agent. By the way, I had no idea Arte was 64 years old. Dude has aged well.
The Story: Slimmed-down Bobby Wilson is having a strong spring.
The Monkey Says: Excellent, the more Wilson proves himself in Spring Training, the more trust he will earn from Mike Scioscia and trust equals more playing time for Bobby and less playing time for Mathis.
The Story: MLB.com released their list of top 10 Angel prospects.
The Monkey Says: The most interesting part of this list is seeing Kaleb Cowart all the way at #2. He has been on most Angel prospect lists, but not nearly that high. Clearly expectations are high for him as he enters his first full season in the minors.
The Story: Trevor Reckling’s spastic delivery is a necessary evil.
The Monkey Says: Right now, it apepars to be just plain evil. He had a terrible 2010 and his spring performance has been pretty lousy too. I don’t know how much of his troubles are related to his delivery, but some minor adjustments might be in order if he falls on his face in the minors again this season.