Daily Links for the LA Angels including all sorts of reaction to the DFA of Brandon Wood, stats strongly suggest Wells won’t get better, Rob Neyer is becoming an Angel convert and much more…
The Story: A look at which teams could take a chance on Brandon Wood.
The Monkey Says: My gut has always told me the Marlins are a logical destination for him, but he’ll have to slide pretty far through waivers to reach them. I don’t doubt that there will be any shortage of suitors for him though, so there is a small chance that the Halos could end up trading him for a small return to a team that doesn’t want to risk him not making it to them on waivers.
The Story: Brandon Wood was very emotional as he said his goodbyes to the Angels.
The Monkey Says: The shame of this all is that Wood’s problems never had anything to do with attitude or work ethic as is so often the case with failed prospects. By all accounts he is a great kid, so hopefully he lands on his feet.
The Story: Wood still has a chance to find redemption.
The Monkey Says: The popular notion here is that a change of scenery will do him some good, but I do worry that his confidence is damaged beyond repair.
The Story: Tony Reagins says the Angels did not mishandle Brandon Wood’s development.
The Monkey Says: Sorry, but I disagree. The Angels made some missteps in setting up his path to the majors and I feel that put too much pressure on him once he finally did arrive. It was far from the only reason Wood failed, but Angel management definitely deserves some of the blame.
The Story: Contact rate and spray charts strongly suggest that Vernon Wells has lost a lot of bat speed.
The Monkey Says: I still think Vernon will snap out of it, and he has been looking better lately, but that is some pretty damning evidence and one just has to hope that this little study is a victim of small sample size. Cognitive dissonance is a wonderful thing, eh?
The Story: It might be time to start believing the the surprising start of the Angels.
The Monkey Says: Rob Neyer seems a bit skeptical still, but at least he is starting to take small sips on the red Kool-Aid.
The Story: The Angels’ RBI League is helping keep teen dreams alive.
The Monkey Says: This has been your daily dose of warm-and-fuzziness from Marcia C. Smith.
The Story: Tyler Chatwood is getting guidance from the veterans on handling his nerves.
The Monkey Says: It sounds like they’ve mostly been helping him keep his intensity in check, which is a good thing because when he gets too amped up he leaves the ball up in the zone and gets hit hard.