The April 5th, 2012 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim including Abreu’s attitude improving, Trumbo continues to settle in a third base, Angels set their roster and much more…
The Monkey Says: That is good news, but it also means that he was acting noticeably disgruntled prior to this week for this anonymous player’s comment to even be possible.
The Story: Mark Trumbo continues to settle in at third base.
The Monkey Says: Trumbo has been better than expected, but he is going to be an adventure at times. For example, in yesterday’s game he made a nice back-handed stop down the line, but failed to get properly set after the catch, causing his throw be well off-line. To me, these are correctable issues that just come with getting more reps at the hot corner.
The Story: Alexi Amarista won the final spot on the Angels bench.
The Monkey Says: Jorge Cantu and Ryan Langerhans were assigned to Triple-A Salt Lake, but either one could be called back up if the Angels trade or release Bobby Abreu before Opening Day, though that seems like a dwindling possibility right now. As for Amarista, he absolutely makes the most sense to keep on the team since he can play pretty much every position but first base, catcher and pitcher and also could be useful as a pinch-runner, which will be needed at times with Morales in the lineup.
The Story: The Angel rotation has been set as: Weaver, Haren, Santana, Wilson.
The Monkey Says: This is a news item everyone is interested in even though it actually means next to nothing in the grand scheme of things.
The Story: Hank Conger has been optioned to Triple-A.
The Monkey Says: No surprise. The real question is whether the next time we see Conger in the big leagues it will be as an Angel or for some other team he got traded to as he may no longer be in the team’s long-term plans.
The Monkey Says: There is absolutely no indication that Scioscia is on the hot seat or even on the slightly above room temperature seat. Scioscia is an institution for the Halos and while he might end up in jeopardy (and that might even be a wild overstatement) if the Angels struggle this season, he is too respected and beloved to get canned in the middle of the season.
The Story: Albert Pujols isn’t worried about the pressure of his new team and big contract.
The Monkey Says: He is a machine. I don’t even think he is capable of being nervous.
The Story: Is the bullpen still the Angels’ weak link?
The Monkey Says: The article says maybe not, but I say yes. Even at its best, the Angel bullpen is still going to be the weakest part of the Angel roster, and at its worst, it is going to be an Achilles heel that will undermine their entire season.
The Story: The ESPN experts predict the MLB season.
The Monkey Says: There’s a lot of love for the Angels here and in almost all of the other expert predictions from around the interwebs. Suffice it to say, expectations are high for the Halos.
The Monkey Says: I am certainly not opposed to eating such calorie-laden concoctions, but I fail to see how hot dogs go well with tortillas and pico de gallo.
The Story: With Aybar’s looming free agency, a shortstop logjam can be a good thing.
The Monkey Says: This one comes to the verdict that the team should re-sign Aybar, but I think I am leaning towards letting him walk since his price figures to get outlandish in this thin market. He has just been too inconsistent over the years for such a hefty investment. What I would prefer the Angels do is hedge their bets by re-signing Izturis and letting him hold down the fort until Jean Segura is ready (which may be as soon as 2013).