Do you see that guys?? That number up there, look at it! The Angels scored more runs then the Twins! That means we won a game guys!
Won a game guys, and not through sheer luck either! They actually played baseball today, strong fundamental baseball! We out baseball’d the Twins! (I know that doesn’t mean THAT much, but woooooooooo).
Pujols actually had an extra base hit today, even though it was kind of cheap, but whatever cause it’s still a double!! The team actually worked the count today! Sure maybe it was mostly in the first inning, but all those 3-2 counts in a row really spoke for themselves. I like to think that by having Trout batting leadoff and Izzy batting second some patience bled into the lineup.
This time the Angels didn’t just squeak by with a lucky win, they actually played like a strong team out there on the field today. I don’t want to jump the gun on this but I really do think that tonight was the turning point for the offense. They drew walks, collected some situational RBI’s, and just hit like a baseball team tonight. I’m genuinely excited about the rest of this homestand from here on out.
Good vibes all around
Game Notes
- Out of all the hits we saw today, from Torii’s bomb to Pujols’ gift double, Mike Trout’s was easily the most exciting of the night. Man was it such a sweet hit to watch, a rocket double that came centimeters from being a foul ball, which most likely only stayed fair to appease to the good graces of Mike Trout. The thing I really like about Trout is his confidence and swagger in the box, that just gets me pumped for days, especially when he’s talking to himself and pumping himself up. It’s not like Pujols, his swagger is all gone, all I see in the box is fake swag. He’s trying to save face but we can all see the broken hitter behind the charade. Forget about the effect Albert Pujols effect would supposedly have on the team, it’s all about the Mike Trout effect! Plus, it’s so sweet to watch that guy run with his speedy little strides. I don’t think I’ve seen a hitter move his legs so quickly before.
- Has anyone ever seen Torii Hunter carry this team on his back the way he’s been doing it this season? Just days ago Torii Hunter provided all the offense in a 3-2 loss to Cleveland, which included a Gold Glove caliber play in which Torii threw out Carlos Santana out at home with a rocket straight to Ianetta. He didn’t let that bother him, while other hitters like Kendrick and Wells were failing with RISP Hunter was knocking the first run of the game and set the tone with a groundball through the hole at short. On top of that Hunter also brought in 2 more RBI’s on a homerun that looked more like 1st degree manslaughter than a simple homerun, ending his night with two hits and 3 RBI’s. I hope Hunter can continue all his production en route to a playoff spot because he really deserves at least a World Series appearance with this team. I would be heartbroken if he didn’t
- Albert Pujols finally had an extra base hit today. That’s all I have to say about that. I won’t talk about his near homer, except for that little part right there. Erase that sentence from your mind, just pretend it never happened. Good.
- The bullpen nearly choked after C.J put up 7 1/3 innings of just 2 run ball, but I like to think the ‘pen just wanted to give Downs a chance to flex his awesome muscle. I haven’t been so sure of a save in the 9th inning since ever. I don’t think the ‘pen was that bad today, they actually did a pretty good job of keeping C.J’s 8th inning unraveling from getting out of hand. I know it’s a little much to need 3 pitchers in an inning to get 3 outs, but when you’re the Angels you gotta do what you gotta do with this bullpen to collect some wins.
Other notable offensive performances: K. Morales 2-3 1R 1BB, V. Wells 1-3, C.Ianetta 1-3 1R 1 RBI 1HR
Halo Hero
This guy, this freakin’ guy right here. How does he do it? He’s been putting the team on his back practically all week and all he has to show for it is 2 wins, and three awesome home runs so I guess it isn’t all bad. Tonight was actually pretty different, instead of just taking the teams half-lifeless corpse and dragging it through a minefield of blown holds and breaking balls off the outside corner your performance sparked some life into other hitters. Keep doing what your doing and this month will just be a footnote in this successful season, a rather ugly footnote, but a footnote nonetheless.