The June 4th, 2012 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim including Jered Weaver’s back is improving, Mark Trumbo interested in being in the Home Run Derby, Vernon Wells still thinks there is room for him in the lineup and much more…
The Story: Jered Weaver is feeling better everyday but being cautious.
The Monkey Says: That is great news as I was worried that this could be a lingering injury. There was no word on how his “light catch” went on Saturday, so that is probably a good thing. He should be on track to return from the DL when his 15 days are up.
The Story: Mark Trumbo “wouldn’t be opposed” to participating in the Home Run Derby.
The Monkey Says: This ABSOLUTELY NEEDS TO HAPPEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The Story: Vernon Wells still thinks there is room for him in left field when he returns from injury.
The Monkey Says: Wells seems to think that he can come back and work into what is essentially a platoon with Kendrys Morales where Trumbo plays left against righties and DH against lefties. He also said, “Hopefully I can slide right back into what I was doing,” which is kind of hilarious because it ignores the fact that “what he was doing” was pretty awful. This is all about Vernon trying to stay positive, but it just smacks of having no self-awareness or perhaps just willful ignorance of the realities of his performance and the depth chart.
The Story: LaTroy Hawkins started a rehab assignment on Sunday night.
The Monkey Says: In all likelihood, he will be back in time for the series in Colorado, which is great news since it makes the suddenly strong Angel bullpen even stronger and give Mike Scioscia an alternative to Jordan Walden in middle relief. For what it is worth, Hawkins had a bit of a rough outing, but so did everyone in that game. I doubt the Angels will care very much so long as he doesn’t get lit in his next appearance.
The Story: Hank Conger is back catching for the Salt Lake Bees and could be called up soon.
The Monkey Says: Bobby Wilson and John Hester are giving the Angels almost nothing behind the plate, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Hank get promoted in the next week or two once he gets some more reps behind the dish since he has been out for awhile with an elbow issue. Given that the team needs to decide what to do with Conger, they would be doing him a disservice if they didn’t call him up to give him a solid look while Iannetta is out.
The Story: Veteran reliever Juan Rincon opted out of his minor league contract with the Angels.
The Monkey Says: Rincon had a solid ERA and K/9 rate in Salt Lake, but his walk totals were kind of ridiculous. The decision for Rincon to move on was apparently a mutual one, meaning the Angel front office gave him little reason to believe they would ever promote him. No great loss here.
The Story: Are two closers better than one for the Angels?
The Monkey Says: This is a reference to the Downs-Frieri closer combination right now, but I link to it for this line: “And, for some inexplicable reason, Scioscia would like to see it change over time.” I can’t echo that sentiment enough.
The Story: Jerry Dipoto sits down for a questions and answers session.
The Monkey Says: Dipoto was very open, direct and genial in most of his answers, but even in print you can see how quickly he bristled at the question about Scioscia taking the Hatcher firing personally. That he suddenly shifted his demeanor so quickly at the topic certainly seems to speak volumes even though he gave a non-answer to it. Even if there is a tension between Scioscia and Dipoto about the move, it should dissipate before long. Besides, it isn’t like a GM and manager need to be BFFs to build a championship-caliber franchise.
The Story: For Albert Pujols, family matters quite a bit.
The Monkey Says: We all knew this because we were hammered over the head with what a devout family man Pujols was before he arrived. Some even speculated that he was slumping because he missed his family, but he seems fine now and his wife and kids still haven’t yet moved out to California.
The Story: Mike Trout was named the AL Rookie of the Month for May.
The Monkey Says: They should probably just go ahead and name him rookie of the month for June, July, August and September too.
The Monkey Says: That picture is a bit misleading, but still very damning. McClelland was positioned just outside where that photo was cropped, but he was definitely late getting into position and thus probably did not have the best vantage point. Considering how close the play was, I don’t think it would’ve mattered, but he should’ve done a better job… not that I’m complaining.
The Monkey Says: Some say Wilson has too much interest in becoming a celebrity. I say he got to hang out with a supermodel all day. C.J. wins.
The Story: Is Mike Trout or Mark Trumbo really the Angels’ best player?
The Monkey Says: There is a lot more to this post than just that, but still, that is the question at the heart of it. Trumbo is great right now, but I’ll still take Pujols over him without really thinking about it. Trout though, that one I would at least ponder, though I still think I’ll take Albert. Ask me a year from now and I have the feeling it will require less thinking and result in a different answer.
The Story: T. J. Simers is shocked to find out that Albert Pujols has a sense of humor.
The Monkey Says: Simers seems a bit disappointed that his attempts at muckraking were foiled by Pujols not being a jerk. I suspect that is why he throws unfounded rumors of Mike Scioscia being the “fun cop” and Arte Moreno blackballing reporters in at the end. He just isn’t happy unless he gets to throw someone under the bus.