As an Angels fan, at times I feel like I'm made to suffer through lackluster performances as the team limps towards the end of April with a sub-.500 record - the Angels roster construction is rigid and while fans were happy when owner Arte Moreno throws money around in the off-season on supposed franchise players, the results are not there when those main big money guys struggle so far during the regular season.
The Josh Hamilton signing has been an early albatross - the Angels could have used the money spent on him on a good starting pitcher or two and instead of going cheap on has-beens like Joe Blanton and Tommy Hanson.
More imagination should have been used to patch up faults of the team in the past several years - the corpses of Albert Pujols and Hamilton aren't hitting the ball with authority and maybe both will round into form though Pujols' plantar fasciitis and his general well-being in particular scares the crap out of me.
A bright spot may actually be Mark Trumbo, who is off to good start - after his second half crash in 2012, I didn't expect him to recover but it looks like he's actually a better hitter so far.
Can it be possible that Trumbo is really becoming more of a guy who can hit the ball to all parts of the field - he's going to hit share of home runs but I'm sort of excited by the fact that maybe he's aiming to be a better all-around hitter instead of a one-dimensional, all-or-nothing power guy.
As another Angel fan, I'd hafta agree 100%. I fear Arte becoming the next Steinbrenner. When Scioscia was at his best as a manager, the teams were athletic. Reagins started taking the team away from that, and Pujols and Hamilton sure aren't heading the team back in that direction. The Hamilton money should have used for the pitching staff.
ReplyDeleteAngels are the perfect example of when you have an embarrasement of riches, too much Talent, Pressure and expectation hopefully they get it together for your sake. Look at the bright side at least your not a Marlins fan like me. Love the blog btw I just started following check mine out http://truschoolsports.blogspot.com/ join the site if you like what you see.
ReplyDelete