After what has to be called a disappointing 4-5 homestand, Boston heads west for an 11 game roadtrip. Being swept for the first time this season is not exactly the kind of momentum you want heading on a trip like this, but maybe it will piss off the boys and motivate them to kick the crap out of these west coast hippies. On to Anaheim (LA? Who knows anymore).
Opponent: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (yes that's seriously what they call themselves)
Record: 45-56, last place in the AL West (12.5 games behind Texas)
Recent Results: 5-4 (won 2-3 vs Royals, swept by Astros, swept Texas)
Run Differential: +3, 7th in AL
Team ERA: 4.42, 10th in AL
Runs Per Game: 4.7, 8th in AL
The Angels are having a miserable season this year, and appear to be taking a big step backwards for the second consecutive year. They won 98 games in 2014 before being swept in the first round by the Royals, and then won 85 games last year. This season they are on pace to win just 72 games, which would be a complete disaster for them. However, while they are languishing in last place with almost no hope of making the playoffs, their run differential indicates that they are much better than their record. Hell, they have a better run differential than the 1st place Rangers, so its fair to say they've been unlucky so far. Let's hope that continues.
Players to Watch
CF Mike Trout is obviously the guy to keep your eye on for the Angels. He is the consensus best player in baseball, and has finished in the top 2 in MVP voting for 4 straight seasons (and he probably should have won all 4). Trout is the definition of a five tool player, a guy who can catch, throw, run, hit and hit for power all at elite levels. He is hitting .314 this year, and leads the league in on-base percentage at .427. While his power is down a bit (19 HR this year after hitting 41 and 36 the last two seasons), he is still slugging .553 (4th best in the AL).
SS Andrelton Simmons is a certified genius in the field. He is without question the best infielder in the big leagues, and the best I've seen since Omar Visquel. He has range, sure hands, quickness, and a .50 calibre rifle arm. Don't believe me? Just watch.
Recently though, Simmons has evolved into more than just a pretty glove. He is hitting .391 over the past month, giving some protection to the big boppers in the middle of the order.
DH Albert Pujols is a surefire, first ballot Hall of Famer and the greatest hitter of his generation who has not been tainted by steroids (at least not yet). He has hit 579 career HR, which is 4 behind Mark McGwire for 10th all time. He also has a terrible contract, which pays him $25 million this season. He has not been the otherworldly hitter he was in St Louis since signing that massive deal in 2012, but he still hits for power. He has 19 HR this season after hitting 40 last year, but his .253 batting average is far below what he used to put up. If the Sox pitchers can keep the ball away from him, they should be ok but if they leave it middle in or middle up, Albert can still hit it to the moon.
Pitching Matchups
Game 1 (Thursday 10:05 EST): Jered Weaver vs David Price
Jered Weaver is in his 11th MLB season, all with the Angels. He is coming off a season limited by injury, and was diagnosed with a degenerative shoulder condition in spring training of this year. A lot of guys would have shut it down for the season, but Weaver has decided to play through the pain, so you have to give him credit for that. Weaver was never a fireballer, but in recent years his velocity has dropped from the 88-92 range down into the low 80s, which means he really can't rely on his fastball to get people out. Instead, he mixes his five pitches very well, using control, deception and veteran guile to get outs. He is a fly ball pitcher, so playing in the massive Angels Stadium helps him, but could mean trouble against the powerful Red Sox lineup.
David Price is still struggling to find his groove, as he has been all year. He has struggled in back to back outings, giving up 11 hits and failing to get out of the 6th each time. The thing to watch with Price is location; he still has the excellent velocity and movement on his pitches, which has him among the league leaders in strikeouts. Unfortunately, he has struggled with keeping the ball down and away from the middle of the plate, which has led him to give up the third most hits in the AL. His performance has simply been unacceptable given his paycheck and his role as staff ace, and he needs to start turning it around NOW.
Game 2 (Friday, 10:05 EST): Rick Porcello vs Tim Lincecum
Once upon a time, Tim Lincecum was a perfect doppleganger for the kid in Dazed and Confused, as well as the best pitcher in baseball. Neither of those things are true anymore, and he has been trying to recover his mojo since 2011. He was washed out of the Major Leagues earlier this season, until the Angels grabbed him off the scrap heap and gave him another chance. It hasn't gone well. Tim has given up 31 runs in 30 innings across 7 starts, which is baseball diarrhea. He has one good outing this year (his first), and gave up 8 runs in less than 2 IP last time out. However, given what James Shields did to the Sox earlier this season, it wouldn't be a complete shock for Lincecum to recover his old magic for one night with Boston in town.
Rick Porcello has been exactly what the Red Sox thought they were getting when they signed him last season. He isn't the most spectacular pitcher, but he is dependable, eats up innings, and keeps his team in the game every time out there. He has gone at least 6 innings in 10 of his last 11 starts, and has a 3.57 ERA for the year. With the offense that Boston has, that kind of consistency will earn you a lot of wins, and Porcello has wracked up a 13-2 record for the season.
Game 3 (Saturday 10:05 EST): Hector Santiago vs Drew Pomeranz
Hector Santiago is a very average starter. He is a left-handed sinkerballer, which is a bit unusual, so it could take a couple innings for the Sox to adjust to him. He relies on the sinker completely, and relies on keeping the ball on the ground. If the Sox can get the ball up, they can have a lot of success against him.
Drew Pomeranz is making his 3rd start in a Red Sox uniform, looking to get his first win in Boston. He pitched poorly his first time out, but we saw more of what he is made of the last time out, when he pitched 6 very good innings against the Tigers and made just one mistake. Unfortunately, that mistake left the ballpark courtesy of Jose Iglesias, and the Sox offense couldn't get anything going against Verlander. The key for Pomeranz is his curveball; if he is throwing it for strikes and keeping it down, his arsenal comes together nicely and makes him hard to hit. If he can't throw that pitch well, his fastball/cutter combo is not nearly as effective and he struggles.
Game 4 (Sunday 3:35 EST): Tyler Skaggs vs Steven Wright
Tyler Skaggs is a highly touted 25-year-old lefty with very little big league track record to go off. He will be making just his 2nd start of the season, but is coming off of 7 innings of 3 hit, shutout baseball against the Kansas City Royals. He has a solid, low-mid 90s fastball, and a big, looping curve at 75 MPH. He also can mix in a changeup and a two-seam fastball, but is mostly a two-pitch pitcher. It will be a real test of his abilities to see how he does against the best offense in baseball.
Steven Wright has been a true Cinderella story this year, coming out of absolutely nowhere with a fluke pitch to dominate the league. Recently though, he has falling victim to the kryptonite of all fairy tales: regression. He has allowed at least 3 runs in 5 of his last 6 starts, and has allowed at least 6 runs 3 times in that stretch. Wright's knuckleball has not done well in hot, humid environments this year, which does not bode well for his immediate future. However, it may offer some hope that his performances will improve towards the playoffs. For now, we'll just have to hope that the Angels don't tee off on him the way we've seen some teams do recently.
Prediction: Sox win games 1-3 and lose game 4. Good start to the road trip.
No comments:
Post a Comment