The Angels 2010 season arguably came to an end when first baseman Kendry Morales broke his leg as he jumped into a mob of teammates after hitting a walk-off home run. The Angels never really recovered from the injury and had trouble scoring runs for the pitching staff throughout the season.
A bright spot for the Angels last season was their rotation. Headlined by American League strikeout leader, Jered Weaver, the rotation included Ervin Santana, Scott Kazmir, Joel Pineiro, and midseason addition Dan Haren. Luckily for the ball club, this star-studded rotation will be together for the upcoming 2011 season. Out of the five men in the rotation, Kazmir is the questionable one. Since arriving to Los Angeles from Tampa Bay in 2009, Kazmir has not faired well. The left-hander finished 2009 with an ERA of 4.89 and followed with a 9-15 record with an ERA of 5.49 in 2010. If Kazmir can pitch like he did for the 2008 American League Champion Tampa Bay Rays (12-8, 3.49), the Angels will certainly be in a position to compete in 2011.
A cause for concern for the Angels is in the bullpen. The Angels have always prided themselves with good relief pitching with names such as Scot Schields, Brendan Donnelly, Troy Percival and Francisco Rodriguez. Lately however, the bullpen has not been the team’s strong suite. The team’s lack of success in 2010 prompted the team to trade away their closer Brian Fuentes. The Fuentes trade allowed set up man Fernando Rodney to take over the closer role. Unfortunately for Rodney, he did no do too well. The right-hander blew four save opportunities and posted an ERA over five runs during the last month of the season. During the offseason, the Angels signed both Scott Downs for Toronto and Hisanori Takahashi from the Mets. These two relievers should be able to do their part bridging the gap between the starter and closer Fernando Rodney.
Due to a poor offensive season for the Angels last season, the organization felt the need to make some upgrades to the lineup. The most notable upgrade was that of outfielder Vernon Wells, who had spent his entire 12-year career with the Toronto Blue Jays. Wells will add a power bat that will complement first baseman Kendry Morales, outfielder Torii Hunter, and designated hitter Bobby Abreu very well. The only knock on Wells is his ability to remain healthy. Wells has played the last two seasons in full, but was sidelined for a huge chunk of the 2008 season. In 2009, Wells’ power numbers were not where we were accustomed to seeing, so there was question as to whether Wells could still hit in the big leagues. Last season, however, he put those naysayers to rest. Wells hit .273 with 31 homers and 88 RBI.
If the Angels are going to compete in 2011, they’re going to need third baseman Brandon Wood to finally live up to the hype. Wood, once considered one of the Angels’ top prospects, played extremely well during his minor league career. In 2005, Wood combined to hit .321, 43 home runs, and 116 RBI in 134 games. Since his call up to the major leagues, Wood has not been very successful. Wood has struggled so much with the big club that he has been reduced to a reserve player. Last season with the Angels, Wood appeared in 81 games, hit .146, homered four times, and drove in only 14 runs. Despite the fact that the Angels currently have Alberto Callaspo penciled in as the everyday third baseman, Wood needs to pull his own weight and play himself into the starting lineup for the Angels.
Unlike the last five to ten years, the American League West has three legitimate contenders. The defending American League Champion Texas Rangers are not going anywhere and the Oakland Athletics are a young but dangerous team that can very well be successful this year. As the 2011 season approaches, the Angels are not the favorites to win the American League West. In fact, the Angels are not even predicted to make the postseason. If the Angels are going to defy the odds in the American League, they are going to have to get better at timely hitting. I believe that the pitching rotation should not be an issue at all but the closer situation is something that will need to be monitored constantly. We shall see what will become of the Angels in 2011, but chances are that the Angels will be watching the playoffs from their couches come October.
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