Talking myself off the Hernandez-Lee Ledge

Okay, I'll admit it - I panicked and ranted to coworker about why it sucks that Seattle has a good GM now.  I mean, Cliff Lee for Aumont (and they didn't even include Michael Saunders!) I was shocked, heartbroken, and a more than a little whiny.  And it all made my Mariners-loving coworker so happy. 

But I have seen the light,O Halo fans, and I am here to bring some good news...

There are reasons to still be positive! I went home and took a nice hard look at the Angel's roster and found quite a few things to be happy about.

First, check out those birthdays (fine I'll do it for you) - "Presumptive Ace" Jered Weaver is 27; "Likely #2" Scott Kazmir is 26 in January; "Inconsistent" Ervin just turned 27; and "Viable 4th starter" Saunders is 28.

Did I mention that their career ERAs average 4.07 , vs the AL League average of 4.45?

(4.52 - Ervin, 3.73 - Weaver, 4.22 - Saunders, 3.83 - Kazmir)

So Hernandez - Lee is a nasty 1-2 (Truly nasty - combined WAR totals for those 2 last year? 13.5.  All 4 Angels combined? 8.5).  Whatever.  I like the Angel's chances with the depth (and for the record, I would love to add Lowe's projected 4.0 WAR for next year... but let's not get ahead of ourselves here.)

2. Starting Infield

Again, lets take a look at the ages of starting infielders.  Napoli is 28, Kendry is 26, Howie is 26, Aybar will turn 26 in January, and Izturis is 29 (and for those who are even more optimistic, Brandon Wood is a spry 24).

All infielders have a positive UZR, and yeah they can put up offensive stats too. 

3. Angels Offense

Yes, the Angels had the third best offense in baseball last year, and Figgins switching sides will hurt.  But, as mentioned above, all regular players expect for Hunter, Rivera, Matsui and Abreu are on the right side of 30. 

Now looking at the Mariner's lineup - is there a single player you expect to hit even 20 homeruns?  Figgins and Ichiro are potent at the top of the lineup, but Mike Carp? Jose Lopez? Junior Griffey? Looking at Bill James projections, so far not a single hitter projects out to more than 20 homeruns.  Even without Figgins, the Angel's lineup feels as potent as ever. 

4. Too Early to Tell

Most of my optimism comes from this one point: Its still too early to tell. We have a rotation with 3 former all stars all under 30, and entire infield at their peak, and an aging but capable outfield full of middle of the order hitters.  The Mariners, meanwhile, still have plenty of holes to fill (and their 3-5 hitters scare no one).  So while we all must awe at the Cliff Lee deal and wonder how much the gap has closed, we should be really excited that the Angels are fielding a young, dynamic team. 

Oh, and I trust these two guys to find a way to make it all work.