MONDAY ANGELS ROUNDUP: Truth Hurts, So Does Hunter's Groin

Has he really lost it? He started to look vulnerable the first couple of months last year, only to heat up in August and September and appear to be the Vlad of old. This year he looks downright pitiful. He isn’t striking fear in the heart of pitchers anymore. Sad to see. I say give him until the end of the month. If he remains this pitiful, he needs to drop in the batting order. Who takes his place? Juan Rivera.

If Rivera stays hot – or even warm – move Torii to 3rd and Rivera to 4th…then hope we can make a trade for another decent bat before the deadline.

Then there’s the other mystery…the bullpen. There just ins’t a dependable arm. Once again, I believe we need to look outside of the organization for a consistent RP. No offense to Rich Thompson, but we can’t keep “experimenting”. We need a known quantity.
A trade for one stable set-up guy may just “shock” the others enough to get their heads out of their arses. We will not be a first place team with Bulger Grand Slams, Arredondo wildness, Speier worthlessness, or Shield erraticness. WE NEED STABILITY!

Everyone talks about how scoscia has a ton more say on personnel moves than most managers so its hard to know its Tony. The stubborn attitude towards veterans over star prospects SHOULD be Tony’s call but I feel like its absolutely coming from Scoscia.

Even then though, I think the lack of a clear plan in the offseason is hurting us. Signing Rivera while shying from Abreu and then getting Abreu at the last second showed me they didn’t have a plan they were committed to. This team needed power and a young foundation to build on and Wood at least offered a CHANCE of that…but as usual we sided with aging veterans on the wrong side of their primes.

1. When things are going south, you need to act. That’s Reagin’s job.
2. Someone needs to patch these guys up and get them healthy – medical staff
3. The pitching coach needs start slapping some sense into these eejits. After that he needs to get together with the medical staff and work on a cloning programme for Darren Oliver, 4 of him would be peachy. And while, they’re in the same room, Bulger needs to be sent for a psychiatric evaluation, and straight-jacketed so he can’t pitch

— How long before someone admits this is no longer the Vlad Guerrero every Angels fan loved and admired? He has been back from his injury for two weeks now, so this should no longer be a timing issue. It appears to be more of an age issue. Pitchers are challenging him and jamming him like never before. He appears to have lost bat speed, and no one can remember the last time he drove a ball. Did he really leave a dozen runners on base Sunday, or did it just seem that way? Maybe he’ll still bust out of it, but how long do you go with him in the third slot if he keeps looking like the West Coast version of David Ortiz?

THANK YOU!

Face it, he’s finished.

Although I feel many people are responsible. We have needed more power in the lineup for years, and we never went out and got it. In the meantime our once great bullpen has eroded and we are now just a .500 team.

These problems didn’t sneak up on us, we could all see it coming, and yet nobody did anything to stop it.

I voted for Soth because of his inability to put together a decent lineup, and his stubbornness with GMJ, Howie Kendrick, and Brandon Wood. GMJ should NEVER play, Kendrick should be in AAA until he learns how to hit a God-damn curveball, and there is no good reason for Wood to be sitting in Salt Lake.

The only one I could make a case for is Mike Butcher since the bullpen has underperformed so badly. But is that even Butcher’s fault? Heck, it seems like he deserves some credit for holding together a patchwork rotation for 2 months. Without magic from Loux, Palmer, et al, the Angels are 8 – 10 games back.

How can you blame Scioscia? He’s done whatever he can with the players he’s been given. How could you expect guys who performed so well last year (Shields, Arredondo, Fuentes) to completely tank? And is he responsible for Vlad’s descent into an out machine? His hands are tied!

I guess maybe you could make the argument that Reagins is at fault for not making a bigger offer to Teixeira and failing to trade for a legitimate bat, but I think he is handcuffed by ownership. The one thing that is his fault – allowing Wood to languish in the minors while continuing to allow Scioscia to play Aybar, Izturis, and Kendrick every day. Still, I don’t think it’s his fault.

This team, as it’s constructed, is good enough to win the West. The bullpen has struggled beyond anyone’s wildest imaginations. The Angels two best starters were hurt and have then been unexpectedly disappointing since their return. The Angels best hitter has been hurt and then has been unexpectedly disappointing. How are any of these guys to blame for that?