TUESDAY ANGELS ROUNDUP: John Lackey Looks To Continue Angels' Streak

Up next for Angels: Tuesday at Chicago White Sox - Los Angeles Times
John Lackey vs. Jose Contreras

Angels-White Sox Preview - FOX Sports on MSN
"We just have to worry about winning series and continue to play the way that we're playing right now," manager Ozzie Guillen told the White Sox's official Web site. "We know it's going to be a really tough road, but I think we can handle it."  That tough road continues against the Angels, winners of 17 of 20 and five in row. Los Angeles (63-40) has won eight in a row away from home, its longest such streak since a franchise-record 11 game road run from July 6-Aug. 2, 1988.

Injuries haven't killed Angels; they've only made them stronger - LA Daily News
With six regulars hitting at least .300, the Angels collectively are batting a major-league best .290. Erick Aybar's .414 average in July was the best in the majors.

NBC SPORTS & COVERS.COM: Matchups, Odds, and Injuries

Anaheim Goes Clubbing - FanGraphs Baseball
For the last few years, the Angels offensive game plan has been to try to get a few fast guys on the bases in front of Vladimir Guerrero and then hope he hits a three run homer. They could afford some offensive weaknesses thanks to their starting rotation, and they built a winner out of run prevention with just enough offense to get by.

Indisputable: The LA Angels Are The Best Team In Baseball. - Bleacher Report
Right now, at this point in the season, it’s no contest. The Angels are the best team in baseball. Better than the Yankees and Dodgers and Bosox and Tigers and any other team you want to mention.

Team Reports - MLB at CBSSports.com
LHP Brian Fuentes has not pitched since two disastrous outings on back-to-back nights last week. Fuentes has not retired any of the past eight batters he has faced, four each Monday and Tuesday against the Indians. He allowed three singles, a double, two home runs and two walks in those two games. In his previous 19 appearances, Fuentes had not allowed more than one hit in any appearance.

Team Reports II - MLB at CBSSports.com
1B Kendry Morales was named AL Player of the Week for a week that ended with his two-homer, six-RBI game in Minnesota on Sunday. Morales hit .423 in six games last week with three home runs and 13 RBIs.

Coming in October: the World Series of Los Angeles - Los Angeles Times
This season is starting to look, feel and smell like a Freeway World Series.

Baseball Digest Daily Blog - Diggin’ In The Defensive Dirt (Part 2) — Second Basemen
Today, it’s time to look at baseball’s second basemen and how they stack up based on eight of the nine defensive metrics used to measure first basemen with the addition of DPR (found on FanGraphs) which replaces bF2O% (a statistic found on Baseball-Reference for corner infielders).

A's score three in ninth to stun Rangers - USATODAY.com
Rajai Davis came through for Oakland again with a pinch-hit two-run triple in the ninth inning to rally the A's past the Rangers 3-2 on Monday night.

Is it too early to start scoreboard watching?

August 4 - BR Bullpen
Events, births and deaths that occurred on August 4. 1985:
1985 - Rod Carew becomes the 16th player ever to collect 3,000 career hits. Carew hits a single to left off Frank Viola in the 3rd inning of the California Angels' 6 - 5 win over the Minnesota Twins at Anaheim Stadium.
1999 - Prior to a game with the Royals, with his team in the midst of a slump, Angels' batting coach Rod Carew suggests the club use a single bat through the starting lineup as a way of loosening up the players. When leadoff hitter Orlando Palmeiro strikes out in bottom half of the first inning, he drops the bat for the next hitter to use. Umpire Tim Tschida sees this as an act of defiance and ejects Palmeiro from the game. Anaheim manager Terry Collins eventually convinces Tschida that Palmeiro wasn't trying to show him up, and the umpire changes his decision and allows him to stay in the game. The Angels go on to defeat the Royals, 4-3.