Tuesday Halolinks: Mike Trout Is The Best Ever, Already

I wish I were 20 years-old again, but can you imagine being 20 AND one of the best players in baseball? Today we have Trout-o-Links:

• Well, it's finally started. Let the Trout worship rain over you like a gentle summer misting. The kind that cools the soul and lifts the heart: Los Angeles Angels at Los Angeles Dodgers - June 11, 2012 - MLB.com. ""He just doesn't take anything for granted," Pujols said of the rookie outfielder. "He goes out there and plays hard every day -- dive for a ball, stealing a base, getting his walk, bunting. Everything you can ask for from a perfect player, he has it. He's just amazing." And...Mike Trout: Greatest 20-year-old ever? - SweetSpot Blog - ESPN. "It’s April 27. The Cleveland Indians are celebrating a walk-off victory, after getting to the Angels’ bullpen, an occurrence that has become a fixture for the Halos in April. The Angels sit at 6-14, having lost five straight games and won only one series. ...Fast forward to June 11. The Angels are 32-29 and are 14-4 in their last 18 games. The starting pitching has been brilliant. The bullpen has turned things around. Even the offense is performing. What happened? Mike Trout happened." Trout is so good he makes pitchers pitch better! And it doesn't look like he's going to slow down: Scioscia not planning to reel in Trout - angels.com. "Entering Sunday, the 20-year-old Trout led the American League in hitting (.369) and runs (31) since May 1. In two games against the Rockies, he's stolen four bases, and he led off Sunday's game with a double. Trout will have many more opportunities, because Scioscia doesn't believe scheduling off-days for his young center fielder is the best idea."
• Prior to the start of the season, one of my concerns for the Angels batting order was who was going to protect Pujols. I realize that might be an over-rated, or out-dated way to look at orders and statistics, but yesterday it absolutely had an impact on the game: Angels 3, Dodgers 2 - FOX Sports. "The Angels had Mike Trout on second base representing the go-ahead run with Pujols at the plate and first base open, but the Dodgers decided against walking him and pitching to cleanup hitter Mark Trumbo. ''I never think like that,'' Pujols said when asked if he was surprised the Dodgers didn't walk him. ''I go up with the mind that they're going to pitch to me and I look for a good pitch to hit. He pitched me tough; the pitch was not a good pitch to hit.'' Here's another story on the same subject: Is everyone else making Albert Pujols better? - ESPN Los Angeles. "In one more hopeful sign in this Angels' resurgence, however, Mattingly didn't elect to walk Pujols -- not because the Angels' slugger is struggling, but because so many other parts of the Angels' offense are clicking. Essentially, Mattingly said after the game, it was pick your poison."
• This is pretty cool: Los Angeles Angels at Los Angeles Dodgers - June 12, 2012 - MLB.com. "Angels outfielders Mike Trout and Torii Hunter earned American League co-Players of the Week honors on Monday. ...Trout and Hunter are the first teammates to share the weekly distinction since outfielder Josh Hamilton and pitcher Colby Lewis of the Rangers did so on June 14, 2010."
• 3 Up, 3 Down: Angels 3, Dodgers 2 - ESPN Los Angeles. "He (Angels' starter Garrett Richards) showed good stuff, with a lively 96 mph fastball and looks, at this point like a far better rotation option than Ervin Santana. The Angels will have to choose between them when Jered Weaver returns next week." Right now I think the Halos would have to go with Richards, right? At least until Santana figures out why he's so inconsistent: Santana's struggles are starting to mount - angels.com. "Santana started off the season poorly (7.23 ERA in four starts), pitched very well while getting little run support immediately after that (2.25 ERA in five starts), and he has once again struggled of late (10.18 ERA in four starts)."
• Say what, Mike? "I don't why I was picked for a bobblehead," Scioscia said with a wry smile, "but it's a great honor. It's pretty cool. I had an incredible opportunity to play with a great organization, and to get recognized with a bobblehead, I guess, is the soup d'jour. So it's pretty cool." Yep, with today's meal you have a choice of chicken noodle, navy bean, or scioscia bobblehead. Former Dodger Scioscia gets bobblehead in LA - angels.com
• Does having additional playing time work for everyone, or is it something just veterans benefit from? Someone should ask Peter Bourjos how that works: Bobby Abreu puts no extra stock into matchup with former Angels teammates - angels.com. "Abreu simply attributed the strong start in Dodger blue to the additional playing time. He said he's been swinging the bat well and playing more often. Angels manager Mike Scioscia echoed what Abreu had to say about playing time and said it was tough to find him much with Trout on the way up."
• Good news: Weaver throws bullpen session at Dodger Stadium - The Orange County Register. "Weaver said he felt "great" about the way Monday's throwing session went and the way he has bounced back from the back strain that struck him in the first inning of his May 28 start against the Yankees. "I really haven't felt it since two days after that start," Weaver said. "We just figured it was better to be safe than sorry (and go on the DL)."
• Angels agree to terms with 11 picks - ESPN Los Angeles. "The Angels announced Monday they have agreed to terms with 11 of their picks. After signing Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson, they surrendered their first- and second-round picks."
• Remember when Halos Heaven broke the Mariano Rivera spitball story? This is kind of the same thing: Was Jose Valverde throwing spitballs last night? - HardballTalk. "And the point of the video is that it appears to show Jose Valverde doctoring up the baseball." This is a pretty interesting post: Dirk Hayhurst: The art of doctoring baseballs is alive and well in the year 2012 - Yahoo! Sports. "Every bullpen bag — the kind you see rookie relievers carting out to the pen pregame — is stocked with goodies that help ensure the Eddie Harris' of the world still have a fighting chance when they take the bump. I'm talking creams that make the ball spin, drop, stick, roll over and play dead."
• Years ago, I had a very brief conversation with then Angels' GM Mike Port. Words came out of his mouth, but he never said anything. I hate that. Dodgers' Stan Kasten spins it his way, leaves your head spinning - latimes.com. "The Cubs, though, outbid the Dodgers for Soler. And yet it wasn't about money, Kasten says. "We fell short in other ways," Kasten says. When asked to explain what that means, he says, "It means what it means." And what does that mean? "Just leave it at that," says Kasten. Now when you can't explain the small stuff, what happens when it comes time to comment on monumental decisions?"