Wednesday Halolinks: No One Cares About The Payroll, Just Win The Damn Games

Last night's loss leaves us feeling like we've been ditched in the soda isle at Walmart. Feeling good about the situation, score a couple of runs, tying run on third, super-fast winning run on first...and then HUH? What just happened?? At least we have Halolinks:

• I've written about this before, and I'm sure I have no clue as to the life the players lead, but damn...I wish they'd show some emotion. I'm pissed about the game, all I want is the players I root for to show the same passion as I do, at least just a little. I don't have anything invested in the outcome of the games except pride in my team, and it kills me to watch games end like last night's. There's no way I can shrug my shoulders and say, "it just didn't happened": Athletics 6, Angels 5 - MLB News - FOX Sports on MSN. "''I put a good swing on the fastball, and it just happened to be right at the third baseman,'' said Kendrick, who went 0 for 5. ''It happens sometimes. We had an opportunity to win the game, and it just didn't happen. But you want to be that guy up there to get that big hit.'' I would like to read, "Upon trying to interview Howie Kendrick for this article I was told, "Get the $%#@ away from me!" Kendrick was obviously too pissed off to answer questions."
  
• When I read this, I freaked: MLB: Oakland Athletics beat Anaheim Angels, find new ways to win, lead AL wild card race - FOX Sports. "Adding to the degree of difficulty for Blevins: The Angels ran Peter Bourjos for Pujols, creating the threat of a stolen base that would eliminate the possibility of a double play. The Athletics, meanwhile, played their infield back, conceding the tying run." Let's see...no outs, one of the fastest (if not THE fastest) players in baseball representing the tying run is on third and the infield is playing back?? Oakland was probably playing their infield back because it was the slow-footed Kendrys Morales at the plate, and had the Halos pinch-hit someone else, the defense would have probably moved in. Yet, that's a good thing right? It's real easy playing armchair quarterback and second guessing the way the ninth inning played out, but I think I'd rather have a bunting Bourjos at the plate in that situation instead of Fleet Pete looking like a statue on first base. Play for the tie at home...win it in extra innings.
  
• Here's are the Register's and Times' take on the game: A's hand Angels second loss, 6-5 - The Orange County Register...and...Angels' rally falls short in 6-5 loss to Athletics - latimes.com
• Pujols delivers and it doesn't matter - ESPN Los Angeles. I hope that was a rhetorical question since it gets answered towards the end of the post: "How is this happening? How are the A's, a team with a $55 million payroll and that had the same record as the Houston Astros (22-30) on June 1, just kicking the Angels -- they of the $154 million payroll -- in the teeth lately?" Let me get this straight, if the team who just beat you is getting it done, does that mean you aren't? "The bottom line is winning games, and they held on and got it done," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said.
• Yeah, we get it. Oakland's payroll is a fraction of the Angels'. I thought this tidbit was interesting, but don't bother following the link...the rest is typical Jeff Miller crap: Miller: No dollars or sense, but A's lead the way - The Orange County Register. "The nine players who took the field for Oakland in the bottom of the first inning Tuesday will earn roughly $18 million this season. So will Torii Hunter." It's not what you spend, it's how you spend it: Angels are no longer surprised by A's - Yahoo! Sports. "The Athletics' ability to trade away former All-Star pitchers Gio Gonzalez, Andrew Bailey and Trevor Cahill over the winter and then replenish their staff with an assortment of young arms has been the envy of baseball this season."
• This is AWESOME (and there's photos if you're into this sort of thing): A's do Piss Poor Job, Angels Out Do Them, I Piss Pants - Athletics Nation. "If we get a K and a GIDP and win this game, I will piss my pants". Blevins entered the game and struck out Kendry Morales, and induced Kendrick to ground in the Piss-My-Pants Inducing GIDP that ended the game, and soiled my loins." I'm not saying I'd ever piss my pants for the Angels, but I envy the passion. Who am I kidding, of course I'd do this: If the Angels make the playoffs, I WILL PISS MY PANTS.
  
• I read this and it bummed me out: 3 up, 3 down: Athletics 6, Angels 5 - Los Angeles Angels Blog - ESPN Los Angeles. "If this is the final month of Hunter's Angels career, he's making it memorable. Hunter hit a solo homer in the seventh inning and drove in a run in the bottom of the ninth to give him 27 RBIs in August and September." It's possible we're watching the last games with Torii Hunter on the club.
  
• Angels' Mike Scioscia has a tough decision on Mark Trumbo - latimes.com. "Fans clamored for Mark Trumbo to play every day over struggling left fielder Vernon Wells in April. Five months later, there is a similar sentiment for Wells to play instead of Trumbo." Really? Who's clamoring for Wells? Here's what happens when a writer puts a little research into their post: Mark Trumbo hitting .194 with 65 strikeouts in last 43 games - HardballTalk. "Here’s the thing, though: Dating back to mid-July, when Trumbo started slumping, Wells has hit .190 with four homers and a .696 OPS in 25 games. That’s better than Trumbo, sure, but it’s still really, really bad. If Scioscia is going to bench Trumbo for someone he ought to think about it being Peter Bourjos, because at least then the Angels will be getting amazing defense." No, we (okay, maybe I) would rather have Bourjos in the outfield rather than Wells.
  
• The next two, must-win games for the Halos are going to be tough: Athletics-Angels Preview - FOX Sports on MSN. "Griffin, who grew up down the way from Anaheim in suburban San Diego, is 3-0 with a 1.54 ERA in four starts away from home. Facing the Angels (77-65) for the first time, he'll try to help Oakland (81-60) to its first 12-game road winning streak since July 31-Aug. 15, 1971." The Angels will counter with a suddenly strong Ervin Santana: Oakland Athletics at Los Angeles Angels - September 12, 2012 - MLB.com. "Opposite Griffin, Angels righty Ervin Santana has rebounded from a disastrous first four months of the season. Santana has lasted at least six innings in all seven of his starts since the beginning of August, and the club has lost only one of those games."
• Another reason to play Bourjos in the outfield: Ervin Santana Making Meatball History - FanGraphs Baseball. "Over his last eight starts, he’s won four games with a 3.51 ERA, giving up just 36 hits over 51.1 innings pitched. But he’s also had a 1.92 HR/9 rate, which is worse than he even had in his previous 19 games. On the season, his HR/9 rate stands at 1.89, giving up 34 home runs thus far over his 162.1 innings, leading the major leagues in both home runs allowed and HR/9."
• Just like in mainstream film making, a studio will produce a clunker. The Trout Porn market is no different: (A Very Different Way Of Looking At) Mike Trout's Chances Of Making The Hall Of Fame - Beyond the Box Score. "Only 1.7% of current players in the Hall of Fame have any kind of fish as their namesake."
• I have a dream...Let’s get rid of pitching wins - The Hardball Times. "I dream that one morning I’ll wake up to a world in which the pitching win no longer exists as a baseball statistic. I can’t stand pitching wins. Pitching wins may not be the worst baseball statistic ever invented, but quite honestly it is the one I like the least." You know which statistic I can't stand? The Fish Namesake Percentage stat. LAME.