Tuesday Halolinks: Angels' Offense Surging, Now Get A Grip

Now wasn't that fun? Twenty-one hits. Had the Angels been in Las Vegas, they would have scores 1.5 times their runs! However, if they really had been in Vegas, they'd be the triple-A team for the New York Mets. Ironic. Anyway, fun game, fun times, fun Halolinks:

• The 21 hits were the most by the Angels since Aug. 16, 2009, against the Baltimore Orioles. Angels amass 21 hits, rout Mariners - Yahoo! Sports. " The Angels used a seven-run sixth inning to break open a tight game and cruise to an 11-3 win over the Seattle Mariners on Monday night at Angel Stadium. They banged out a season-high 21 hits, including four each from Albert Pujols and Alberto Callaspo, and three from Peter Bourjos. " Every game the Angels hit well is another time I'm reminded that that should be the season we're watching, not the "breakout game". I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't bitch about at least one thing: Angels 11, Mariners 3 - Yahoo! Sports. "The Angels sent 12 men to the plate in the rally, getting six hits and two walks. Bourjos was 2-for-2 with a run and a stolen base in the inning." Josh Hamilton struck out twice in one inning. In an inning where the club is scoring more runs than the Astros do in three night (except against the Angels), Hamilton whiffs. Oh well, he did hit a sweet homer earlier in the game.
• Nice job by Fox Sports West with this graphic:
  
  
• Here's an interesting tid-bit: LA Angels belt Seattle with 21 hits in 11-3 win - Yahoo! Sports. "Trout also scored his 200th career run in the sixth, reaching the milestone in just 249 games - the quickest major leaguer to the mark since 1940. Only seven players since 1916 reached 200 runs more quickly than last season's AL Rookie of the Year, and five of those players are in the Hall of Fame, including Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams and Lloyd Waner." This is an interesting Trout fact, but it also goes to show that the team is doing well in scoring runs.
• Oh, I forgot...here's more talk about grips:
  Mark Gubicza: "This was my home run grip."
  Victor Rojas: "That was your best pitch."
  
• The Angels will face a reclamation project named Jeremy Bonderman: Seattle Mariners at Los Angeles Angels - June 18, 2013 - MLB.com. "The 30-year-old had a rough debut against the Twins on June 2, but since then has allowed just one run and six hits in 14 innings against the Yankees and Astros. He's working on 13 consecutive scoreless innings after shutting out Houston for eight innings in his last start, before winding up with a no-decision when the Astros rallied against closer Tom Wilhelmsen in the ninth. Bonderman's fastball ticked up to 92-94 mph against the Astros as he continues getting stronger, but he said he's not worrying about that."
• In one of the above links, the Angels are described as "surging". I'm not yet convinced the club is surging anywhere except third place, but here are a couple of other teams doing the MLB Surge: Surging Royals beat Indians on wild pitch - Yahoo! Sports. "With the win the Royals, who have won 11 of their last 13 games, climbed back to .500 (34-34), and moved past Cleveland (34-35) and into second place in the American League's Central Division." And former Angels' pitching coach, and current Padres manager Bud Black has the Padres surge-tastic: The Padres, as No Team Has Been Before - FanGraphs Baseball. "This might have escaped your attention, but the Padres are now a game over .500, at 35-34. They’re right in the thick of things in the National League West, and if you forgive the arbitrary cutoff, since April 24 the Padres are tied for the second-best record in baseball. They started 5-15, slipping off whatever radars they might’ve been on in the first place. They’ve made it all the way back, quietly, and they’ve done so because of their position players. Almost entirely. What we don’t have, here, is game-by-game WAR totals. But here’s something I can do. Since the start of May, the Padres have gone 25-18. That’s a quality record, good for a 94-win pace if you prefer things that way. And here’s the breakdown of how that’s happened:
  
  Batters: 7.9 WAR
  Pitchers: 0.1 WAR
  
  What's interesting with this piece? I think this was the formula the Halos were counting on this season; league average pitching, with above average offense. Hasn't quite worked out...yet. However, one of the problems facing the team is their defense. If you have a league average pitching staff, you're going to need a good defense to help keep runner off of the bases, and not to let innings continue: Angels hope to iron out defensive woes - angels.com. "Statistically speaking, it's been the worst in baseball with a league-leading 53 errors and a league-worst .980 fielding percentage. "There have been some errors and we depend a lot on our defense because we feel our defense is an asset in range and dependability," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "It hasn't shown up the way it needs to." In the past 18 games, the Angels have committed 13 errors. The Angels have also had at least one error in each of the past nine games and also lead the league with 60 stolen bases allowed."
• The Downfall Of Civilization Will Be A Foul Ball. "Soon after she ripped it out of the hands of the adult male sitting behind her, the vultures descended and she divided her time fighting them off and egging them on. Elbows were everywhere and then, without warning, some poor kid got too close and got his cup of fruit punch elbowed right into his face and all over his shirt.
  
  It might as well have been blood."