TuesdoLinks: Maybin we got us a left fielder?

On May 16th, for some really odd reason Mike Scioscia moved Cameron Maybin into the leadoff spot. In his career, Maybin has been leadoff 3rd most at 132 games behind batting second (215 games) and batting 7th (173 games). His career BA there is only .254 (5th-best batting slot). His OBP is only .325 (again 5th-best). His SLG is only .370 (still 5th best). And his OPS is .696 (6th best). So with that history, how the hell was Sosh gonna know that moving Maybin back into that slot was going to allow him to explode as he has?

Since there, Cameron has a slash line of .542/.621/.833 with an OPS of 1.454 and this home run where he gives an assist to Joe West on the call, 4 RBI, 5 BB's, 9 runs scored and a Stolen Base. That's 13 hits in 24 At Bats. I'd have to spend more time to be sure, but I would have to guess that this is the hottest streak Maybin has had in his career. (For all that, he didn't even get a consideration for MLB Player of the Week.) And after his dismal ST and that .180 Batting Average he carried into that May 16th game, there was no way to know that his regression was going to be so severe, so fast, and so coincidental with getting parked right in front of Mike Trout. (Streak Alert! Trout has walked in 9 straight games, collecting 14 of them in that span. The MLB record is 22, set by Roy Cullenbine in 1947.)

It's been nice. It's been juicy. It's been a helluva a lot of fun. Getting to watch Trout burn it up helps, as does winning 4 of these last 6 games. But dayum, wouldn't be nice to get more of that 121 OPS+ that Maybin put out for Detroit last year?

Angels won the opener 3-2. JC Ramirez survived his 1st inning jitters and was pretty dang good. The bullpen was solid. Have some Links:

A Little Bit of Angels News

In the lore of sports, nothing is quite as ubiquitous as fans clamoring for Guy Not Playing, when guy that IS playing is not producing to expectations. Since this franchise has gone three consecutive seasons with one or more guys not producing to expectations, we LAA fans are pretty familiar with getting to see Guy Not Playing. One would think that we, of all fans, are pretty over the excitement of anticipation for Guy Not Playing, since we have seen the disappointing results of so many of them in a row. But here we are. Nolan Fontana is the latest in a long line of saviors, and C.J. Cron is the latest plane trip to Salt Lake rescue project..........

As I wrote last week, right after Commander Mayhood shamed the rest of the baseball world with the shocking expose that Mike Trout was improving and nobody but he had noticed, the floodgates opened as higher paid MSM reps flocked to the discovery. That torrent of attention has not stopped. And we have dueling headlines all over the place at which to smile..........Has Mike Trout somehow gotten better?..........Mike Trout Somehow Found A Way to Get Better..........Real or not? Mike Trout has raised his game to a new level..........because Mike Trout could be even more awesome..........And then listen in, as The Best Is Getting Better..........Out of all that, Baseball is now Fishing For Ways To Stop Trout..........

Oh, and have some Trout Porn Stats of the Day: here.....here.....and here..........

No, Fletcher, I do NOT remember when it was a thing we wanted Derek Norris..........

Did you notice that Albert Pujols was back in the lineup last night? No, really, he was. There was that walk, and that strikeout, and that grounding into a double play..........

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Sometimes awards are handed out because of narrative and not because of, you know, actual performance. We have been on both sides of this sword, although it's safe to say that we can only be one one side of the sword for the foreseeable future.........

Jared Hughes is a rare breed. He's a pitcher who actually cares about information and seeks more of it to be successful. This is important in this era of home runs. FanGraphs dives into his world and finds at least Hughes is bright enough to realize that keeping the ball down in the zone is feeding upper cuts instead of feeding his normal retinue of ground balls. And at least Hughes is looking to try and do something about it. The sad takeaway I got was how he has to resort to his own cell phone to do his own scouting, because his team has yet to catch up to his needs..........

Here's an oddity. Advertisers are still enamored with traditional television time slots. I'm not so sure I agree with this analysts water metaphor when it comes to modern trends and directions in broadcast advertising. IMHO, advertisers will certainly be forced to follow their desired target audience. Lashing themselves to traditional television channel services is like bragging about how tight you are with rabbit ears. So, therefore, my POV on that water metaphor might be more like: "Advertising on TV is as archaic as cranking up the bucket from the bottom of the well. You could set up a distribution network of pipes and pumps that make water available to anybody, anywhere, anytime, but there's a reason we love that billboard above the well."...........

I have been working hard to ignore this. But this is just too over the top. Ex-Cub David Ross, doing the dancing thing, throws a perfect game in the final...........

Atlanta fans. No excusing them. Since the MLB team moved out to SunTrust Park, they find themselves within shouting distance of their AAA affiliate, the Gwinnet Braves. Now, instead of Gwinnet being 36.1 driving miles awayfrom the MLB Braves back when they were at Turner, Gwinnet is only 35.1 driving miles away. Holy balls, we got ourselves an emergency! Suddenly Atlanta fans are now confused when they discuss "going to the Braves game". Is it the MLB team or is it the AAA team? Sports fans in Georgia can't handle it. So Gwinnet is going to change their name, and they are open to suggestions. I would assume that, all things considered, The Gwinnet Creek is off limits...........

Tales of The Tebow. As any football fan will tell you, when Tebow is throwing any sporting object one must always be on the alert for wayward balls.............This is kinda humiliating. Tim Tebow now has as many career home runs as did Michael Jordan............

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