Halos Heaven - September 25: Dodgers 9, Angels 5Angels news and analysishttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/50595/hh-fav.png2020-09-25T22:22:23-07:00http://www.halosheaven.com/rss/stream/212208262020-09-25T22:22:23-07:002020-09-25T22:22:23-07:00Angels eliminated from playoff chase
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<img alt="MLB: Los Angeles Angels At Los Angeles Dodgers" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/1MNgTC5CbfLhET2cn7ug2OQ5K7M=/0x0:4603x3069/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/67472439/usa_today_14984470.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Angels hit 3 homers, but allow 5 in loss in LA</p> <p id="OnMCT8">The <a href="https://www.halosheaven.com/">Angels</a>’ chances at the postseason dwindled to zero on Friday night, losing a slugfest to the <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a>, 9-5 at Dodger Stadium.</p>
<p id="EyOymD">Home runs were the name of the game in this one, and the Angels got three, from the usual suspects. <span>Mike Trout</span> worked an eight-pitch at-bat against <span>Clayton Kershaw</span> before taking him deep for a three-run shot in the third inning, his 17th of the season. <span>Justin Upton</span> homered in the fourth inning and <span>Jared Walsh</span> did the same in the fifth inning, the ninth home run of the season for both.</p>
<p id="qfPixX">The Angels led 3-1, 4-2, and 5-3 in this one, but fell behind in the fifth, when <span>Justin Turner</span> hit his second home run of the game, then <span>Will Smith</span> followed with a two-run shot off <span>Matt Andriese</span>. The Dodgers hit five home runs on the night, three of them off starter <span>Andrew Heaney</span> in four-plus innings.</p>
<p id="oZb5PQ">Home runs were flying out so readily on Friday that not even <span>Mike Mayers</span> was spared. He allowed a two-run shot to <span>Edwin Ríos</span> in the eighth inning, snapping a string of 19 consecutive scoreless frames for Mayers. He last allowed a run on August 24.</p>
<p id="Ri142g">With the loss, the Angels remain three games behind the <a href="https://www.crawfishboxes.com/">Astros</a>, but with two to play. So there won’t be a postseason for the Angels, for a sixth straight year.</p>
<h3 id="ORBXhp">A little help</h3>
<p id="t60s3H">During the fourth inning of the Angels’ game in Los Angeles, the Astros were one strike away from clinching a playoff spot as the second-place team in the American League West, which would have eliminated the Angels. But instead, <span>Ronald Guzman</span> hit a game-tying home run to keep the <a href="https://www.lonestarball.com/">Rangers</a>, <em>and the Angels</em>, alive.</p>
<p id="6FRVsI">Houston tallied a run in the top of the 10th, but the Rangers rallied for two to win it. The Astros’ loss bought the Angels some time, but as it turned out, it was only a few extra hours.</p>
<p id="e4PeBe">With the loss, the Angels are 14-7 in their last 21 games.</p>
<p id="VFUGcV">“We gave it a nice run, and Texas really helped us out a lot tonight,” manager Joe Maddon said after the game. “We had a nice thing going on. We grabbed a lead here, but just couldn’t hold on to it.”</p>
<h3 id="KsHaiK">A long time coming</h3>
<p id="JIzu4r">When <span>Luis Rengifo</span> had to exit with a left hamstring strain after hitting a single in the seventh inning, the Angels called on <span>Elliot Soto</span> to pinch run at first base. It was the big league debut for Soto, a little more than a month after his 31st birthday.</p>
<p id="fJEBQE">Soto, who was added to the roster on Tuesday when <span>Andrelton Simmons</span> opted out of the season, played 10 seasons and 867 games in the minor leagues, seeing time at shortstop, second base, and third base.</p>
<p id="72d4J4">After pinch running, Soto played the final two innings defensively at second base.</p>
<h3 id="92U9ta">Friday particulars</h3>
<p id="HwrTRn"><strong>Home runs</strong>: <span>Mike Trout</span> (17), <span>Justin Upton</span> (9), Jared Walsh (9); <span>Justin Turner</span> 2 (4), <span>A.J. Pollock</span> (14), <span>Will Smith</span> (7), Edwin Ríos (7)</p>
<p id="SIf6VB"><strong>WP — </strong><span><strong>Brusdar Graterol</strong></span><strong> (1-2)</strong>: 1 IP, 1 hit, 1 run</p>
<p id="yvEGOq"><strong>LP — </strong><span><strong>Matt Andriese</strong></span><strong> (2-4)</strong>: 1 IP, 1 hit, 1 run, 1 strikeout</p>
<h3 id="UnJyuv">Up next</h3>
<p id="b9DD2l"><span>Dylan Bundy</span> makes his final start of a stellar 2020 season on Saturday night (6:10 p.m.; Fox Sports West, SportsNet LA), facing off against <span>Tony Gonsolin</span> for Los Angeles.</p>
https://www.halosheaven.com/2020/9/25/21456842/angels-eliminated-dodgers-recapEric Stephen2020-09-25T18:23:00-07:002020-09-25T18:23:00-07:00Angels vs. Dodgers Game IV chat
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<img alt="Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim v Los Angeles Dodgers" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/w1_U4eNIwgkXY1agBTdvJv0BMFI=/0x0:3000x2000/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/67472013/1006863352.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Victor Decolongon/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Game 58 of 60</p> <p id="FaAIb4">The <a href="https://www.halosheaven.com/">Angels</a> close out their regular season in Los Angeles against the <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a>, with <span>Andrew Heaney</span> on the mound Friday night in the series opener against <span>Clayton Kershaw</span> for Los Angeles.</p>
<h3 id="pRCnBB">Pregame reading</h3>
<aside id="Ba2eWU"><div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"Heaney looks to finish strong against the Dodgers","url":"https://www.halosheaven.com/2020/9/25/21456062/andrew-heaney-angels-preview-dodgers"},{"title":"Will Mike Trout lead the league in anything in 2020?","url":"https://www.halosheaven.com/2020/9/25/21456226/mike-trout-mlb-leaderboard"},{"title":"Friday edition: How the Angels can make the playoffs ","url":"https://www.halosheaven.com/2020/9/25/21455460/los-angeles-angels-mlb-news-rumors-mike-trout"}]}'></div></aside><h3 id="TWc7ep">Game info</h3>
<p id="VrSgiT">Time: 6:40 p.m. </p>
<p id="r7Vs4R">TV: Fox Sports West, SportsNet LA (Dodgers broadcast)</p>
https://www.halosheaven.com/2020/9/25/21456774/angels-dodgers-game-threadEric Stephen2020-09-25T12:21:00-07:002020-09-25T12:21:00-07:00Will Mike Trout lead the league in anything in 2020?
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<img alt="MLB: Texas Rangers at Los Angeles Angels" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/-0FKMAfEqLng813-Sb2Yfg4ogX4=/0x0:4151x2767/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/67470276/usa_today_14958525.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Pool Photo-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Angels superstar is within striking distance of a few stats heading into the final weekend</p> <p id="Xcb9pn"><span>Mike Trout</span> enters the season’s final weekend not leading the American League in any particular notable statistic. If that holds up after these three games, it would be a first for the <a href="https://www.halosheaven.com/">Angels</a> superstar.</p>
<p id="8dN6K2">In his first eight full seasons, Trout led the league in at least 52 categories:</p>
<ul>
<li id="MEe0xd">
<strong>2012</strong>: runs (129), stolen bases (49), OPS+ (168), wRC+ (167), bWAR (10.5), fWAR (10.1)</li>
<li id="NH3Ptm">
<strong>2013</strong>: runs (109), walks (110), bWAR (8.9), times on base (309), fWAR (10.2)</li>
<li id="PvYVIU">
<strong>2014</strong>: runs (115), RBI (111), total bases (338), extra-base hits (84), strikeouts (184), fWAR (8.3)</li>
<li id="M1M4As">
<strong>2015</strong>: slugging percentage (.590), OPS (.991), OPS+ (176), wRC+ (171), bWAR (9.6), fWAR (9.3), times on base (274)</li>
<li id="8wrykd">
<strong>2016</strong>: runs (123), walks (116), on-base percentage (.441), OPS+ (173), wRC+ (170), bWAR (10.5), times on base (300), fWAR (9.7)</li>
<li id="yiipkp">
<strong>2017</strong>: OBP (.442), SLG (.629), OPS (1.071), OPS+ (186), wRC+ (180), intentional walks (15)</li>
<li id="21HxBO">
<strong>2018</strong>: walks (122), OBP (.460), OPS (1.088), OPS+ (198), wRC+ (190), intentional walks (25), times on base (279)</li>
<li id="vSxkpI">
<strong>2019</strong>: OBP (.438), SLG (.645), OPS (1.083), OPS+ (182), wRC+ (180), intentional walks (14), fWAR (8.6)</li>
</ul>
<p id="GHyazT">Even though Trout isn’t leading the league in anything at the moment (<a href="https://www.baseballprospectus.com/leaders/hitting/hitting-standard-by-season?year=2020&lg=AL&team=all&lvl=mlb&min=60">except for adjusted Deserved Runs Created, DRC+, at Baseball Prospectus</a>), he’s still having another excellent season. He’s hitting .282/.392/.595 with 16 home runs and a 167 OPS+. Trout is five home runs behind <span>Luke Voit</span> for the AL lead so that gap probably won’t be closed. But there are still several categories in which Trout can lead the league:</p>
<ul>
<li id="wsP7HX">40 runs scored (<a href="http://bbref.com/pi/shareit/6tSjc">4th</a>): <span>Tim Anderson</span> leads with 44</li>
<li id="6kBAlY">163 wRC+ (<a href="https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=bat&lg=al&qual=y&type=8&season=2020&month=0&season1=2020&ind=0&team=0&rost=0&age=0&filter=&players=0&startdate=2020-01-01&enddate=2020-12-31&sort=17,d">4th</a>): <span>Jose Abreu</span> leads with 172</li>
<li id="Ajewot">167 OPS+ (<a href="http://bbref.com/pi/shareit/V3HRX">4th</a>): <span>Nelson Cruz</span> leads with 178</li>
<li id="7V63kM">.392 OBP (<a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/2020-batting-leaders.shtml">4th</a>): teammate <span>Anthony Rendon</span> leads with .417; this one’s a long shot, since Trout would need to reach base 12 times in 14 PA would to move to .418.</li>
<li id="5YTb97">4 intentional walks (<a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/2020-batting-leaders.shtml">2nd</a>): Cruz leads with 5; this might be Trout’s best chance, even though Rendon’s presence has greatly reduced opponents’ willingness to give Trout a free pass.</li>
<li id="t5Hlqq">93 times on base (<a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/2020-batting-leaders.shtml">t-3rd</a>): Rendon and <span>Cavan Biggio</span> lead with 95; okay, <em>this</em> might be Trout’s real best chance, with a busy final weekend he could surpass the two ahead of him.</li>
<li id="tS7INj">4 sacrifice flies (<a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/2020-batting-leaders.shtml">t-4th</a>): <span>Kyle Seager</span> leads with 6; this would be obscure, but still counts!</li>
</ul>
<p id="a86GyH">Trout is also <a href="https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=bat&lg=al&qual=y&type=8&season=2020&month=0&season1=2020&ind=0&team=0&rost=0&age=0&filter=&players=0&startdate=2020-01-01&enddate=2020-12-31&sort=22,d">fourth in the AL in FanGraphs WAR (2.5)</a>, but a good bit behind league-leader <span>Jose Ramirez</span> (3.2). Trout’s defensive ratings are down this year, and his WAR has suffered, especially so in the Baseball-Reference version (1.5), which is well behind the league leaders.</p>
<p id="6BMORk">But with a strong final weekend, Trout could vault himself to the top of one or more of the categories above, adding even more black ink to <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/t/troutmi01.shtml">his Baseball-Reference page</a>.</p>
https://www.halosheaven.com/2020/9/25/21456226/mike-trout-mlb-leaderboardEric Stephen2020-09-25T10:07:47-07:002020-09-25T10:07:47-07:00Heaney looks to finish strong against the Dodgers
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<img alt="MLB: Los Angeles Angels at Colorado Rockies" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Pff0rj-ce-aljVZVzoBeypb0ufM=/4x0:2509x1670/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/67469324/usa_today_14927149.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Angels LHP starts final series of the season Friday night</p> <p id="mxvc80">The <a href="https://www.halosheaven.com/">Angels</a> head into the final weekend alive in the playoff race, though just barely. Their fate is not entirely in their control, but what is within their grasp is needing to sweep the team with the best record in baseball.</p>
<p id="UgqTl1">MLB’s final regular season weekend has the Angels and <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> playing a Freeway Series this weekend at Dodger Stadium.</p>
<p id="yRv9W1">The <a href="https://www.halosheaven.com/2020/9/25/21455460/los-angeles-angels-mlb-news-rumors-mike-trout">Angels’ improbable path to the playoffs is clear</a>, yet daunting: they need to win three games against the Dodgers, and the <a href="https://www.crawfishboxes.com/">Astros</a> need to lose all three games against the <a href="https://www.lonestarball.com/">Rangers</a>. One team playing the team with the best record in baseball, and another playing the team with the second-worst record makes the Angels postseason chances extremely remote. FanGraphs <a href="https://www.fangraphs.com/standings/playoff-odds">gives the Angels a 0.3-percent chance to reach the playoffs</a>, while <a href="https://www.baseballprospectus.com/standings/">Baseball Prospectus projects a 0.2-percent chance</a>. </p>
<p id="3hir7r">This weekend in Los Angeles, the Angels will send their best three starting pitchers to the mound, with <span>Andrew Heaney</span> starting Friday, <span>Dylan Bundy</span> on Saturday, and <span>Griffin Canning</span> on Sunday.</p>
<p id="19biAN">That trio has started consecutively on three occasions this season:</p>
<ul>
<li id="1Isr44">August 21-23: Angels lost two of three to Oakland</li>
<li id="gXp7JR">August 28-30: Angels won two of three against Seattle</li>
<li id="5Lu1AR">September 3-5: Angels won all three against San Diego and Houston</li>
</ul>
<p id="aYmr23">Heaney starts the series opener on Friday, hoping to put the finishing touches on a strong season. In his last five starts, Heaney has pitched every bit like the one chosen to start on Opening Day, pitching at least into the seventh inning four times, and posting a 2.70 ERA to go with 36 strikeouts against only six walks during that time.</p>
<p id="wdiIMa">Heaney enters Friday with a 4.02 ERA, with a chance to get his ERA under four for the first time since 2015. Peripherally his numbers have been even better this season, thanks to 67 strikeouts, 17 walks, and allowing only six home runs. Heaney ranks ninth in the American League in <a href="https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=pit&lg=al&qual=y&type=8&season=2020&month=0&season1=2020&ind=0&team=0&rost=0&age=0&filter=&players=0&startdate=2020-01-01&enddate=2020-12-31&sort=18,a">both FIP (3.20)</a> and <a href="https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=pit&lg=al&qual=y&type=8&season=2020&month=0&season1=2020&ind=0&team=0&rost=&age=&filter=&players=&startdate=&enddate=">FanGraphs WAR (1.7)</a>.</p>
<p id="rq4Poz">He’ll face off against <span>Clayton Kershaw</span> in the series opener.</p>
<h3 id="Vb9ByP">Game info</h3>
<p id="JLbjtv">Time: 6:40 p.m. </p>
<p id="3XuJsk">TV: Fox Sports West, SportsNet LA (Dodgers broadcast)</p>
https://www.halosheaven.com/2020/9/25/21456062/andrew-heaney-angels-preview-dodgersEric Stephen2020-09-25T05:39:00-07:002020-09-25T05:39:00-07:00Friday edition: How the Angels can make the playoffs
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<img alt="Los Angeles Angels v San Diego Padres" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Q1vKTwj4BYApapVUKmqHKAcPGGY=/0x0:3387x2258/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/67467508/1276201258.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>They need a lot to go their way </p> <p id="PJ94qz">Yesterday, I wrote a piece detailing how the <a href="https://www.halosheaven.com/">Angels</a> could still make the postseason. Well, we needed two outcomes to go the Halos’ way on Thursday. They didn’t. </p>
<p id="HpsMvX">The Angels needed the <a href="https://www.bluebirdbanter.com/">Blue Jays</a> to lose and they needed the <a href="https://www.crawfishboxes.com/">Astros</a> to lose. Both those teams won. Now, in order for LA to sneak into the postseason, it’s very simple. </p>
<p id="K4G3WK">Houston has to go 0-3 to close out the season and the Angels need to go 3-0. That’s it. The <a href="https://www.lookoutlanding.com/">Mariners</a> could still technically force a three-way tie at 29-31, but the Angels would win that three-team tiebreaker. </p>
<p id="GF8dDb">But it looks like the clock is close to striking midnight on this Cinderella run the Angels have gone on over the last few weeks. </p>
<h3 id="cPGGG6">Angels links </h3>
<ul>
<li id="9McInF">
<a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/the-illusion-of-star-power-why-mike-trout-and-bryce-harper-cant-carry-teams-to-the-playoffs-155813973.html">The illusion of star power:</a> Why Mike Trout can’t carry the Angels to the playoffs</li>
<li id="vZaeKD">Why Angels pitching struggled and <a href="https://www.ocregister.com/2020/09/24/why-angels-pitching-struggled-and-what-needs-to-be-done/">what needs to be done</a>
</li>
</ul>
https://www.halosheaven.com/2020/9/25/21455460/los-angeles-angels-mlb-news-rumors-mike-troutBlakeHarris