Baseball Chick

09Oct 2014 by Jessica DeLine

Early Look at 2015 Angels Pitching

Yeah it's early and a lot can happen between now and February, but many are wondering - what will the Angels pitching staff look like in 2015? First, the staff will be without Kyle Skaggs who will the entire 2015 season due to that pesky Tommy John surgery. Let's look at all the pitchers who started a game for the Angels in 2014 (in order of most starts): Jered Weaver CJ Wilson Garrett Richards Hector Santiago Matt Shoemaker Tyler Skaggs Cory Rasmus Wade Leblanc We've already eliminated Tyker Skaggs. Wade LeBlanc is a free agent and it's unclear if the Angels will re-sign him, though they probably will if he doesn't want too much money. It's also unclear if Cory Rasmus will be converted to a starter, though I would…

06Oct 2014 by Jessica DeLine

ALDS Game 3: Adios Angels

Angels, Royals

I've been thinking about what to write in this post since the game ended yesterday. Don't expect a lot of praises for the Kansas City Royals because this is an Angels blog after all! But to be fair, the Royals DID just outplay the Angels and now they move on while Scioscia and company watch the rest of the season on TV. I think the bite stings a lot more given the fact that the Angels had the best record in baseball going in to the post season and they hadn't been swept in back to back series ALL SEASON. In fact, they were barely swept at all and the Angels ended their regular and post seasons by being swept. It's almost as if they were a completely different team…

04Oct 2014 by Jessica DeLine

ALDS Game 2: Three Strikes your trOUT

Angels, Royals

For much of the game last night at Angels Stadium it was loud. Real loud. Even when the Angels spent much of the game down 1-0. Matt Shoemaker was back on the mound (thankfully) and pitched a gem of a game. Kole Calhoun led off the Angels with a single then Mike Trout swapped placed with him on a fielder's choice. I'm sure many did not expect Trout to run with Pujols at the plate but run he did. His jump was slow and he was out by a mile. Que Pujols ground out and suddenly the promising start was a 1-2-3 inning. A rare error by Kole Calhoun in the second inning led to Eric Hosmer taking second base instead of staying on first. Shortly there after he scored…

03Oct 2014 by Jessica DeLine

ALDS Game 1: Underwhelming Offense

Angels, Royals

That was a tough one last night and there is a lot of say about it. Let me start with 0 for 18. No I'm not talking about John McDonald's batting stats for September, but rather the combined at bats of Mike Trout, Albert Pujols, Howie Kendrick ,and Josh Hamilton. If that offense wasn't underwhelming then I don't know what is. You simply can't win a game if you don't score runs. You can't score runs if you don't get on base. Note that the picture above is after Weaver pitched his no hitter earlier this year. He was in disbelief. Sort of like how he was when they lost this game despite his great pitching. So it fits. Take your pick for which of the following played the…

01Oct 2014 by Jessica DeLine

AL Wildcard Game Recap: All Your Bases Belong to Us

A's, Recaps, Royals

In perhaps what was one of the most exciting wildcard games ever, the Royals topped the Athletics in 12 innings last night in Kansas City. Below is my recap of the game, though I will admit I missed innings 7-10 (approximately) since I had the unfortunate timing of softball game last night. Innings 1-5: Pitch Off Post season games are generally regarded as pitching games and the start of the AL Wildcard game was no exception. While both pitchers did give up runs in the first inning (including one of two Brandon Moss homeruns), the score remained relatively low early on. James shields was a little shaky the first two innings, throwing 45 pitches and 27 strikes. However, he got pretty dialed in and only needed 35 pitches over the…

01Oct 2014 by Jessica DeLine

MLB Pace of Play Experiment

Baseball

Today, MLB announced they are going to be experimenting with some pace of play rules in the Arizona Fall League (AFL). Personally, I don't think a lot needs to change, and baseball is supposed to be a slower sport. It's supposed to be America's pastime that teaches us to relax, slow down, and enjoy what is happening around us. Baseball is an escape. That being said, It's possible there are some changes that could help the game (like shorter commercial breaks) and it's appeal to our modern fast-paced society. Here are the rules being tested, along with my thoughts: (see link for details on each rule) Batter's Box Rule - I think this one is rather silly and really messes with the batting experience. I'd rather see them say something like…

30Sep 2014 by Jessica DeLine

Ranking the MLB Playoff Teams

Baseball, Rankings

Can you smell October? MLB playoffs are right around the corner with the first wildcard matchup happening tonight at 8PM EST. There are a lot of intangibles in determining who the best teams are in the post season but I've taken a stab at doing some rankings based on some statistics from each team's season. Of course you pretty much throw the regular season out right now, but don't think it doesn't play an impact. Team WAR: 1 Dodgers 31.2 2 Angels 30.3 3 Orioles 29.0 4 Pirates 26.9 5 Nationals 25.4 6 Giants 23.7 7 Tigers 23.7 8 Athletics 23.4 9 Royals 22.6 10 Cardinals 22.0 It's no surprise to see the Dodgers on the top of the WAR charts. After all, they have bought some top players and…

30Sep 2014 by Jessica DeLine

Final 2014 Angels Pitcher Rankings

Angels, pitching, Rankings

This final regular season ranking includes the top 20 Angels pitchers in terms innings pitched and excludes those no longer with the team (I'm looking at you Ernesto Frieri). Unlike previous weekly rankings, these are for the entire season as a whole. A little bit unfair to the players who only pitched a few times, but life isn't always fair (just asked poor teamless Ernesto). These rankings were compiled with the help of MLB stats, FanGraphs, misc. data, personal opinion, and some fairy dust I found hidden in Shoemaker's beard. Rank Player Comments 1 Garrett Richards Despite a shortened season, Richards was the man for the Angels on the mound in 2014. Richards had a WHIP of 1.04 (3rd best), 2.61 ERA, .201 BAA (only .001 behind league leading Felix…

29Sep 2014 by Jessica DeLine

Final 2014 Angels Position Player Rankings

Angels, Rankings

This final regular season ranking includes the top 20 Angels position players in terms of at bats and excludes those no longer with the team (I'm looking at you JB Shuck). Unlike previous weekly rankings, these are for the entire season as a whole. A little bit unfair to the players who only had 50 or 60 at bats, but life isn't always fair (like how did Ibanez end up on a post season team?) These rankings were compiled with the help of MLB stats, FanGraphs, misc. data, personal opinion, and some fairy dust I found hidden in Shoemaker's beard. Rank Player Comments 1 Mike Trout Mr. MVP tops the list of course. Yes he struck out more times than ever but so what? He still led the league is…

26Sep 2014 by Jessica DeLine

Last Weekend MLB Questions

Uncategorized

Here it is. The last 3 days of the regular season and some questions certainly remain. Who will do what? Who will win wear? What will Derek Jeter wear on his last game (hint: Probably shoes with a self edifying name, maybe a J necklace and I wonder if he got that ass tatoo yet that says "Captain") Will the Los Angeles Angels be the first team since 2009 to win 100 games? Yes Who will win the AL Central, the Detroit Tigers or Kansas City Royals? Tigers Will the Seattle Mariners make it to the playoffs? No (They have to win at least two from the Angels while the A's would have to lose at least 2 against the Ranger) Will the Pittsburgh Pirates catch the St. Louis Cardinals for…