Results tagged ‘ Howie Kendrick ’
Question of the Day, 6/14 …
Logically, how many Angels could be All-Stars in this bad first half as a team? — @JcHc3in1
Well, I expect Mike Trout to finish among the top three outfielders in fan votes — he was second when the most recent update came out last Saturday — making him the first Angels position player to start the All-Star Game since Vladimir Guerrero in 2007. After that, it’s tough. I think Howie Kendrick (.328/.370/.480) deserves to make it, but it’s tough with Robinson Cano and Dustin Pedroia in the same league. And Mark Trumbo (.270/.344/.506) certainly can once again. Pitching-wise, the only one I can see with a shot is Jason Vargas (5-4, 3.74 ERA), unless Jered Weaver (only five starts) is picked based on track record. I’d be surprised if anyone else makes it. Albert Pujols (nine-time All-Star) is in danger of missing out for the third straight year, and it doesn’t seem like there’s any chance Josh Hamilton (starter each of the last five seasons) is picked.
– Alden
Game 67: Yankees-Angels …
Yes, the Angels — 10 games below .500, 12 games back in the AL West, 9 1/2 games back of the final Wild Card spot — haven’t had much luck with injuries this season, particularly with their highest-paid player (Albert Pujols) and the two guys they were counting on to turn their bullpen around (Ryan Madson and Sean Burnett). You know who has been hit with more injuries? The Yankees team they’ll now face. I mean, just look at their lineup. And yet, they kept on rolling, while the Angels are in need of an amazing run to get back in the race.
“A lot of the things we see are very tangible, a lot of the things we see are reversible,” Mike Scioscia continues to say. “That has to be our goal, to get these guys out there playing consistent baseball and bringing the talent on the field, because we have the potential to have a terrific team.”
Yankees (37-29)
Brett Gardner, CF
Jayson Nix, 3B
Mark Teixeira, 1B
Robinson Cano, DH
Vernon Wells, LF
Thomas Neal, RF
David Adams, 2B
Reid Brignac, SS
Austin Romine, C
SP: LH Andy Pettitte (5-3, 3.82 ERA)
Angels (28-38)
Mike Trout, LF
Josh Hamilton, RF
Pujols, DH
Mark Trumbo, 1B
Howie Kendrick, 2B
Alberto Callaspo, 3B
Chris Iannetta, C
Erick Aybar, SS
Peter Bourjos, CF
Pitching: LH C.J. Wilson (4-5, 4.05 ERA)
- Starting rotation-wise, we know Tommy Hanson and Jered Weaver are starting the other two games in this series, respectively. And now, we know Jason Vargas will start Monday, with the order resetting again on Wednesday and Thursday. Who’s starting on Tuesday? That’s a decision that will perceivably come down to Joe Blanton and Jerome Williams, and Scioscia didn’t reveal anything on Friday. “Let’s get through this weekend,” he said. You have to figure, that if Blanton were starting Tuesday, he’d simply be listed as the starter by the team. The fact he isn’t makes me believe it’s going to be Williams, as long as he isn’t needed out of the bullpen in some crazy long game (like the 18-inning game the Yankees played against the A’s last night). Just an educated guess, though.
- Robert Coello, placed on the disabled list with what the team called right shoulder inflammation, will be shut down from throwing for a minimum of four weeks. Coello’s elbow is also hurting.
- The Angels will honor Mariano Rivera on Saturday.
- The Angels have signed 34 of their 39 Draft picks. Among those remaining are their first selection, lefty Hunter Green, who was taken in the second round.
- Sicoscia, on his biggest takeaway from his time with Wells: “He worked very hard at the game. You could tell that his non-performance is something he did not take in stride. I mean he felt it. And whether he had a rough day the night before, he came out with a positive frame of mind and said, ‘I’m going to help us win today.’ Maybe fans don’t see that side of him, but he didn’t take it easy when he was struggling, and he knows that he’s a better player than what he showed when he played with us.”
- Wells, by the way, has cooled off considerably since his hot start. Over his last 40 games, he has a .182/.209/.284 slash line. He comes in batting .229/.274/.386, with 10 homers and 26 RBIs.
– Alden
Game 64: Angels-Orioles …
Intermittent showers continue here in Baltimore. There’s been a flew let-ups, including at the time of this publishing (5:41 p.m. ET), but the tarp was still on the field and dark clouds are hovering over the stadium. If they bag it, look for a split doubleheader tomorrow. Thing is, weather doesn’t look great then, either. …
Angels (27-36)
Mike Trout, LF
Josh Hamilton, RF
Albert Pujols, DH
Mark Trumbo, 1B
Howie Kendrick, 2B
Alberto Callaspo, 3B
Erick Aybar, SS
Chris Iannetta, C
Peter Bourjos, CF
SP: RH Jered Weaver (1-1, 3.13 ERA)
Orioles (35-28)
Nate McLouth, LF
Manny Machado, 3B
Nick Markakis, RF
Adam Jones, CF
Chris Davis, 1B
Matt Wieters, C
J.J. Hardy, SS
Chris Dickerson, DH
Ryan Flaherty, 2B
SP: RH Freddy Garcia (2-3, 4.70 ERA)
- Sean Burnett is not with the team today. He’s in Birmingham, Ala., seeing Dr. James Andrews because his left elbow has yet to heal. When Burnett originally went on the disabled list on May 28, he was expected back in two weeks. Tomorrow, it’ll be two weeks. And he’s made no real progress. Angels manager Mike Scioscia wouldn’t speculate on the chances that Burnett will go under the knife again. He’ll wait for the results.
- Trout estimates to having about 200 friends and family members today in Baltimore, which is about a two-hour drive from his roots in Millville, N.J. This, of course, is the scene of his memorable catch on a would-be J.J. Hardy homer. A picture of it hangs in the basement of his parents’ house.
- Oh, in case you missed it, Trout, as expected, is back in left field now that Bourjos is back. Scioscia was asked specifically what makes Bourjos a better defensive center fielder than Trout (he is, ever-so-slightly). His response: “I think it’s the whole picture. I think you have to look at the whole outfield. Peter gives you a unique dimension in center field and allows you to be stronger on the wings, where they can do more things. We can do things as far as what our spray charts show. Mike does give you that same element in center, but in the big picture, I think it works out better with Peter in center right now and Mike and Josh at his wings. I don’t know if it’s just looking at what Peter does in center, but just the whole defensive outfield.”
- The Angels designated little-used infielder Chris Nelson for assignment in order to make room on the roster for Bourjos.
– Alden
Desperate times …
Mike Scioscia — his club 26-34, coming off losing five of six to the Astros and Cubs, and entering a brutal nine-game stretch against the Red Sox, Orioles and Yankees — made some drastic changes to his lineup for Game 1 of Saturday’s split doubleheader. Mike Trout is back at leadoff, Josh Hamilton is batting second for the first time in six years, Howie Kendrick has moved up to fifth and Erick Aybar is at the No. 8 spot.
Here, I’ll simplify it for you: This is all about Hamilton, and trying to find some way to get him going.
Will he get better pitches to hit simply because he’s batting between Trout and Albert Pujols (starting at designated hitter)?
Probably not. But it certainly won’t hurt.
Is this the kind of change that can finally get him going?
Who knows. But, hey, why not?
“It’s something we’ve talked about for the last couple weeks and it’s the lineup we talked about before,” Scioscia said. “Right now, it’d be a good spot for Josh to hit between Mike and Albert, and hopefully get him into a different neighborhood. We need Josh to get it going, and it might be something that can spark him.”
Hamilton heads into Saturday’s split doubleheader with a .216/.278/.383 slash line, with eight homers, 18 RBIs and 62 strikeouts in 59 games. He’s made six previous starts in the No. 2 spot, and all of them came during his rookie year of 2007, when the Reds simply had no idea what they’d get from Hamilton.
The Angels have tried everything with their slumping, $125 million slugger. On April 22, he batted fifth against a lefty. On April 30, he began to hit fifth against everybody. And on three separate occasions — May 4, May 18 and June 3 — he was given a day off to clear his head. Recently, he and hitting coach Jim Eppard talked about going back to his pregame routine of 2010.
Now, he’s batting second.
“If you’re looking at what makes sense on paper, obviously you’d want Josh somewhere in the middle of your lineup, but that’s not what we’re dealing with right now,” Scioscia said. “Hopefully with the emergence of Mark [Trumbo] and the emergence of Howie swinging like they can, we’ll be able to keep the middle of the lineup where we need it, and just give Josh a chance to get into a comfort zone where he is.”
Here are the full lineups for Game 1 …
Angels
Trout, CF
Hamilton, RF
Pujols, DH
Trumbo, 1B
Kendrick, 2B
Alberto Callaspo, 3B
Chris Iannetta, C
Aybar, SS
J.B. Shuck, LF
SP: Tommy Hanson (2-2, 4.19 ERA)
Red Sox (37-24)
Jacoby Ellsbury, CF
Daniel Nava, RF
Dustin Pedroia, 2B
David Ortiz, DH
Mike Napoli, 1B
Jarrod Saltalamacchia, C
Mike Carp, LF
Stephen Drew, SS
Jose Iglesias, 3B
SP: Felix Doubront (4-2, 4.88 ERA)
– Alden
Question of the Day, 6/4 …
What do you see happening with J.B. Shuck when Peter Bourjos comes back? He has been really good in my book. — @GareGare84
Shuck has been fantastic, more than the Angels could’ve imagined, but he’ll go back to the bench once Bourjos is activated (perhaps as soon as late this week). He’ll continue to be valuable, though. You saw late tonight the importance of having an outfielder off the bench, when Howie Kendrick played left field in the eighth and Mark Trumbo went there in the ninth, eliminating the designated hitter. Not only that, Shuck (.278/.323/.348) is a great guy to have off the bench. He can run, plays solid defense, and he has a short, lefty swing that’s ideal for pinch-hitting. The Angels were lucky to pick him up off the scrap heap.
– Alden
Game 59: Cubs-Angels …
Just before Thursday’s off-day, and an ensuing six-game road trip through Boston and Baltimore, the Angels — fresh off being swept in a four-game series by the Astros — will host a two-game series against the Cubs, who are making their second ever visit to Angel Stadium and first since 2004.
About a month ago, I identified this as a crucial 29-game stretch, with only seven games (vs. the Royals) coming against teams that were sub-.500 at the time. The Angels are currently 14-13 in that stretch, which ends once they arrive in Boston. Not bad, but certainly not what they needed after the slow start.
“What we need to do is get into our game,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. “I think that our guys, as we were talking a week ago, we had a lot of things moving forward that were important to us, and some of them just evaporated for us. We need to get back in our game, and I think that everybody in the clubhouse is on board with that. We know what we have to do on the field, and we know what we have to execute. We just have to do a little better job of it.”
Lineups …
Cubs (23-32)
David DeJesus, CF
Carlos Villanueva, 3B
Anthony Rizzo, 1B
Alfonso Soriano, DH
Nate Schierholtz, RF
Ryan Sweeney, LF
Starlin Castro, SS
Welington Castillo, C
Darwin Barney, 2B
Angels (25-33)
Erick Aybar, SS
Mike Trout, CF
Albert Pujols, 1B
Mark Trumbo, DH
Josh Hamilton, RF
Howie Kendrick
Alberto Callaspo, 3B
Chris Iannetta, C
J.B. Shuck, LF
SP: Jered Weaver (1-1, 3.71 ERA)
- Hamilton — who drew a ninth-inning, pinch-hit walk despite falling behind 0-2 last night — came out for early batting practice on Tuesday. He talked yesterday about getting back to his pregame routine from 2010.
- Asked if starting Pujols at first base today was because he felt good or simply becuase he needs to stay acclimated with the position, Scioscia said: “I think it’s both. We’re using the DH with Albert both for preventative measures, and also if it’s needed where you want to keep him swinging in the batter’s box the way he needs to. There’s also that aspect of when he feels good, you definitely want him playing first base.”
- Garrett Richards‘ left ankle is feeling better, and he’s available tonight.
- Angels pitchers haven’t allowed a walk in consecutive games, marking the first time that’s happened since July 2011. Joe Blanton hasn’t issued a walk in his last three starts.
- Peter Bourjos will DH for Class A Inland Empire tonight and is expected to play center field for them on Wednesday. Scioscia wants him to play in Triple-A before returning to the big leagues.
- Right-hander Cam Bedrosian (1.80 ERA, .193 BAA), outfielder Zach Borenstein (1.085 OPS, .356 BA) and outfielder Randal Grichuck (.980 FLG %, 46 PO) were named Minor League Pitcher, Player and Defender of the Month, respectively.
- Weaver is 8-0 with a 1.94 ERA in his last 12 interleague starts.
– Alden
Game 58: Astros-Angels …
Astros (20-37)
Brandon Barnes, CF
Jose Altuve, 2B
Jason Castro, C
J.D. Martinez, LF
Carlos Pena, DH
Chris Carter, 1B
Jimmy Paredes, RF
Matt Dominguez, 3B
Marwin Gonzalez, SS
SP: LH Erik Bedard (0-2, 5.32 ERA)
Angels (25-32)
Erick Aybar, SS
Mike Trout, CF
Albert Pujols, DH
Mark Trumbo, RF
Howie Kendrick, 2B
Alberto Callaspo, 3B
Chris Iannetta, C
Brendan Harris, 1B
J.B. Shuck, LF
SP: RH Joe Blanton (1-8, 5.94 ERA)
- Josh Hamilton, in case you hadn’t noticed, has the day off today. He isn’t hurt. Angels manager Mike Scioscia wanted to give him a “a recharge day” (and the fact their facing a lefty made this a good opportunity). Hamilton probably won’t be available to pinch-hit, either. It’s only expected to be for one day. “We need him to get into his game, and I think we’ve been trying to grind it and get him there and it’s just not quite getting far enough where we’d want him to. And so we’re going to take a day, take that half-step back and get him to take two steps forward.”
- Garrett Richards, who left Sunday’s game with a mild left ankle sprain, “feels a little better today,” Scioscia said. They’re not sure if he’ll be available tonight, though.
- Scott Downs will get in a game either today or tomorrow. He hasn’t pitched in a game in eight days, mainly because he’s the only lefty currently in the ‘pen and Scioscia wants to make sure he gets the most out of him.
- Ryan Madson played catch today, but he still has a ways to go before hopping back up on a bullpen. Yep.
- Peter Bourjos will start in center field for Class A Inland Empire on Monday night, as expected.
- A bunch of content on the site already from earlier today, on Trout topping AL outfielders in All-Star votes, Jason Vargas winning AL Pitcher of the Month, a look at the upcoming Draft, and the reason why the Angels haven’t played to their potential.
– Alden
Game 40: Royals-Angels …
Royals (19-17)
Jarrod Dyson, CF
Alcides Escobar, SS
Alex Gordon, LF
Billy Butler, DH
Eric Hosmer, 1B
Lorenzo Cain, RF
Mike Moustakas, 3B
Salvador Perez, C
Elliot Johnson, 2B
SP: RH Wade Davis (2-3, 5.86 ERA)
Angels (15-24)
Erick Aybar, SS
Mike Trout, CF
Albert Pujols, DH
Mark Trumbo, 1B
Josh Hamilton, RF
Howie Kendrick, 2B
Alberto Callaspo, 3B
Chris Iannetta, C
J.B. Shuck, LF
SP: RH Barry Enright (0-1, 11.37)
- There was thought Ryan Madson could join the Angels before the end of the week, after making his second and final rehab appearance for Class A Inland Empire on Wednesday or Thursday. That is no longer the case. The Angels prefer to slow down his rehab and have him pitch at Triple-A Salt Lake before being activated. This isn’t really a setback, though. Madson continues to feel good, having just the normal soreness pitchers go through, but he’d been going very aggressive in hopes of coming back as soon as possible — throwing off a mound with intensity every other day — and the Angels feel it’d be best if they slowed him down and ease him into the Majors. “I respect that,” Madson said. I’d expect Madson to start pitching in Triple-A by the end of the week. How long will he be there? Mike Scioscia said: “If everything goes the way we anticipate, not very long at all.” Madson threw out “a couple weeks.” Scioscia, when told that, said: “I don’t know if it’s going to take a couple weeks. It might or it might not. We want to make sure that he’s ready to go and his rehab sticks when it goes.”
- Earlier today, Angels owner Arte Moreno publicly backed Scioscia, saying there’s “zero” chance he’ll be dismissed. Sciosica’s reaction: “Arte has always been very supportive. Arte knows how hard I take the non-performance of this team and how we need to get there. It hits me as hard as it hits Arte and it hits Jerry [Dipoto], and I know Arte realizes that. We’re going to take this challenge and hopefully start moving forward and getting the wins that we need to get ourselves in the position we want to. That’s the bottom line is winning, and we’re going to work towards that.”
- Some other injury notes: Jered Weaver (broken left elbow) came out of his Tuesday bullpen session feeling fine and is still scheduled to throw an 80-pitch, up-and-down ‘pen (meaning 20 pitches, sit down, 20 pitches, sit down, and so on) on Friday. The next step after that would be a rehab assignment. … Sean Burnett (left forearm tightness) is expected to throw his first bullpen session on Thursday. … Peter Bourjos (left hamstring strain) has been riding the elliptical, playing catch, doing some aquatic exercises and getting in some lunges, but there’s still no date for when he can run on the field. … Kevin Jepsen (strained lat) was scheduled to throw his third bullpen session today. … Still no timetable for when Tommy Hanson (restricted list) will be back, but he has been throwing.
– Alden
Game 34: Astros-Angels …
The Angels can’t get swept by the Astros, can they? We shall see …
Angels (11-22)
Erick Aybar, SS
Mike Trout, CF
Albert Pujols, DH
Mark Trumbo, 1B
Josh Hamilton, RF
Howie Kendrick, 2B
Alberto Callaspo, 3B
Chris Iannetta, C
J.B. Shuck, LF
SP: LH Jason Vargas (1-3, 3.72 ERA)
Astros (10-24)
Robbie Grossman, LF
Jimmy Paredes, RF
Jose Altuve, 2B
J.D. Martinez, DH
Jason Castro, C
Chris Carter, 1B
Ronny Cedeno, SS
Matt Dominguez, 3B
Brandon Barnes, CF
SP: RH Lucas Harrell (3-3, 5.03 ERA)
- Jered Weaver threw his first bullpen today (28 pitches) and felt really good. Mike Scioscia said he’ll need about four more, thrown with one day in between if Weaver continues to feel good, before venturing out on a rehab assignment.
- Ryan Madson threw 20 pitches in an intrasquad game in Arizona today and, as planned, will pitch there again on Saturday.
- If the Angels make the playoffs this year, they’ll become only the fourth team in history to do it despite starting off the season 11-22. Per Elias, the only other teams to start a season 11-22 or worse and play in the postseason were the 1914 Braves, the 1974 Pirates and the 1981 Royals. To be fair, though, there was no second wild card — or even first wild card — back then.
- The last time the Angels were 11 games below .500: May 22, 2006. They haven’t been 9 1/2 games back this early in a season since 2002 — when they were 9 1/2 games back on April 22, 10 1/2 games back on April 23 and (lo and behold!) World Series champs on Oct. 27.
- Eleven of the Angels’ 22 losses have come by two runs or less.
– Alden
Alden Gonzalez
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