The Angels brought out the long ball tonight and sent the crowd home happy. The eagerly antcipated debut of Mike Trout fell a bit flat offensively but he did make a great running play to take away a double in the top of the ninth and put the team in position to win. But it was another rookie who made the play of the night and kept the Angels rolling right along.
Game Notes
— Mike Trout showed a lot of poise for a 19 year old kid making his major league debut. It was obvious he was nervous and spent most of the night deferring to his elders in the outfield. But when the time came to make a play he was up to the task, chasing down a long fly ball in the gap to prevent a double. Trout should settle down a bit in the next few days and then we will see what the kid’s got.
— Vernon Wells is over the early season issues that saw him struggle so mightily. He was 3 for 4 with a solo homer and very nearly put the Angels ahead with a single in the 8th. Wells has steadied the line-up since being inserted in the clean-up spot and is now a legitimate threat to go deep every game.
— One thing that is worrisome about the Angel offense is their inability to hit with the bases loaded. They are a collective 10-53 with the bases loaded and even “Hit Man Howie” Kendrick is not immune to the bags full yips. Kendrick did extend his hit streak to 17 games, which is nice.
— Ervin Santana was decent tonight in a game that looked like he might fall apart in the middle innings. Santana did not have his best stuff but, in an uncharacteristic move for him, he battled and didn’t give up the big inning. This is a bit easier when facing the Mariners whose offense rivals most high school teams. But Santana did keep the game close and gave the Angels a shot, which is what he is supposed to do.
— It’s downright odd to see the Angels win a game by hitting four solo home runs. The punch and judy show lulls you into a sense that they may never hit one out of the park and then a game comes along like this one. Aybar’s leadoff homer was his usual sneaky homer down the line, Wells just eeked over the fence, but Conger’s blast was mammoth. He looks like he is going to crush the ball every time he hits it and it makes him a tantalizing option as a full time catcher. But it was nothing compared to the behemoth shot Trumbo hit to win the game.
Halo Hero
(sorry no pic…computer is not cooperating)
He’s never going to replace Kendrys but Mark Trumbo is having a hell of a year for a rookie. His walk off homer was downright awesome. I even like the fact that when he got the shaving cream treatment after the game he looked a bit annoyed. Tells me he is interested in winning and not screwing around. Here’s to many more TRUMBOMBS!!
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