Halo Headlines: Quotes From Weaver’s Press Conference, Downs Still Ailing, Scioscia Considering a Four-Man Rotation

The August 24th, 2011 edition of daily news for the LA Angels including quotes from Weaver’s press conference, Downs still questionable with his hamstring injury, Scioscia Considering a four-man rotation for the upcoming series against the Rangers and much more…

The Story: There were loads of great quotes and moments from Jered Weaver’s press conference to officially announce his contract extension.

The Monkey Says: Weaver basically said all that you could ever hope for a professional athlete to say about how he plays for the love of the game and not money.  Also of note, but not in the article, is that Weaver reportedly got a bit choked up at a point, so this really was a special moment for him.  There were also many reports about that Tony Reagins was booed when introduced.  Not that he doesn’t deserve it, but to see that the animosity towards him runs so deep that people will still boo him right before a joyous occasion speaks volumes.

The Story: Scott Downs is still day-to-day with his hamstring injury.

The Monkey Says: The Angels claimed that he might have been available last night, but I have a hard time believing they’d run him out there without him getting through a bullpen session first.  With an off day tomorrow, the Angels would probably prefer to avoid using Downs tonight so he can get as healthy as possible for the Texas series.

The Story: Mike Scioscia is considering pitching Ervin Santana and Jered Weaver on short-rest against Texas this weekend.

The Monkey Says: That would mean temporarily going to a four-man rotation, something I am not a huge fan of.  However, if the alternative is having Jered Weaver not get to face the Rangers and running out either Joel Pineiro or Jerome Williams instead, I can at least understand the dilemma.  I think a lot will be determined by just how close the Angels are heading into the series as a bigger margin will make it more necessary for the Angels to get their best pitchers involved in the series.

The Story: Previewing the free agent market for the Angels.

The Monkey Says: Umm… ok?  A little premature, but at least half of the suggestions make no sense.

The Story: The Angels are a great fielding team, but aren’t highly ranked in terms of ESPN Web Gems.

The Monkey Says: There is nothig actually meaningful about Web Gems, but yet I find this whole comparison and explanation interesting.