Halo Headlines: Toronto claims Pauley off waivers, Williams suffered asthma attack, Kendrick votes 2nd most underrated

The June 21st, 2012 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim including Pauley claimed off waivers by Toronto, Williams placed on DL after suffering an asthma and anxiety attack, Kendrick voted second-most underrated hitter and much more…

The Story: The Toronto Blue Jays claimed David Pauley off waivers from the Angels.

The Monkey Says: Oh no, whatever shall we do without Pauley!  The Halos probably thought that they could sneak Pauley through waivers again, but Toronto’s pitching staff has been ravaged by injuries, so they just need a warm body.  Pauley will only be missed in terms of the Angels losing a tiny bit of pitching depth in their system.  Given Jerome Williams’ illness and that Trevor Bell and Brad Mills are both on the DL in the minors, the Angels could be in trouble if any of the other starters suffers an injury.  Still, Pauley was never much of an option to begin with.

The Story: Jerome Williams is believed to have suffered an asthma attack that was made worse by anxiety, leading to his breathing problems.

The Monkey Says: He is still going to get more tests today though and was placed on the DL to make room for Jered Weaver yesterday.  It remains to be seen just when Williams will be able to come off the DL.  This is good news for Garrett Richards who should now get another handful of starts in his ongoing effort to give the Angels a tough decision to make when it comes sending him back down.

The Story: A poll of MLB players shows that Howie Kendrick is considered to be the second-most underrated position player in baseball.

The Monkey Says: I’m guessing that poll was taken before this season because… well… yeah.  Also, good job, good effort to Jeff Miller for congratulating Howie Kendrick for being voted second-most underrated as if being called underrated isn’t a back-handed compliment.  Hey, congrats on most people thinking you are worse at your job than you really are!

The Story: OF prospect Travis Witherspoon is having a breakout season due to better plate discipline.

The Monkey Says: Witherspoon is worth getting excited about, but there is also good reason to remain skeptical about his newfound control of the strike zone.  He’s very physically gifted and can use those gifts to counter a lot of his deficiencies.  The big test will be now as he has been promoted to Double-A and will face a major upgrade in pitching talent, and not just a bunch of throwers like he is facing night in High-A ball.

The Story: Mike Scioscia weighs in on the Rays-Nationals sandpaper dispute.

The Monkey Says: Sosh pretty much took both sides, which is odd because I thought he might back up Joe Maddon, but also not odd because Scioscia never likes to stir the pot.  Personally, I think Maddon was way out of line.  Peralta very clearly cheated and that should really be the end of the story, no matter how Davey Johnson knew about it or when Johnson chose to bust Peralta for it.  Pine tar isn’t the grossest of offenses, but it is still against the rules and nobody should be reprimanded for enforcing the rules.

The Story: Torii Hunter compares Mike Trout to Rickey Henderson.

The Monkey Says: Minus the wild narcissism, of course.  Trout got a lot of comparisons to Mickey Mantle when he came up, but I really do think Henderson is the best comp out there although I do think Trout has a chance to be even better as Rickey only his .279 in his career, although that is artificially deflated because Henderson played until he was 44.