Game Recap 7/15/12: Well, that escalated quickly – Angels 10, Yankees 8

Here I was minding my own business watching the Angels game on a Sunday morning, what a lovely treat.

What’s more, the Angels were winning.  After a back and forth first several innings, the Halos took a 10-5 lead headed into the ninth.  Ernesto Frieri was coming in.  I thought to myself that this would be a great time to pause the game and go fix myself a burrito for lunch because there is nothing like a warm meal and watching the Yankees lose.  Or so I thought…

At first, I thought using Frieri in a five-run game was unnecessary, but I suppose he did need the work.  Fair enough.  Besides, with the way the ball was flying out of the yard, no lead is safe in this stadium.  But, c’mon, it’s ERNASTY!  He is invincible.

Then Mark Teixeira had to go and ruin Frieri’s perfect Angels season just days after breaking Downs’ own scoreless streak.  I greatly dislike Mark Teixeira.

OK, fine, like I said with Downs, $#!% happens.  Surely Downs will come in and save the day, no?

No.

Because he is Scott Downs, he starts things off by failing to field a comebacker that could’ve easily been a double play.  Now the Angels are in real trouble, but at least Downs managed to avoid hurting himself.

Or did he?  Because he didn’t look to great walking in a run with the bases loaded.

Now I don’t look so great because I have turned green as my burrito is sitting poorly in my stomach due to the sight of Kevin Jepsen bumbling in from the bullpen.

Jepsen versus A-Rod with the bases loaded in Yankee Stadium?  What could possibly go wrong.

Shockingly, nothing.  Which might have been the worst thing to happen to the Angels, all things considered, as there is a chance that Mike Scioscia might now see that Jepsen has a save on his record and fool himself into thinking that Jepsen is now a “proven closer.”

That burrito totally wasn’t worth it.

Angels 10, Yankees 8

Game Notes

• Let’s just get this out of the way, Jered Weaver and hot, humid weather just do not mix for some reason.  We’ve seen Weaver tire quickly before in this kind of climate, but today he seemed fine stamina-wise.  Instead, it was his command that totally let him down.  The Yankees are obviously a good lineup, so that doesn’t help, but any lineup would’ve hit Weaver hard with the way he was leaving everything over the middle early on.
• That is six homers and counting against the Yankees for Mark Trumbo this season alone.
• Considering how often Bobby Wilson gets hit by an opposing player’s backswing, you’d think sooner or later he would realize that the Baseball Gods are not big fans of his.
• All the Jepsen hate aside, I can’t help but wonder if something is wrong with LaTroy Hawkins.  He was briefly warming before Jepsen got up in the ‘pen and that was it.  No explanation.  That means Scioscia either second-guessed his reliever choice or Hawk is dealing with an injury of some sort, which also (sort of) explains why Jepsen came in on Friday.
• Maicer Izturis was almost the Halo Hero of this game if only because I can’t remember the last time he actually played well.

Halo Hero

Let it not be said that I am unfair to Jepsen.  Like him or not (but, really, who actually likes him?), he did save the day.