The June 21st, 2013 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels including Albert Pujols feels like his old self, signs of Jered Weaver declining and much more…
The Story: Albert Pujols says he feels like his old self again.
The Monkey Says: Albert seems to be feeling better and believes a slight mechanical adjustment at the plate has him feeling as good has he has since he was in St. Louis. I hope that is true, but I remain dubious seeing how he is still not 100% healthy. Still, if he can be 85% of his old self, that is still pretty damn good.
The Story: Signs of Jered Weaver's decline and potential injury.
The Monkey Says: We all know I have been very much of the belief that he is hiding a shoulder injury all season. The pace stat is interesting, but it seems like a chicken or the egg debate since pitchers who are struggling with runners on base also tend to slow down. Nonetheless, it is worth watching.
The Monkey Says: You know, I'm starting to think that this kid might be pretty good.
The Story: Mike Trout has evolved into a top five hitter in baseball and is only getting better.
The Monkey Says: This is a great point that I think Angel fans are already aware of, but dating back to the MVP debate last season, the general public might well still think of him more in the sense of his fielding and speed with some of his bat mixed in.
The Story: The Angels signed outfielder Lou Montanez to a minor league deal and sent him to Double-A.
The Monkey Says: He is just organizational depth but because he was the 3rd overall pick all the way back in 2000, he still has a bit of name recognition. There have been a lot of these moves lately, but that is almost certainly just because the second half of the Double-A season has started and the Travs are decent this year, so the Halos are bolstering the roster so they can make a playoff push. Arkansas isn't terribly pleased with how bad the team has been in recent years, so this is the Angels trying to make them happy.
The Story: A comparison of Mike Trout and Yasiel Puig's hustle doubles.
The Monkey Says: Trout vs. Puig, it has begun and it isn't going to stop especially since there is an actual regional rivalry here unlike with Harper.
The Story: Howie Kendrick is having one of the top five under-the-radar great seasons.
The Monkey Says: He very much is. Even Angel fans only seems to be just now catching on to how great Howie has been this year.
The Story: Fun with home run similarity scores.
The Monkey Says: Trumbo is featured prominently in the article, but downloading the spreadsheet is pretty fun. It turns out Mike Trout, he of the power that is sure to regress, is most similar to… wait for it… BARRY BONDS! Yep, no power there, folks!
The Story: Organizational droughts in right field.
The Monkey Says: The Angels have not produced a 4+ win season from a homegrown right fielder since Tim Salmon. I'm sure we can all live with that.
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