All-Time Angels Southpaw Squad

So today is International Left-handers Day.  How do you even celebrate such a thing?  How about with an Angel all-time left-handed team?  One twenty minute excursion searching through the databases at baseball-reference, and you can assemble a roster of all-time Angel lefties, according to the WAR they accumulated while wearing an Angel uniform.

In the outfield, we have the formidable trio of Garret Anderson (28.0 WAR), Darin Erstad (21.9), and Jim Edmonds (20.4).  With the combination of power, speed, and defense these guys brought to the diamond, it makes me wonder if any other franchise could top this all-time lefty outfield.

At the catcher position, the Angels would have Buck Rodgers (3.3).  Now, I know there is no such thing as a left-handed catcher, but Buck was a switch hitter, so that’s as close as we’re going to get.  He was the Angels’ primary catcher during the 1960s, and during this decade, Buck led all American League catchers in assists, double plays, and caught stealing, and he was fourth in the league in put outs.

At first base, with one of the sweetest left-handed swings in baseball, would be Wally Joyner (18.9).  If he had not gotten a staff infection during the 1986 ALCS against the Red Sox (he had a home run, two doubles, two singles, and two walks in the first three games) the Angels would have surely been the American League team playing the Mets in the 1986 World Series.

Manning second base for the Halos would be Adam Kennedy (18.3).  He didn’t throw left-handed, but he batted lefty, and that uppercut swing of his was good for three home runs in one game against the Twins in the 2002 ALCS.

The Angels have only had two left-handed shortstops in their history, and the best, according to WAR, was Rance Mulliniks (1.4), who went on to have some terrific seasons for the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1980s.

At third base, we have Jack Howell (8.6) who played nine seasons with the Angels in the 1980s and 1990s and was known for his home runs and defense.

The starting rotation would consist of Chuck Finley (52.2), Frank Tanana (34.4), Mark Langston (26.2), Jarrod Washburn (20.4), and Jim Abbott (14.3).  I know there is a tremendous amount of love for Nolan Ryan out there in Angel-land, but during their seven years as Angel teammates, there is a strong case to be made that Tanana was the better pitcher of the two.  Tanana had a lower ERA (3.08 to 3.25) and a lower WHIP (1.12 to 1.34), whereas Ryan had 471 more strikeouts, the glamour stat for a pitcher.

In the bullpen you will find Dave LaRoche (6.4), Andy Hassler (5.2), Darren Oliver (4.3), Scott Downs (3.6), Steve Frey (2.1), and Steve Barber (2.0).  Dave LaRoche, the father of Andy and Adam, leads this group with 65 saves as an Angel reliever.  Oliver and Downs owned spectacular 1.18 and 1.17 WHIPs respectively during their Angel careers.