Tell me if you’ve heard this one before: The Angels get a runner in scoring position with none or one out in several innings, but then fail to make any kind of solid contact in the plate appearances thereafter and ultimately lose a game they probably should have won. Alongside pitching-staff implosions and underperforming platoon players, the LOBster fest is probably the most well-worn and widely despised trope of the Angels’ 2015 season—if it were a TV show, it’d be one of those insufferable bottle episodes.
The Halos ended up going 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position Wednesday night, leaving six runners on base overall. Their RISP struggles might have been tolerable if the club had simply hit a host of at ’em balls, but that wasn’t the case. Instead they fanned the air enough times—12 K’s, 20 whiffs—to power a small town. The Angels had the opportunity to gain Wild Card ground, with Houston and Minnesota losing, but they couldn’t cash in.
Run Expectancy Rundown
[googleapps domain=”docs” dir=”spreadsheets/d/1OkhlZ-9oB7XYdKCMe9Sw7w5Tw6U5ghVEFTpYu3lmmjk/pubchart” query=”oid=1976391661&format=interactive” width=”623″ height=”389″ /]David Murphy and Carlos Perez again led the offensive attack, tallying two knocks each, but got zero help from the heart of the order. The two thru five hitters went 1-for-16 on the night, with Mike Trout and Kole Calhoun putting on an especially bad display. The pair combined to strike out five times in eight plate appearances and left three runners on base apiece. Erick Aybar did wallop two doubles to break out of his prolonged slump, but couldn’t manage to coincide them with Perez’s hits.
[googleapps domain=”docs” dir=”spreadsheets/d/1OkhlZ-9oB7XYdKCMe9Sw7w5Tw6U5ghVEFTpYu3lmmjk/pubchart” query=”oid=1154832181&format=interactive” width=”620″ height=”341″ /]Jesus Montero provided all the offense the M’s needed on the evening, mashing his fifth home run off of Jered Weaver in just 12 career plate appearances. Batter vs. pitcher numbers typically mean bupkis, but 6-for-12 with five dingers and zero strikeouts seems a special kind of ownage.
Starting Pitcher Scores
[googleapps domain=”docs” dir=”spreadsheets/d/1OkhlZ-9oB7XYdKCMe9Sw7w5Tw6U5ghVEFTpYu3lmmjk/pubchart” query=”oid=161400381&format=interactive” width=”584″ height=”293″ /]Depending on how you feel about Weaver’s little tiff with Kyle Seager in the fifth inning, the right-hander either made one or two mistakes on the evening. Considering the time of the year, Weaver going after Seager was ultimately pointless and potentially harmful to the Angels’ chances. Nothing bad came of it once Mike Morin and co. took the hill, but the M’s could’ve easily expanded their lead and put the game out of reach. Hisashi Iwakuma, meanwhile, was brilliant for six innings until some back tightness put him out of commission.
Bullpen Battle
[googleapps domain=”docs” dir=”spreadsheets/d/1OkhlZ-9oB7XYdKCMe9Sw7w5Tw6U5ghVEFTpYu3lmmjk/pubchart” query=”oid=1141913419&format=interactive” width=”620″ height=”315″ /]The Angels bullpen was strong for the second consecutive night, but this time it got them nothing. If only there were some way for relievers to pitch so well that runs come off the scoreboard… Also, don’t look now but including a scoreless 1.1 IP last night, Cam Bedrosian has allowed just one run in his past eight appearances, isn’t walking anyone, and is striking out better than a batter per inning. Maybe there’s hope for him yet?
The Mariners bullpen, meanwhile, shut down the Halos for the third consecutive night.
Game Flow
[googleapps domain=”docs” dir=”spreadsheets/d/1OkhlZ-9oB7XYdKCMe9Sw7w5Tw6U5ghVEFTpYu3lmmjk/pubchart” query=”oid=41272350&format=interactive” width=”619″ height=”315″ /]With the offense doing nothing, the Angels’ chances more or less flatlined after Jesus Montero’s jimmy-jack.
Halo A-Hole
This was a dead heat between Calhoun and Trout, but Trout sneaks by because he’s the one who’s isn’t supposed to flail like that in the clutch.
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