Boxscore Breakdown Game #36: Take me out of the ballgame – Angels 9, Blue Jays 3

<![CDATA[Since when does Jered Weaver call for his own reliever? It has been a weird season for Jered who has dealt with mechanical issues and now appears to be dealing with stamina issues. As we’ve seen a few times this season, Weaver has just plain run out of gas after a strong start to a game. Normally, the uber-competitive Weaver tries to pitch through it, but this time he pulled the ripcord himself. That’s noble and absolutely the right move, but given his normal attitude, it makes me actually wonder about his mental state. I’m probably overreacting to an anomaly, but I’ll certainly be curious to see how Weaver acts next time out.

Run Expectancy Rundown

Good lord, Hank Conger. I predicted something of a breakout season for Hank this year and am feeling pretty good about it right now. He’s slowly been earning more playing time and should continue to do so after a big night like this. Howie Kendrick continues to rake, which I am sure Toronto fans noticed given the numerous rumors about a Kendrick-to-Toronto trade last winter. Also, Efren Navarro continues to rake, and I continue to eat crow.

The Jays got a cheapy off of Weaver early, but didn’t really do much else until Fernando Salas busted out the gas can, which is where Edwin Encarnacion padded his numbers. Colby Rasmus and Steve Tolleson were delightfully inept as they choked hard in the one spot where the Jays could’ve gotten back into the game.

Starting Pitcher Scores

Jered Weaver was looking excellent over the first six innings, but he ran out of gas in the seventh, as he himself admitted. That is troubling, but at least he recognized it. Drew Hutchison had been having a pretty good year, but the Halos took advantage of his command issues in this one.

Bullpen Battle

The Angels relievers didn’t rate well in this one, but Michael Kohn stepped into a big spot and came through with flying colors. That gig used to go to Fernando Salas, who did end up pitching in this game and didn’t have his stuff. Just imagine what could’ve happened had Scioscia not learned the Kohn-over-Salas lesson. Hector Santiago actually had to bail out Salas and looked fine, so that’s a step forward. Mike Morin got to close finish this one off and looked great in the process. How much more does he have to do to get bumped up the depth chart? From Toronto’s side, vaunted prospect Marcus Stroman got lit up, proving that not all top prospects just dominate right away.

Game Flow

Even after the first inning Toronto run, the Angels weren’t in bad shape. Their odds shot way up after they took the lead in the fourth and then it was all over but for the crying after their scoring surge in the sixth.

Halo Hero

I was tempted to give this to Weaver for having enough self-awareness to hit the eject button, but Conger was just too good.]]>