The August 2nd, 2013 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels including Pujols doesn't need surgery, wants to return this season, Frieri to share closer role and much more…
The Story: Albert Pujols doesn't need surgery and is adamant about playing again this season.
The Monkey Says: Because he tore the plantar fascia, it essentially took care of the surgery for him. He says he feels great now, but isn't going to see the medical staff for another three weeks. That would mean he'd be out all of August at a minimum. Why the organization would even let him return is beyond me though. The Halos will be so far out by that point that nothing Pujols could do, even in top physical form, will make a difference. Just keep him shut down and make sure he is 100% come next season. Macho points don't do anything for the Angels' 2014 fortunes.
The Story: Mike Scioscia will 'lighten' Ernestor Frieri's load in the ninth inning.
The Monkey Says: In other words, it is a closer by committee. What that will accomplish, I don't know and I am someone who is an advocate of more fluid bullpen roles. Frieri was awful against Texas, but so was the rest of the bullpen. There isn't a single reliever on the roster that can be considered reliable in high leverage situations.
The Story: How the off-season buyers became trade deadline sellers.
The Monkey Says: Leaving the PECOTA comparison list at just two pitchers per team was generous because there are a lot of Angels and Jays not living up to their pre-season projections.
The Story: Erick Aybar and Mark Trumbo have some of the biggest holes in their swing.
The Monkey Says: Seeing Aybar struggle so much against the sinker is surprising as he is generally a good contact hitter and fast, so you'd think he'd be able to hit a lot of grounders that he can leg out. Trumbo being awful against curveballs should be no surprise to anybody with eyes. What is weird is seeing Callaspo feature prominently on those lists because he is a great contact maker, but I guess the problem is that the contact he makes isn't good contact.
The Story: Jerome Williams won worst pitcher of July honors.
The Monkey Says: Yet it was Joe Blanton who lost his rotation spot. And people wonder why the Angels are so bad this season.
The Story: Revisiting the Dan Haren trade.
The Monkey Says: I really don't think it is fair to judge a trade in hindsight. Nobody in baseball though Patrick Corbin would be this good. Saunders was generally considered to be pretty lousy and Skaggs, while a great prospect, was years away from being ready. I still think the Haren trade was fair at the time and a worthwhile move for a team that had World Series aspirations. Prospects can flame out. Flags fly forever.
The Story: A comparison of pitch calling between Chris Iannetta and Hank Conger.
The Monkey Says: There is no point looking at the outcome data. The sample size here are just too small to be meaningful and there are too many other variable at play. What is interesting, though I am not sure it is meaningful, is that Iannetta uniformly seems to call for more hard stuff and less slow stuff. Again, there are other variables at play, but I think there is something to that.
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