The January 7th, 2013 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim including the Angels lineup ranks as the best, C.J. Wilson developed a 'zombie-proof' SUV and much more…
The Story: Buster Olney ranks the Angels' lineup as the best in the majors.
The Monkey Says: This shouldn't come as a surprise, but I think it might to some even after the Hamilton signing. The sense I get is a lot of fans and analysts failed to notice just how good the Angels' lineup was last year. They scored the third-most runs and had the third-highest OPS in the American League in 2012 despite their pitcher-friendly ballpark and now they've replaced Torii Hunter with Josh Hamilton. They did lose Morales too, but they will also be getting a full season of Trout and, hopefully, a year out of Albert Pujols that doesn't include a dreadful April.
The Story: Sean Burnett and C.J. Wilson are both on track to be fully ready for Spring Training.
The Monkey Says: Yeah, I know, that site looks totally fishy, but they cite MLB.com as the source for both reports, though they failed to actually link to the reports. So, if those reports prove to be erroneous, don't blame me, I'm just the messenger.
The Story: Mark Trumbo could make the Angels' lineup special.
The Monkey Says: There seems to be a lot of hand-wringing over his piss poor second half, yet none of that seems to include a mention of his rib/back problems that just so happened to coincide with the beginning of his prolonged slump. Injury shouldn't be a total excuse, but it certainly seemed to affect him and maybe forced him to develop a few bad habits as he tried to compensate. Maybe I'm just an undying optimist (something I have never ever been accused of), but I am bullish on Trumbo for 2013.
The Story: C.J. Wilson developed a "zombie-proof" SUV to sell at his car dealership.
The Monkey Says: I appreciate the idea, but the execution is poor. A sledgehammer? Come on, now. That is of little use in the zombie apocalypse. What you need are bladed tools so that you can lop off heads and cut through fences and what not. I'd also question the usage of an SUV in the zombie apocalypse since they are known for having high centers of gravity and thus can be rolled over too easily if caught in a surging herd of zombies.
The Story: Will Mike Trout regress?
The Monkey Says: His steady decline over the course of the season says yes, but his age and his otherworldly ability to make quick adjustments tells me no. Besides, I think we will soon learn that doubting Mike Trout on anything is pretty much the dumbest thing one can do. He is Superman, after all.
The Story: How good can the Angels' outfield be?
The Monkey Says: Remember the other day when I wondered if any outfield had accomplished the 100-homers/100-steals season before. I was too lazy to look it up, but Mike wasn't. Do him a solid and give this a read since he put in the time to do the research I was too lazy (and by lazy I mean too preoccupied with the birth of my son) to do.
The Story: Former Angel prospect Jeremy Moore signed with the Dodgers.
The Monkey Says: This is kind of a nothing story, but I think it is instructive. Moore was a reasonably well-thought-of prospect with the Angels in 2011 before he suffered a season-long hip injury that cost him 2012. He is very athletic and toolsy, but still very raw despite being a bit on the old side for a prospect. There was no real reason for the Halos to cut him loose, but they did anyway. Maybe they didn't like his medicals, but I suspect it is more that he no longer fit the type of player the new regime prefers, which is hitters that can control the strike zone. For all of Moore's talents, his most glaring deficiency was his plate discipline and complete lack thereof. Tools be damned, Moore no longer fit and got kicked to the curb.
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