The July 14th, 2014 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels including Cowgill to miss a month with a broken face, Richards snubbed again and much more…
The Story: Collin Cowgill will miss 4-5 weeks with a broken nose and fractured thumb.
The Monkey Says: Cowgill took #buntfucking to a whole new level with the bloodying result of a missed sac bunt attempt. He may very well have #buntfucked his way out a platoon. Grant Green has been called up to take his place, but that might be temporary since neither he nor Cowgill have much outfield experience. The Angels might see fit to call up someone like J.B. Shuck (ugh) or maybe Tony Campana after the break. Now that I think about it, I bet they replace Navarro with Campana.
The Story: Garrett Richards was passed over yet again for an All-Star selection.
The Monkey Says: I don’t care about these things, but even I was shocked that Richards didn’t replace David Price as quite a lot of people assumed. Fraudney getting the nod instead has to be salt in the wounds for Angels fans.
The Story: The Angels have been in contact with the Rangers about closer Joakim Soria.
The Monkey Says: Soria has returned to dominating form this year, but he figures to be far too pricey for the Angels.
The Story: Ken Rosenthal believes it would “just like” Arte Moreno to make a run at acquiring David Price.
The Monkey Says: Rosenthal also points out that it would be “just like” the Angels to not have good enough prospects to actually consummate such a deal.
The Story: Efren Navarro was recalled with Drew Rucinski being optioned to Double-A.
The Monkey Says: Rucinski got his token appearance and the Angels then no longer felt the need to carry a long man, so they brought Navarro back for another short stint, though it could be a longer one now with Cowgill out.
The Story: The Angels sold Nick Maronde to the Cleveland Indians.
The Monkey Says: Stop human trafficking! Sorry. Anyways, the Halos DFA’d Maronde last week and the Indians decided to take a chance on the once promising reliever.
The Story: First round pick Sean Newcomb remains unsigned but it fully expected to sign before the July 18th deadline.
The Monkey Says: There is no reason to panic. Knowing that both he and the team don’t want him throwing much after he signs, Newcomb is simply enjoying life for a bit before signing and embarking on his path to the majors.
The Story: Kole Calhoun is proving himself worthy of a full-time role.
The Monkey Says: The thing is that he never proved himself unworthy. His career OPS against righties is .836. Against lefties, it is .803. The OPS gap between his splits in the minors was almost exactly the same. The only reason he ended up platooning was that he got hurt and Cowgill got hot while he was gone and Scioscia didn’t want to bury Collin on the bench again as a result. Now Kole might get to return the favor.
The Story: Jose Rondon and Victor Alcantara didn’t do much in their Futures Game appearances.
The Monkey Says: Oh well. Personally, I’m glad it is over because I can’t remember if Alcantara goes by Victor or Alfonso nowadays.
The Story: Futures Game participants that could be traded at the deadline.
The Monkey Says: Well, technically speaking, they could all be traded. It isn’t as if they are forbidden from being traded. Still, Rondon actually could be trade bait for the Halos as they do have shortstop depth in the minors and they might want to move Rondon while he has a little bit of helium right now.
The Story: A look at the Angels’ much-improved rotation.
The Monkey Says: I’m actually quite fascinated that the Angels have actually seen a slight increase in walk rate from their starters. As bad as Hanson and Blanton were, I guess walks weren’t really their issue, but it is weird nonetheless.
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