Angels Player Power Rankings - Week 9

The winning streak is over and the rankings are a day late, this can't be a coincidence. Or maybe I was just too lazy to write something for Memorial Day. Yeah, probably that….

RANK	PLAYER	CHANGE	COMMENTS
1		— 0 Last Week: 1	Mike Trout – Only Trout could hit for the cycle and have it turn out to be a Super Cycle.
2		— 0 Last Week: 2	Howie Kendrick – I'm already excited to get way too upset when Howie gets snubbed from the All-Star team.
3		+1 Last Week: 4	Jason Vargas – Facing bad teams in a big ballpark makes Jason Vargas look downright dominant.
4		-1 Last Week: 3	Mark Trumbo – To give you an idea of how well the Angels have been playing, Mark Trumbo had the worst OPS out of all the regulars in the last week at .732.
5		+1 Last Week: 6	Albert Pujols – This is like the third or fourth straight week in which Pujols has put up a strong line, yet for some reason it seems like his overall slash line isn't improving at all.
6		+1 Last Week: 7	Alberto Callaspo – All of the sudden, Callaspo is a doubles machine.
7		-2 Last Week: 5	C.J. Wilson – Just when it looks like he is about to turn the corner, he goes and craps the bed against the Dodgers.
8		+1 Last Week: 9	Jerome Williams – He has gone four straight starts of allowing two or fewer runs in six or more innings of work and yet somehow his rotation spot is in question. OK.
9		+4 Last Week: 13	Josh Hamilton – Hamilton has been much better of late, but he had so far to go to get his numbers looking respectable that he only just in the last week elevated his slugging percentage over that of J.B. Shuck.
10		+1 Last Week: 11	Erick Aybar – His bat is coming to life, but it sure seems like the Baseball Gods are out to get him injured again what with Nick "The Shredder" Punto delivering a flying knee to his ribs.
11		+1 Last Week: 12	Chris Iannetta – All those walks are so much better when they come with power.
12		-4 Last Week: 8	Ernesto Frieri – We're all in agreement that Frieri should never be allowed to pitch in Kansas City again, right?
13		+1 Last Week: 14	Dane De La Rosa – De La Rosa has pitched three innings more than any other Angel reliever which I am totally sure Jerry Dipoto fully planned on when he constructed this bullpen.
14		-4 Last Week: 10	Scott Downs – Downs hasn't faced more than three batters in an appearance since April 25th.
15		+2 Last Week: 17	J.B. Shuck – Alright, I guess Shuck is pretty decent. I relent (please nobody tell Peter Bourjos or Kole Calhoun I said that).
16		-1 Last Week: 15	Robert Coello – Robert Coello has a save. Robert Coello, a pitcher for a team with a $140 million payroll, registered a save.
17		— 0 Last Week: n/a	Sean Burnett – Yay! Sean Burnett is back! Aaaaaand he's hurt again.
18		-2 Last Week: 16	Michael Kohn – The wheels are still a bit wobbly on Kohn, but it isn't yet clear if they are going to come all the way off.
19		+1 Last Week: 20	Garrett Richards – I give up on figuring out Richards. One week he looks like he needs to be demoted, the next he is making guys look foolish with his slider en route to a five-out save.
20		+1 Last Week: 21	Joe Blanton – DAMMIT! Why did he have to pitch just barely well enough to earn himself one more start and keep us on the string like this. Stupid, Blanton.
21		–2 Last Week: 19	Hank Conger – Conger is making it hard to love him. He knocked the cover off the ball this week, but he also upped his season total to four GIDPs in just 67 plate appearances, which trails only Kendrick, Iannetta and Pujols for the team lead.
22		-2 Last Week: 18	Brendan Harris – Nothing against Brendan, but it was finally nice for the Angels to go a week without needing him.
23		— 0 Last Week: n/a	Billy Buckner – Thanks for not ruining the winning streak, now please return to your life of being confused with the infamous Red Sox first baseman.
24		— 0 Last Week: 24	Mark Lowe – At one point in the KC series, Lowe was warming up before the ninth inning in which the Angels led by three runs and I nearly had a heart attack.
25		— 0 Last Week: n/a	Chris Nelson – Anytime you can pick up the unwanted trash of the Rockies and Yankees, you just have to do it.