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MATCH-UP MOTTOS
MONDAY, 9/16: C.J. Wilson vs. Sonny Gray: Prodigal Son
Yep, that's right a rookie that the Angels haven't faced before… only they have. He pitched two innings of relief against the Halos back in July, but if he shuts down the Angels tonight, everyone will surely use the fallacious excuse that this team just can't beat rookie pitchers.
TUESDAY, 9/17: Garrett Richards vs. A.J. Griffin: A hairy situation
We really missed out on a great hair battle here. A.J. Griffin has the lush, flowing locks that look like he spends a small fortune on conditioner. On the other side is Garrett Richards who used to sport crunchy, gross looking long hair that looked as if he hadn't washed it months. Alas, Garrett trimmed his lettuce in favor of something more mature and sensible. Talk about missed opportunities.
WEDNESDAY, 9/18: Jason Vargas vs. Dan Straily: Not so fast
Not to be an MPH-hawk, but Jason Vargas' velocity has been down a bit since he had blood clot removal surgery earlier this year. Given how slow he threw before, that might be a good explanation for his inconsistency since coming off the DL. He just doesn't have that much margin for error with his velocity and one would hope that it comes back over time as he rebuilds strength, but we are now seven starts in and it doesn't seem to be happening.
MISERY INDEX
The index reading for this series is: Elimination
Last week, the Angels were officially eliminated from the AL West division race and starting in this series, they now are on the cusp of being eliminated from the Wild Card too. Their elimination number stands at five, meaning they'd have to get swept in this series and have Texas win at least twice. Since Texas has been playing like, well, the Angels, that probably won't happen but it is a possibility now. Just don't tell Scioscia because he still thinks that Angels are right in the thick of it. Math can be hard sometimes.
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