Minnesota Twins vs Los Angeles Angels Series Preview
Minnesota Twins Travel West to Face Reeling Angels
When we last met the Angels in April, they had just finished off a sweep of the A’s to get above the .500 mark at 5-4. To date, that is the only day the Angels have had a winning record all year. Thanks to a three game sweep by the Twins, L.A. has been fighting uphill all year.
They had fallen to 8 games under in the middle of May, after losing all 6 games of a homestand, before rallying prior to visiting the Yankees last Monday. Since, they’ve lost 6 of 7 to fall to their low water mark (27-36) of 9 games under, leaving many to wonder what has happened to a team that finished just one game out of the playoffs last year.
The 2016 Twins (19-43) are another team defying high expectations. With the Seattle Mariners finally getting some production from Robinson Cano, to Texas getting some pitching to complement their explosive offense, and Houston trying to show last year was no fluke – the Angels are what many believed them to be before the start of the season – no better than the 4th best team in the AL West.
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Having arguably the best player in baseball in Mike Trout has kept them from falling too far in the standings prior to this year. A young, upcoming outfield, with the hope of another big year from aging Albert Pujols, had the Angels’ brass thinking they could be buyers come this July.
Maybe picking up a veteran starter at the trading deadline would keep them in playoff hunt. They had the hitting, and the acquisition of Andrelton Simmons improved their infield defense, so pitching would be all they would need to improve, right? Ah, like the Twins, their best laid plans didn’t take long to not pan out. Instead, they look to be sellers, with Trout being only untouchable.
Monday Night Game
Ricky Nolasco (2-4, 5.17 ERA) vs Jered Weaver (5-5, 5.56 ERA)
9:05 CDT Angel Stadium of Anaheim
TV: Fox Sports North
Tuesday Night Game
Ervin Santana (1-6, 4.77 ERA) vs Jhoulys Chacin (2-4, 4.83 ERA)
9:05 CDT Angel Stadium of Anaheim
TV: Fox Sports North
Wednesday Night Game
Tyler Duffey (2-5, 5.33 ERA) vs Hector Santiago (3-4, 5.64 ERA)
9:05 CDT Angel Stadium of Anaheim
TV: Fox Sports North
Los Angeles: Flash forward to June, and the Angels cannot keep the outfield together, save for Trout. Simmons has missed a month of games already due to a torn thumb ligament, and their starting rotation? After ace Garret Richards tore his UCL (usually requiring Tommy John surgery) the Angels haven’t had anyone step up to fill the role of a #1 starter.
They can’t even get anyone to resemble a #3 man right now, with veteran Jered Weaver owning the most victories (5) in the rotation despite a 5.56 ERA. The Angels are in Twins territory as far as team ERA (4.49), currently 13th in the AL. Like the Twins, they cannot keep the opposition from hitting it over the fence, as they’ve allowed 85 homers. The Twins rank last, with 87.
Injuries have been a problem for Los Angeles, with 4 starting pitchers on the DL, along with Simmons and anyone that they try to start in left field.
Offense: Despite entering his 15th year in baseball, Pujols is holding up well, hitting 12 home runs with 41 runs batted in. The only trouble is that’s average for a first baseman, and Pujols is being paid $25 million dollars not to be average. Sound familiar?
After starting slow, Pujols hit 100 points higher in May, collecting 21 RBI. Since the calendar flipped to June, Pujols is showing his age. Only two extra base hits in 11 games this month, and 3 of his 5 RBI coming on one swing.
Trout is just out of the top five in home runs and RBI, and his .309 average is above his career norm. For once, though, Trout doesn’t seem to be the man to beat in the MVP race this year, as his competition has stiffened with rivals Cano, Mark Trumbo, and half of the Red Sox roster.
Player to Watch: Still Trout. Right now, he’s the only one going for the moribund Angels squad. He kills Minnesota pitching (.321 AVG vs current Twins pitchers), hitting above .300 versus everyone Minnesota can throw at him. He is in a slump, by his standards, this month. Only 3 extra base hits and 4 RBI as the Angels have fallen to 3-8 in June.
Pitching: With Richards, C.J. Wilson, Nick Tropeano, and Andrew Heaney on the DL, only Jered Weaver has survived injury in 2016. The Angels are 5-5 in the last 10 games Santiago has pitched, though his ERA has climbed from the mid-2’s to the high 5’s in that time.
With so many starters out, the Angels traded for Chacin, and they are 3-3 in the 6 games he has started for them, though he’s struggled with his control, save for a complete game win over Detroit on May 30th, when he struck out 10 Tigers, allowing only 1 walk, in a 5-1 win.
On the plus side, the Angels did get closer Huston Street back at the end of May from the DL. Street blew his first save of the year Saturday against Cleveland, giving up 3 runs in the 9th inning after the Angels had led 3-0.
Player to Watch: Jered Weaver. The Angels bullpen is nearly as taxed as Minnesota’s. A long outing should provide some relief. A short outing could spell problems for the rest of the series. Weaver started off hot this year, winning his first three decisions.
His only bad game for April was a no-decision against Minnesota, where he gave up 4 runs and lasted only 4.1 innings. The Minnesota Twins won that game 6-4, as Oswaldo Arcia hit a 2-run, tie-breaking homer in the bottom of the 8th inning.
Weaver lost 5 of 6 decisions in May, getting bit by the long ball. Weaver allowed 8 home runs in 6 games last month. His troubles have followed him into June. He’s allowed two home runs in both starts this month.
Minnesota Twins: 3-3 this past week, a huge improvement over past weeks. They avoided their 9th sweep of the year by pulling out a 7-4 win in 10 innings on Sunday afternoon. Max Kepler hit his first career homer in walk-off style.
The Minnesota Twins have settled on an improved batting order with Eduardo Nunez at lead-off, Robbie Grossman and Joe Mauer switching back and forth between the #2 and #3 spots, with Trevor Plouffe hitting cleanup. Brian Dozier is hitting much better after sliding down into the 5th spot.
Dozier hit .435 last week, and also collected 3 walks. His patience and stubbornness into finally relenting to hitting the ball to right field paid off with a big week. If the Twins can get production through the first 5-6 batters in their order, and Byron Buxton can get on base, they Twins could start to win series. The goal from here on out is to do just that, and finally turn in a winning month or two before October.
Next: Minnesota Twins Ups and Downs
Notes: Closer Glen Perkins had another setback, and will get a third opinion on his shoulder. Manager Paul Molitor said that Perk can throw without pain from 120 feet, but it flares up when he takes the mound.
Neil Ramirez will be with the Twins for the Angels series, wearing #50, last worn by Casey Fien. Byung-ho Park will return to tonight’s lineup as the DH, batting behind Dozier. Molitor hopes a steady, recurring lineup will begin to produce winning results.