Jered Weaver's First Career No-Hitter (13/81)

I think the Angels have found the answer to their bullpen problems. The night after journeyman, Jerome Williams, threw his first shutout in 7 years, Angel's ace, Jered Weaver threw his first career no-hitter as the Angels beat the Minnesota Twins 9-0.

Weaver was absolutely masterful for 9 innings as he joined the ranks of Nolan Ryan, Mike Witt, Clyde Wright, Bo Belinsky, and Ervin Santana (last year) as the only Angel's pitchers to ever throw a complete-game no-hitter.

Narrowly missing a perfect game thanks to one walk and a passed-ball strikeout, Weaver struck out nine batters on 121 pitches to cap off the perfect story that every little boy dreams of having.

In media and entertainment, we often hear of "every little girl's dream" to be a princess or a magical wedding, or "every boy's father" who dreams of his son becoming a greater success than he ever was. I'm here to tell you that every little boy who grows up playing baseball, dreams of throwing a complete-game no-hitter in front of their friends and family at home.

Jered Weaver, a local boy, grew up a Dodgers fan, lived less than 30 minutes from Angels Stadium, and went to college at Long Beach State. He was drafted in the first round by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, was thrust into the role of ace due to the departure of fan favorite, John Lackey, and was the runner-up to the 2011 Cy Young Award.

I love Weaver for what he has accomplished, but the feeling I, as well as many others, have for the Angel's ace is a lot more complicated. You see, we envy Jered Weaver. He is everything the little boy in us wishes we had become. We have tried and failed, and now, for many of us, our grasp at greatness is to live vicariously through Weaver's gifted arm.

In an age when most young pitchers seek the big contracts in the free agent market, Weaver gave the Angels a hometown discount when he signed a five-year, $85 million contract extension last season. He could have easily gone anywhere else and got more money, but he chose to stay here. Why? Because there's a little boy in Jered Weaver who is jumping up and down right now for being able to live out his dream so close to home with friends and family watching from all around.

Angels Offense

Oh yeah, the Angels offense went nuts and scored 9 runs tonight. No Chronic Tacos for those who attended the game (suckers!). I don't think the fans mind too much as they were able to witness the first no-hitter at Angel Stadium in over 20 years.

Howard's Big Bat

Howie must really like the pressure being taken off of him now that's he's not batting second in front of Albert Pujols. Since being moved to the six-hole last night, Kendrick has 2 home runs, a triple, 4 RBIs, 2 runs scored on 7 hits. Talk about great back-to-back games. And he narrowly missed hitting for the cycle last night.


Jerome Williams 3-hit Shutout (12/81)

I missed covering the game last night as I was busy celebrating the Lakers win over the Denver Nuggets (hey, life happens), but I did get to catch Jerome Williams first shutout in 7 years. Just like Weaver did tonight, Williams only faced 2 batters over the minimum in an amazing performance that will shut down any speculation of Garrett Richards being called up to take Williams' spot in the rotation.

I'm proud of Williams. Next to Mark Trumbo, he was the most pleasant surprise of the Angels last year. He's come a long way, and, a guy who claims to be a smarter pitcher, is going to keep getting his chances to bring the Angels closer to a playoff spot.

I truly believe this series versus the Twins was exactly what the Angels needed. Great starting pitching has led to the "turn of the tide." Now we just need that Pujols guy to start hitting.

Where Is The Angel's Bullpen? (10/81)

It's hard to give an award to the worst bullpen in the majors with teams like Toronto B-Jays, the BoSox and the Angels, but Los Angeles of Anaheim are sure doing their best to stake that claim.

Dan Haren took a shutout into the 8th inning on an overcast Sunday afternoon, but the bullpen couldn't hold the lead. They blew their fourth save of the season to tie (appropriately) with the B-Jays. No wonder ace, Jered Weaver, insisted on going the distance the other day, not wishing to entrust the bullpen with a 3-run lead. Even the usually dependable Scott Downs got rocked by giving up two runs in the eighth. LaTroy Hawkins got tagged with the loss in extra innings when he gave up an RBI single to Baltimore Oriole's outfielder, Nick Markakis. Baltimore beat the Angels in 10 innings 3-2.

The bullpen, that has been Angel's Achilles' Heel for the past two seasons, was supposed to be upgraded this off-season with experience. The Angels added veteran relievers, Hawkins and 39-year old Jason Isringhausen, and hard throwing righty, Kevin Jepsen was returning healthy after an injury plagued 2011 campaign.

However, the Angels have seen strong starts come and enough times this season for a hush to overcome Angel Stadium whenever a relief pitcher gets brought into the game. On top of blown saves, the Angels relievers have inherited 26 runners and allowed 12 of them to score. Poor Dan Haren, who's lost two quality starts thanks to a revolving door bullpen. If I'm Haren, I'm never letting that ball out of my hand no matter how much manager Mike Scioscia insists.

Howard Homers

Howie Kendrick got his second home run of the season. With the bomb, he becomes the only second baseman besides Texas Ranger's Ian Kinsler to hit at least 12 home runs since August 15 of last year.

Vernon Wells: Scoring Machine

Baseball is all about scoring more runs than the other team. Say what you will, but Vernon Wells is helping this team win games by getting on base and leading the team in home runs (3) and runs scored (10). The stats still look insignificant next to another outfielder just down the freeway, but the much maligned hitter is producing at a relatively higher rate than some of the other guys on the team.

Final Note:

The Angels might possibly sign reliever Mike Gonzalez, a Scott Boras client. Angels fans are conditioned to hate the super-agent, Boras, thanks to all the stress he has caused them with the early handling of Weaver and the departure of Mark Texeira, but this would be a good thing.

Boras handles players with talent, and Gonzalez is no exception. Gonzalez was part of the Texas Ranger's solid bullpen last year that included Mike Adams, Koji Uehara, Darren Oliver, and Neftali Feliz, and owns a lifetime 2.94 ERA. The former Pittsburgh Pirates closer who notched 26 saves in 2006, would add a steady right handed arm for the middle innings that Isringhausen, Jepsen, and Hawkins have failed to deliver thus far.

It may sound like the Angels have a ton of relievers signed as it is, but you can never have too much quality arms in the pen. Doesn't matter how many runs you score if a bullpen can't hold a lead. Just ask the Boston Red Sox.

Finally, The Angels Put Together A Solid Game (8/81)

The Angels had 11 hits, the Baltimore Orioles had 3 errors, Jerome Williams bounced back, and Jordan Walden picked up his first save of the season as the Angels finally put together a solid game for the second time this week to beat the Orioles six to three.

I attended the game last night and had some great seats to watch the action. After getting roughed up by the Yankees in his season debut, Williams delivered a solid night by keeping the ball down and not running into any trouble until the the 7th inning when he gave up a towering 2-run home run to Nolan Reimold. Manager Mike Scioscia came out to the mound to let the journeyman know it was his time to come out, and then brought in LaTroy Hawkins for the Hold.

Speaking of Holds, nobody talks about them anymore. The middle relief guys don't nearly get as much glory or recognition as the starters or closers, but their the ones who have to hold the fort down until the big guns show up. Granted, this has been an area the Angels have struggled in recent years, but guys like Scott Downs, Yankee's David Robertson, and Ranger's Alexi Ogando should be getting a lot more ink for consistently coming in and shutting down opposing batters.  

Howard Lights Up The Halo

The Angels left a lot of base runners stranded last night, but still hit good enough to manage four runs thanks to a great hitting night from second baseman Howard Kendrick (don't ask me why he prefers "Howard" over "Howie"). Kendrick managed carried the team last night by going 3 for 5 with a single, a run scored, and two doubles including this one that cleared the bases, giving him three RBIs for the night.  

Trumbo In Left

Mark Trumbo got his first start in Left Field today in a lineup that featured the Angel's best hitters. I'm not going to get used to it because it's almost guaranteed that we'll see a different order tomorrow, but I was glad to see Scioscia put out a lineup that I completely agree with. Batting Trumbo behind Torii Hunter was a great idea to take some of the pressure off designated hitter, Kendrys Morales.  

Is Trout Here Yet?

Despite his amazing batting line in Triple A right now, Mike Trout talk has cooled off this week thanks to some decent play by Vernon Wells. Wells is batting .286 in the past 7 days with 2 home runs, 8 hits, and 3 RBIs. He's reached base nine times in the past week and scored 6 runs. Six out of nine is a pretty good average for scoring when you get on base. Thank Chris Iannetta for those runs.  

Final Note:

The Angels have been off to a rough start this season. Scioscia has been playing around with the lineup on a daily basis trying to find the one that clicks. I may not always agree with his decisions on who is playing or the order of the lineup, but there is a method to his madness. He's not panicking. He tells the players on a daily basis to just "grind it out" and not worry about records, slumps, etc. He wants his players to be relaxed although focused at the same time. I agree with what he's said before that his team has too much talent to stay down for long. The Angels will find their chemistry, Pujols will hit home runs, the rotation will get the wins, but everyone just needs to be patient.

As for Trumbo, he is the best hitter in the Angel's lineup right now, but he's only playing half as much as the regular starters. Scioscia has ALWAYS been a defense-first kind of manager, and Trumbo's initial go at third didn't leave a good taste in Scioscia's mouth. Trumbo going to have to work hard to build his manager's trust again no matter how hard he is hitting the ball. That's just the way Scioscia is. It's the reason why the Angels kept Mathis instead of Mike Napoli last year, and it's the reason why Alberto Callaspo is still in the lineup. I don't see Scioscia changing his ways as manager anytime soon, so his players are just going to have to meet his expectations instead.

Side-note: I honestly believe that General Manager Jerry Dipoto should run for a government office. That guy is the biggest politician I have ever seen in baseball, and I don't mean it in a bad way. Everything that comes out of Dipoto's mouth means everything and nothing. He says all the right things to build confidence and avoid controversy. You can tell he has a great baseball mind by never publicly doubting his players and always building up his investments. He knows how mental a sport baseball is. Good job, Jerry, the Angels are lucky to have you.