Angels sWEPT (59, 60, 61/81)

Like most Angels fans, I spent the whole weekend in denial and trying to figure out what is wrong with the Angels. How could a team with so much talent fall into such a deep spiral?

The Angels got swept in four games by the Tampa Bay Rays this past weekend, a team that the Angels are racing against for the second AL Wild Card spot. The thing that has been so frustrating about their 7-13 run through August is that there is no excuses. Angels no longer have anyone on the disabled list and no one on the team seems to be going under a prolonged slump, so what's wrong?

The Angels have averaged 5.25 runs a game for the month of August, but Angels pitchers have also given up 6.85 runs per game during that same period. August has easily been the Angel's worst month, but compared to May (their best month when they went 18-11) they only averaged 3.75 runs per game, but pitchers only gave up 3.34 runs per game. The pattern here seems to be that good early season pitching was able to carry a struggling offense, but a good offense at the end of the season has done nothing to make up for the pitcher's failures.

I think everyone is asking at this point, what is wrong with the pitchers? They're healthy, but lacking confidence. They're trying to do too much and over-thinking their pitches. The past month has resulted in too many walks and too many balls left over the plate that have turned into home runs. For crying out loud, the Angel's most consistent pitcher over the last few weeks has been none other than fat face, Ervin Santana, although he might have an explanation for that. What is different with the pitchers now that wasn't there back in May and June? I don't think anyone outside of the Angels clubhouse can answer that one, and I would bet money that they can't answer it either.

Maddon Has the Angels Number (58/81)

Say what you want about Mike Scioscia, but we all know the real brains behind his coaching staff circa 2002 was current Tampa Bay Rays coach Joe Maddon.

From left to right, Bobby Ramos, Mike Scioscia, Alfredo Griffin, Joe Maddon, Mickey Hatcher, Ron Roenicke and Bud Black.

The Angels continued the 10 year anniversary of their 2002 World Series Championship Thursday, by welcoming former bench coach, Maddon, home and getting shut out by the Rays 7-0.

Above we see the Angels coaching staff of 2002 celebrating their World Series win. Four of the men above, who were once the collective brain of the Angels, have gone on to have success in the majors as managers.

As we know, Scioscia still runs things in Anaheim. Maddon was the first to go and became the manager of the Rays in 2006. He subsequently turned that team around and has been contending for the playoffs every year since. In 2007, pitching coach, Black, left for the San Diego Padres and turned their pitching rotation to a legitimate playoff contender in 2010. Finally in 2011, Roenicke moved on to become the manager of the Milwaukee Brewers and took the team to a franchise record 96-66 in his first season.

Maddon has had the Angels number recently. The Angels have been shut out by Maddon's Rays in the past 3 games and have been shut out 4 times overall by the Rays. The Angels record this year versus the Rays is 1-6, and they've only been able to score 8 total runs against the Rays in 7 games. Whatever Maddon is doing with his computers and metrics, it's working because the Angels have not been able to adjust and figure it out.

Vernon Returns, Angels Get Shutout All Weekend (50/81)

Before I continue with this post, I want to make it perfectly clear that the Angels futile offense this weekend was not a result of Vernon Wells being reinserted back into the lineup. To the people who believe that the Angels can blame all of their problems on the underachieving veteran need to take off their blinders and look at the Angels offense as a whole: everyone couldn't hit the ball this weekend.

Angels were shutout 3-0 and 2-0 in games on Saturday and Sunday, respectively, versus the visiting Tampa Bay Rays. The entire offense only managed 9 hits in the two games and combined for 19 strikeouts. To put a long story short, the Angels just couldn't put the bat on the ball.

The two less ballyhooed members of the Ray's pitching staff, rookie, Matt Moore and reigning Rookie of the Year, Jeremy Hellickson, pitched brilliantly and might as well have been pitching with a crystal ball because they knew exactly what to do to cool down the Angel's recently hot bats.

Where does Vernon Wells fall in all of this?

Angels fans have been dreading the day that Wells comes off the DL because it means one more hungry mouth to feed at a dinner table filled with healthy, exciting players. Wells came off the DL on Friday and started Saturday and Sunday's games. The result: 0-4 with a strikeout and 0-3 with a strikeout. Obviously, it can't be expected for a player to come off the disabled list and immediately start producing. Players need to be patient and get their timing back, but Wells is on a short leash with Angels fans.

I was at the game Sunday for Greinke's first start, and there was this fan above me and a few rows back that was heckling Wells mercilessly the whole game. It made you feel bad for Wells, who has been very positive during this DL stint and has supported his team and gives back to the fans. It's unfortunate that fans seem to find a way to hate the guy for something that is out of his control: his contract. If Wells was making anything less than $10 million, I don't think Angels fans would care as much, but because he's making $21 million a year for the next 2 years, fans expect him to produce $21 million worth of production.

Unfortunately, as players get older, their production declines. Also unfortunately, or maybe because of some foolish GMs, many players contracts are backloaded late in their contract and, it's rare when the money reflects the player's production. Vernon Wells is going to get his money, but if he doesn't want to be picked apart by Angels fans for the rest of his time in Anaheim, he needs to produce at a level that people can start defending his contract because, right now, no one can defend the guy no matter how nice he is.

Do Angels Have the Best Rotation in Baseball? (49/81)

On Friday, July 28, 2012, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim made a move that shocked baseball and grabbed headlines when they acquired starting pitcher, Zack Greinke, from the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for shortstop Jean Segura, and Double-A pitchers Ariel Pena and Johnny Hellweg. Armed with arguably the best rotation in all of baseball in the last 10 years, the Angels are mustering all they can to win their second World Series ring 10 years after winning their first one in 2002.

After bouncing back from his firs DL stint in his career due to a bad back, Dan Haren showed, once again, why the Angels have one of the best rotations in baseball. He stifled the visiting Tampa Bay Rays by throwing 6 innings on 5 hits, 1 run and 6 strikeouts on the Angel's way to a 3-1 win.

With the acquisition of Greinke, the Angels rotation looks like this: Jered Weaver, CJ Wislon, Greinke, Haren, and Garrett Richards/Jerome Williams/Ervin Santana. Even if not one person in that final group of 3 shows some consistency to work as a fifth starter, that's still a scary rotation, and rivaled only by one rotation (on paper) in all of baseball and that's the last place Philadelphia Phillies.

When the Phillies acquired Cliff Lee via free agency, the rest of baseball didn't know what to do. How was it possible for three aces on any other staff on baseball to be on the same team. The 2011 Phillies were anchored by Lee, Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels, Roy Oswalt, one of the best combinations of any pitching staff I have ever seen until the Angels current rotation. Obviously the Phillies current rotation has not won them any World Series rings and, due to injuries and bad luck, they are currently the worst team in the NL East.

We'll have to wait until Sunday's game versus the Rays when Greinke makes his first start wearing Angels red to argue if the Angels have the best rotation, but my gut tells me they do. Expect to see an in depth look at pitching stats versus other major league teams following Sundays game right here at the Hometown Halo.

Leave a comment below telling me which team you think has the best rotation in baseball, or the best rotation EVER, or follow me on Twitter @SteveonSports to tell me what you think.