The July 12th, 2011 edition of daily news for the LA Angels including Heath Bell Mentions the Angels as a Trade Destination, Scott Boras stands in the way of Jered Weaver re-signing, comparing Mike Trout to fellow uber-prospect Bryce Harper and much more...

The Story: Heath Bell mentions the Angels as a possible trade destination.

The Monkey Says: It was a casual mention, but one can't help but think it was something of a Freudian slip by Bell who has surely been briefed in some way on where he might end up being traded.  That being said, I kind of doubt he winds up with the Angels, just because he will cost more than I expect them to be willing to play, especially since Bell could be highly sought after by teams like Texas.

The Story: The Angels will have to go through Scott Boras if they hope to re-sign Jered Weaver.

The Monkey Says: We knew this already though.  What I will say though is that much is made of the strained Boras-Moreno relationship, but at some point it would behoove Boras to mend that relationship so that he doesn't permanently have one of the top spending owners in the league pissed off at him.  Ensuring that Weaver stays in Anaheim would be a great way to accomplish that.

The All-Star break is upon us, a time to sit back, relax and reflect on how our beloved Angels have performed thus far.  They've entered the break on a roll, so we all have to be feeling good now, but is it good enough to overcome all the other ups and downs earlier in the year?  So tell us, how would you grade the Angels' season so far.

Time to vote!

The July 11th, 2011 edition of daily news for the LA Angels including Weaver named the AL All-Star starter, Hunter and Abreu praise Derek Jeter, more Mike Trout links than I know what to do with and much more...

The Story: Jered Weaver has been named the starting pitcher for the American League All-Star team.

The Monkey Says: Weaver more than deserves the honor and arguably would have been named the starter anyway, even if half the AL pitchers didn't drop out.  Up next for Weaver is continuing his torrid season and earning himself the AL Cy Young (note to self: hire someone to break Justin Verlander's arm).

The Story: Hunter and Abreu praise Derek Jeter after he got his 3,000th career hit.

The Monkey Says: Just in case you didn't already have an assful of Jeter-stroking over the weekend.

Dan Haren may not have been selected as an All-Star, but don't tell that to the Seattle Mariners.

Angels 4, Mariners 2

On a day when All-Stars were dropping out of the Midsummer Classic faster than the girls on Teen Mom dropped out of high school, Dan Haren somehow remained on the outside looking in despite his impressive stat line.  Maybe Ron Washington only had time to watch the first inning of today's game and saw Haren struggling with his command and what was shaping up to be a short outing.  Too bad Washington didn't hang around longer to see Haren do what he always does and quickly right the ship to shutdown the Mariners the rest of the game.

But maybe that was part of Mike Scioscia's secret plan.  Maybe Sosh didn't want both his aces having their schedule thrown off and that is why he yanked Haren with just one out needed for his third complete game of the season.

Alas, Haren's greatness will continue to go unrecognized outside of Anaheim.

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Seattle Mariners (43-47) @ Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (49-42)

Pitching Probables: WAS – Felix Hernandez (8-7, 3.22 ERA)  LAA – Dan Haren (9-5, 2.65 ERA)

Game Info: 12:35 PM PT; TV - KCOP, MLB Network; Radio - KLAA 830 AM

Damn you, All Star break!  Just when the Angels are on their biggest and best roll of the season, you have to stick your menacing midsummer nose into their business and make them sit around for a few days so that they can cool off.

With the rotation continuing to grow stronger and stronger and the offense actually experiencing a rare power surge, I can't really think of a worse time for the Angels to take four days off.  We've already seen how streaky this team can be this season and having the scheduling gods mess with their momentum like this just seems unfair.  Let us not forget that this time last month, the Halos looked so terrible that even casual fans were wondering allowed about which players the Angels should sell off at the trade deadline to kickstart a rebuilding process.  Now they have completely flipped the script and rattled off eight series wins in a row (granted, it has been against a cushy schedule, but wins are still wins).

Keeping that roll, well, rolling won't be easy, but winning this finale to complete the sweep and have a memory of such fresh in their minds as they spend the next four days golfing/resting/vacationing certainly won't hurt.

On the bright side, the Rangers are faced with the exact same problem, so at least they'll both be starting from square one after the break is all said and done.

The Boys in red are officially on fire. Another big night with the long ball and suddenly the Angels are 7 games over .500 and still only a game out of first. Torii Hunter returned to life for one night and, along with Mark Trumbo, put on another fireworks show. What looked like a pitcher's duel to start turned into a blowout by the end. The Angels actually made this one look routine. Decent pitching, good defense and timely hitting. If you're the Angels you have to be a little disappointed the All Star Break is coming.

Angels 9 Mariners 3

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Seattle Mariners (43-46) @ Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (48-42)

Pitching Probables: SEA – Michael Pineda(8-5, 2.58 ERA) LAA – Joel Pineiro (4-3, 3.90)

Game Info: 6:05 PM PT; TV - Fox Sports West; Radio - KLAA 830 AM


The Angels get a look at the future ace of the Mariners given that it's a foregone conclusion that Felix Hernandez will one day end up a Yankee. Michael Pineda is a 22 year old fireballer that many feel has better stuff than King Felix. The Halos counter with Joel Pineiro who looked like he might be returning to his form from last year. This one has all the makings of a pitcher's duel decided in the late innings.