Thanks for coming out, Garrett Richards.  You gave it your best shot and we appreciate the effort, but it doesn't look like this is going work out at the present time.

Yankees 9, Angels 3

It was a longshot for Garrett Richards to step in and become an effective member of the rotation, so it shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone that Richards' MLB debut didn't go so well tonight.  In the kid's defense, he didn't get shelled like so many other recaps have suggested.  Remove his rough first inning (which is pretty fair since any kid making their MLB debut is going to be a mess of nerves in their first inning) and his performance wasn't that bad.  He didn't issue any walks after the first two batters and allowed just four hits in the final four innings.  Granted, all but one hit he allowed tonight was an extra-base hit, but there is promise there that he could become a quality starting pitcher in good time.

The problem is the Angels don't have any time.  The next time this spot in the rotation comes up again, it will be against the Texas Rangers, and the Angels can't risk running Richards out there for such a big game when all they have to rely upon is the hope that he learned a lot from this one start.  They'll have to find someone else, I find him fast so that they have a fighting chance against the Rangers.

As for Garrett, better luck next year.

@

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (64-52) @ New York Yankees (69-45)

Pitching Probables: LAA – Garrett Richards (0-0, -.-- ERA)  NYY – Ivan Nova (10-4, 3.81 ERA)

Game Info: 4:05 PM PT; TV - Fox Sports West, ESPN; Radio - KLAA 830 AM

We all know that the Angels have been riding their strong rotation all year long, but could they potentially be getting an even stronger rotation once rookie Garrett Richards takes the mound tonight?

Assuming Richards is going to pitch well tonight is not at all what I'm doing here.  What I am assuming is that he could pitch well, something that the alternatives he beat out to snag this spot start didn't really have going for them.  All apologies to Hisanori Takahashi and Trevor Bell, but they've both had decent shots at being part of a big league rotation before and the results for both players were less than spectacular.  On stuff alone, Richards is clearly the best candidate since he throws a hard sinker and has multiple viable breaking pitches to complement it with.  His Double-A numbers have been strong (though there is a concerning home/road split), so we also know that he has the ability to translate his raw talent to on-field success.  All the elements are there, it is just a matter of whether or not Richards is actually big league ready.

If, and it is a big "if," Richards is ready for The Show, then the Angels may have inadvertently stumbled across that shot in the arm they've been looking for in their effort to finally overtake the Rangers.  A rotation of three excellent starters, one inconsistent guy and a then a black hole is a mix the Angels could win the division with, but I'd feel a whole lot better if Richards turned that black hole spot into something that is even just consistently average.  That's the thing with Richards, he doesn't have to be an ace, he just needs to be a decent #4 starter and the Angels will suddenly be a good amount better.

I realize now that I am probably getting ahead of myself, but it is because I have my eyes on the post-season prize.  It seems like most folks are just hoping Richards can survive this one outing, me, I am hoping that he can do that and so much more.

This is a very educational week in the world of Angel Tweets.  Not only do we get to learn a bit more about everyone's favorite super prospect, but we get treated to the creation of a brand new word.  Heck, even Chevy Clarke catches a little bit of the learning bug himself... sort of.

Mike Trout loves him some country music - @Trouty20 Country music on the way to the lake ! @cpettit815

• Well, there it is, the first real weakness in Trout's make-up.  C'mon, Mike, your from New Jersey.  What are you doing listening to country music?

CJ Cron's career as a software developer takes an unpleasant turn - @CCron24 Just saw my app idea has already been created. Unreal #upset

• Poor CJ.  I hope his knee turns out to be OK since he no longer has a fallback career as an app developer to rely on.

Trevor Bell had a rough morning - @TrevBe22 I woke up pissed this morning because Rosie Huntington wasn't really next to me. Damn dreams!!!!!!

• Imagine how much more pissed he is going to be when he realizes he is living in Utah.

Victor Rojas insults Oakland and coins a new term at the same time - @VictorRojas29 Coliseum in Oakland #dumptacular RT @SamuelGorski Least favorite ballpark Victor?

• "Dumptacular."  Well done, Victor.  Well done.

...and finally, we end things with the world's worst Twittering athlete, Chevez "Chevy" Clarke.

@OfficialChevy I need to read more

• Yes, Chevy, you do.  In fact, I think you should spend all your free time reading instead of twittering.  Maybe try that for a few months and you'll come back to Twitter and suddenly find yourself capable of composing something resembling a cogent thought.

@OfficialChevy Where have I been

• Just when I think Chevy can't get any more helpess...

Early last week I was given the opportunity to interview a Mr. Torii Hunter, you may know him as the right fielder for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. I met with Torii in Anaheim while he was making a promotional appearance for the Pepsi Max company, promoting the Pepsi Max Field of Dreams, which allows you to vote for your favorite player of all time at each position, which enters a ballot each time a vote has been logged. The winners will receive a grand prize which is, well I'll let you find out for yourself by visiting the website here, let's just say that it's a doozy of a prize.

Before we get to the interview I'd like to thank both Dave and Chuck from Angelswin.com, Dave for helping out with the interview and Chuck for allowing us to use their video recording of the interview, which you can see jsu after the jump. To clear up any confusion (since the voices are hard to tell apart), this was a 2-on-1 interview conducted by both Monkeywithahalo.com and Angelswin.com (A.W), with the transcript following the video.

The August 10th, 2011 edition of daily news for the LA Angels including Richards officially gets the call, Scioscia getting Manager of the Year buzz, the Angels are ready for Mark Trumbo to take on a bigger role in the lineup and much more...

The Story: The Angels made it official that they will call up prospect Garrett Richards to start today's game.

The Monkey Says: This confirms what Keith Law tweeted Monday night and I must reiterate how much I agree with this decisions and how glad I am tht thy are leaving the door open to him sticking in the rotation if he impresses.  Some folks have expressed concern about having him make his debut in "big, scary" New York City, but I tend to think that is overblown.  If a guy is too weak mentally to handle that big stage, he probably isn't ever going to succeed anyway.  To make room for Richards, the team has optioned Horacio Ramirez back to the minors.

The Story: Mike Scioscia deserves credit for keeping the Angels in contention despite their punchless lineup.

The Monkey Says: You know, I hadn't really thought about it until now, but Scioscia has a great shot at the award, especially if Cleveland goes into a tailspin and finishes the season under .500.

Did that really just happen?  Did I really see what I think I just saw?  Do you even know which highly improbable occurrence during the course of the Angels' win over the Yankees I am even referring to?

Angels 6, Yankees 4

Perhaps I am talking about Jeff Mathis jumping into the wayback machine to relive his 2009 ALCS performance by coming up with a bases loaded ground-rule double?

Or maybe I am referring to Bobby Abreu, mired in an epic slump, hitting a home run?

Or was it his second home run of the game that was so improbably seeing how it came against the great and mighty Mariano Rivera?

No, no, it has to be Jordan Walden finishing the game and escaping what appeared to be a blown save in the making by picking off Curtis Granderson with the old "fake to third, go to first" move, right?

Honestly, the whole game was just so improbable, that I'm not even sure what it was that I was referring to to begin with.

@

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (63-52) @ New York Yankees (69-44)

Pitching Probables: LAA – Dan Haren (12-6, 2.81 ERA)  NYY – A.J. Burnett (8-9, 4.54 ERA)

Game Info: 4:05 PM PT; TV - Fox Sports West; Radio - KLAA 830 AM

Alright, Angel fans, it is time to dispense with the cupcake opponents and see if the Angels can really go toe-to-toe against the best the American League has to offer.  OK, the Yankees aren't quite the best, but they are awfully close and still more than qualify as the kind of top flight competition that the Halos are going to have to face if they make the playoffs.

I've said all along that I think the Angels can do some damage in the post-season if they catch teams at the right time, given how good their rotation is.  The "right time" included having the offense riding a hot streak, so suffice it to say that this is not the "right time."  But that only makes this all the more worthwhile of a test.  Can the Angels really go into Yankee Stadium and trade haymakers with the big bad Bronx Bombers on the strength of their starting pitching alone?  Can the bats spring to life now that the occassion calls for it?  Does this Halo roster really have the talent necessary to be a contender?

I don't know those answers and, frankly, I don't think the Angel players know those answers either, but after this series, we should know all too well, whether we like the answers or not.