The July 26th, 2011 edition of daily news for the LA Angels including Trout gets his first homer ball back, trade deadline talk galore, trading for Wells might've been a better move than signing Carl Crawford and much more...

The Story: The fan who caught Mike Trout's first homer was more than happy to give it back to him.

The Monkey Says: I'm just shocked that the guy is an avid collector and handed the ball over so readily.  That would seem like the perfect kind item to have in a collection, especially given the lofty projections for Trout's career.

The Story: Jon Heyman seems to think the Angels have narrowed their trade search to Aramis Ramirez and Heath Bell.

The Monkey Says: I don't think the Angels are going to pay the price for Bell, but I am sure they will stay in those talks as long as possible to drive the price up for the Rangers.  As for Aramis Ramirez, I've said all along that he is a great fit for the Halos, but he seems deadset enforcing his no-trade clause.

Another game in which the Jordan Walden let's an Angels lead slip through his fingers. This game was destined for the toilet, and that's just where it ended up.

Angels 2 Indians 3

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Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (55-47) @ Cleveland Indians (51-48)

Pitching Probables: CLE – Fausto Carmona (5-10, 5.63 ERA)  LAA –  Dan Haren (10-6, 3.10 ERA)

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

This is Dan Haren's opporunity to put that tired, re-used line to rest. You know which line I'm talking about, the old "he can't pitch after the All Star break" which has been prevalent the past few seasons. It's been eating me up the past few weeks, not because it's true, but because Dan Haren is the only one giving life to those words. I thought his first start out was a fluke, but then he comes back and does even worse against the Rangers! The third time's the charm they say, let's hope Haren doesn't squander this opportunity.

The clock is ticking, Tony Reagins.

There is now less than a week until the trade deadline strikes and everyone wants to know, "will the Angels pull of a deal before the deadline?"

Do they or don't they have the money to make a trade?  Will they go after a big bat or bullpen help or both?  Are they even legitimate enough contenders to be pursuing roster upgrades?  Will Tony Reagins be able to put his recent deadline blunders behind him and be able to put together a deal that will help the Angels instead of crippling them financially further?

Time to vote!

The July 25th, 2011 edition of daily news for the LA Angels including Trout to stay in the majors a little longer, Scioscia wants more catcher offense, the time is now to lock up Jered Weaver and much more...

The Story: Mike Trout will stay in the majors for at least a few games even though Peter Bourjos has been activated.

The Monkey Says: If it is only for another week or so, this is a smart move.  The Halos need to be sure Bourjos is 100% and it also wouldn't hurt to have another decent bench player around until Bobby Abreu snaps out of his funk.  Of course, part of me is wondering if the Angels are keeping him in the majors just in case they find a way to dump Abreu on another team, thus creating a regular role for Trout.

The Story: Mike Scioscia wants more offense from his catchers.

The Monkey Says: Yet he keeps starting Jeff Mathis.  This confuses me.  I, of course, am hoping that this is just another indicator that my suspicions of the Angels trying to find a catch upgrade on the trade market are actually true.

In the preview to this game, I made a point of voicing my displeasure for Tyler Chatwood and his incessant nibbling at the corners.  After this game, I have to say... well, I have to say nothing because Chatwood stepped is game to correct his flaws and now the cat's got my tongue.

Angels 9, Orioles 3

It wasn't that I ever gave up on Chatwood, in fact, quite the opposite.  I've been actively rooting for the kid since he got called up.  All the sabermetricians have been harping on him for his poor peripherals, but I've been patiently waiting for him to turn those stats around (and he is, by the way) enough to get them to change their tune.  But his previous start was such a step in the wrong direction that my faith in Tyler had begun to waiver, well, waiver no more.

A bounce back start for Chatwood was never out of the question, especially since he has had a habit of alternating good and bad starts, but for him to come out and carve up Baltimore for seven innings by striking out five batters and issuing no walks was more than I could hope for.  But that wasn't what impressed me the most.  86 pitches.  That's all he needed and it exemplifies what a step forward he took.

There was no nibbling, there was no wasting pitches.  It was just attack, attack, attack from the first pitch to the last.

Now instead of trying not to lose my faith in Chatwood, I'm going to have to do my best to not get too excited, at least not until he shows this same aggressiveness in his next two or three outings.

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Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (54-47) @ Baltimore Orioles (40-57)

Pitching Probables: LAA – Tyler Chatwood (5-6, 3.71 ERA)  BAL – Jeremy Guthrie (4-13, 4.35 ERA)

Game Info: 10:35 AM PT; TV - Fox Sports West; Radio - KLAA 830 AM

I will spare you the obvious lecture on how the Halos would be wasting a big opportunity should they not win this game and thus lose a series to the sadsack Orioles right in the middle of a playoff race.  I know this.  You know this.  The Angels know this.

We are all pulling for the Angels to walk away from this game with a series win under their belts, but I am secretly hoping they leave Baltimore with a little something extra.  That something has a name: Koji Uehara.  I've been complaining for months about how the Angels need a righty setup man, but also need a reliever who doesn't get ruined by walks.  I've searched high and low for a perfect match and Uehara is that guy.  He may not throw very hard, but his BB/9 rate is a microscopic 1.64, but he also pairs that with a very impressive 11.86 K/9 rate.  The only real problem he has is he gives up a few more homers than you like to see, having allowed six this season, but since he has allowed just 23 hits in 44 innings, I think that is something the Angels can live with.

Hopefully Tony Reagins got a good look at Koji last night when he dusted the Angels in order on just nine pitches and was impressed enough to take a stroll over to Baltimore GM Andy McPhail's luxury box during today's game to work out a deal so that the Angels can get on their flight after the game with one extra passenger.