We spend so much time talking about what trades we would love for our teams to make whenever the trade deadline nears, but as we Angel fans know all too well, there are also trades that we should be hoping our teams don't make.  Instead of waiting for Tony Reagins to make his next potential blunder, I'm issuing a pre-emptive strike and listing ten deals this Halo faithful fan would rather not see come to fruition.

Have we learned our lesson yet, Tony?

1. Carlos Pena.  I keep seeing this rumor and I just don't get it.  Mark Trumbo isn't great, but he isn't bad either.  Pena does have power and patience, but I don't really think Mike Scioscia is interested in adding another guy with an average barely over .200 to the middle of the order.
   
2. Ramon Hernandez.  This was floated by some outlets recently and while I like the idea of the Angels acquiring a catcher that can actually hit, I don't like the idea of the Halos giving up prospects for a catcher that Mike Scioscia will still find a way to slot behind Jeff Mathis on the depth chart.
3. Francisco Rodriguez.  Fortunately, the Brewers already traded for K-Rod, so he is off the market which is just fine by me since all the hair I lost suffering through K-Rod's last years as an Angel only just grew back
4. Alfonso Soriano.  Soriano isn't being mentioned in any trade rumors since he has arguably the worst contract in baseball... kind of like Vernon Wells did before Tony Reagins traded for him.  Don't do it, Tony!
5. Octavio Dotel.  Maybe I'm just imagining things, but I feel like Dotel is harbinger of doom for teams that trade for him at the deadline.  He's been passed around the league because his numbers are always good, but never great, and some desperate team always seem to take a flier on him but that team never goes anywhere.  I don't want the Angels to be that team.
6. Luke Scott.  He could be the lefty-power bat they want, but I don't know how well a "birther" is going to fit in in a blue state like California.
7. Daric Barton.  This has been an under-the-radar rumbling, and he certainly wouldn't cost the Angels much, but the last thing this team is to have minimal power at every single infield position.
8. Anyone from the Tampa Bay Rays.  Last time Reagins dealt with Andrew Friedman, Scott Kazmir happened.  No thank you, sir.
9. Jeff Mathis.  Yeah, I know, he's already on the team but the fact that the Pirates showed any kind of interest in giving up a real player with an actual pulse for Mathis is something the Angels would be fools not to take full advantage of, especially since he is a likely non-tender candidate this off-season.  Oh, that and he is absolutely, truly terrible.
10. Nobody.  I know the budget is stretched to the limit, but this current Angel roster just isn't quite good enough to be true contenders.  I don't necessarily think they need to add a star, but they have a few holes that need to be shored up if they are really going to overtake the Rangers and challenge for the World Series.

The July 14th, 2011 edition of daily news for the LA Angels including Aramis Ramirez trade rumors are just a hoax, the Halos could sit out the trade deadline, Howie Kendrick is a top candidate for a second half slump and much more...

The Story: Rumors of the Angels completing a trade for Aramis Ramirez proved to be a hoax.

The Monkey Says: Someone made a fake Mark Saxon Twitter account and tried to say the Angels had completed a deal for Aramis Ramirez, but Saxon himself refuted the report.  Buster Olney even followed up on it and both teams said they haven't even talked to each other about Ramirez, which could be true since Aramis has a no-trade clause and has said he would block a potential trade out of Chicago.

The Story: The Angels might stand pat at the trade deadline.

The Monkey Says: Of course, any team has the potential to not be able to pull any trades off.  I doubt the Angels will be completely inactive though, especially since Tony Reagins went out of his way a few weeks ago to publicly state that the team can add payroll via trade and even said he intended to do so.  At a minimum, they figure to be pretty likely to add a veteran arm to the bullpen.

With the All-Star break upon us, I can't think of a better time to check in on the Twitter-savvy Angels to see what they are up to over the hiatus and even see if they have some wonderful insight into the festivities (SPOILER ALERT: They don't).  Let's see what the Halos are tweeting this week!

Bobby Wilson is apparently spending the break in Vegas - @BW46 Cirque de soleil "mystere" and blue man group tonite. I'm pretty excited.

• I'm guessing Bobby isn't in for a "Hangover" type of weekend.  Seriously, aren't pro athletes supposed to spend all their time in Vegas racking up massive gambling debts and impregnating strippers?  No wonder he can't pass Jeff Mathis on the depth chart.

All-Star Howie Kendrick took in the Home Run Derby first-hand - @HKendrick47 Robinson has put on a show #HRDerby

• Dynamite drop-in, Monty!  Thanks for that useful analysis, Howie.  Clearly you were selected for your talent and not your prosaic play-by-play abilities.

Victor Rojas is not a fan of the Home Run Derby - @VictorRojas29 Turned on HR Derby just in time to see Rickie Weeks swing & miss as well as pop up to pitcher's mound on 1st 2 pitches...NUFF said.

• See, Howie, that's how you add value.  Oh, and I am very much plus one to Rojas' reaction.

Torii Hunter has plans for the break that aren't fit for the whole family - @toriihunter48 On my way to Dallas for my 4 days off. Going relax and let my body heal. I'm also going to lay out bucket naked in the sun. Lol.....

• First, how exactly does one get "bucket" naked?  Second, that would be one nasty sunburn, so Torii might want to lather up.

...and finally, our old friend Chevy Clarke.  You didn't think we'd skip Chevez because of the All-Star theme, did you?  Surely everyone's favorite blatant offender of Twitter etiquette has some sage wisdom to drop on us in light of the Mid-summer Classic.  And as we remind you every week, if you don't follow Chevy... don't.  He might be insane.  His tweets consistently make no sense and always seem to be one sentence from the middle of a conversation, only he isn't talking to anyone.  In other words, he is the anti-Logan Morrison.  So, without further adieu, here are a few of Chevy's "unique observations."

@OfficialChevy Should i start Twitpicing????

• God dammit!  Who told Chevy about Twitpic?!?!  I want names!!!!!!  Can you imagine how much more annoying he is going to be when he gets to start adding photos into his inanity?  And you just know he'll end up accidentally posting dong shots within six months.

@OfficialChevy Ladies..... What would u #RateMe ???? dont ask why.. im bored

• That is a vintage Chevy tweet right there.  First, he is clearly trolling for booty.  Second, he tries to act "mysterious" by saying don't ask why, but the he immediately says why, which make NO SENSE.  I give up, really I do.

The All-Star game may behind us, but that doesn't mean we can't already start looking forward to the next one.  This year, we saw two Angels get named to their first All-Star squad ever, both in somewhat unlikely fashion.  That got me thinking, what other current Angels that have never been All-Star have the potential to be selected someday and which could end up being the new Tim Salmon (best player on the team to never be an All-Star)?

If Howie can do it, so can you!  OK, not you, Jeff Mathis, but everyone else.

The July 13th, 2011 edition of daily news for the LA Angels including Angels All-Star Game results, looking at Weaver's rise to dominance, a laughable attempt at assessing the Angels' trade deadline needs and much more...

The Story: All three Angels made appearance in last night's All-Star Game, but didn't do anything of note.

The Monkey Says: That's not true, Walden did give up an insurance run to the National League, otherwise, you'd have hardly noticed that the Angels were there.

The Story: Jordan Walden got stuck with a blank All-Star jersey before yesterday's game.

The Monkey Says: Too bad he couldn't blank the NL in his one inning of work.

Talk about an unexpected twist for the Trout Tracker series.  Our hero's shocking call up the majors has thrown a wrench into this Monkey's plans, but in a very good way.  This space had been reserved for monitoring Trout's big league future, but that future is now... for now.

When the Angel front office declared before the season that they would not be promoting Trout to the majors this season, I mostly believed them.  Keeping their star prospect from getting exposed to too much too soon was the smart thing to do, though I seriously doubted they'd keep him from getting a glimpse of the bigs during Septemeber call-ups.  But when Peter Bourjos pulled his hammy, the Halos got a chance to give him that glimpse a few months sooner.

As exciting as it might be to see Trout now, it is important we all keep that euphoria in check because he isn't long for the majors, no matter how much we want him to be.  There's too much of a roster glut and the Angels are too deep into a playoff race to try and figure out a way to keep Trout in the majors, find playing time for him and not screw up the team's chemistry.

But until Trout does get his eventual ticket back the farm, that doesn't mean we can't enjoy this summer sneak preview.  We've already seen his blazing speed on display, as well as his defensive skills.  But what I have really enjoyed seeing is that big smile.  You see, there is one thing Trout has that no other Angel player has ever had, mass appeal.

He's a good looking kid with a great work ethic and a charismatic demeanor.  Pair that with his Hollywood smile and the Angels don't just have a big-time talent on their hands, they have their first legit shot at a league-wide superstar.  That is something worth protecting, which is exactly why you won't see Trout hanging around in Anaheim until the management deems him good and ready.

That's it for this week, check back in next week to see what happens to our future hero.  Same Trout Time.  Same Trout Channel... err, blog.

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.