Daily Links for the LA Angels including Haren tweaks his back, Kendrick will return Saturday, Angels are all lagging in All-Star balloting and much more...

The Story: Dan Haren "tweaked" his back in a bullpen session yesterday and may have to skip his next start.

The Monkey Says: Let's hope that is as severe as it gets because the description of him getting hurt sounds like it could be worse.

The Story: Howie Kendrick will be activated from the DL on Saturday.

The Monkey Says: The question is whether or not he can pick up where he left off before he got hurt.

The Story: No Angels figure prominently in the first results of All-Star balloting.

The Monkey Says: Aybar and Izturis are fifth in voting at their positions and that is as good as it gets.  There is still plenty of time left to vote, but I seriously doubt any Angel position player can be voted into a starting spot.

Back at the .500 club so soon? But you just left! Did you miss the sweet aroma of mediocrity? I bet you sure did! Why don't you go bring some of your buddies like Texas back with you? If it's good enough for you it might as well be good enough for them

Angels 0 Royals 2 

@

Los Angeles Angels Anaheim (29-28) @ Kansas City Royals (24-30)

Pitching Probables: LAA – Tyler Chatwood (3-2, 4.13 ERA)  KC – Felipe Paulino (0-4, 5.68 ERA)

Game Info: 1:10 PM PT; TV - Fox Sports West; Radio - KLAA 830 AM

Ah, dammit.  The Angels are totally boned.  Really, they should just forfeit this game and get the guys an extra day of rest.  Why you ask?  Because Felipe Paulino is starting.

Who is Felipe Paulino, you ask?  Exactly.  I have no idea and that's the problem.

What I do know about Paulino is that he hasn't made a start all season long and has been generally ineffective pitching in relief.  In other words, he is the exact kind of pitcher that has been making fools of the Angels all season long.

The only remaining question is whether Paulino will merely shutout the Halos or if he will be the pitcher who finally no-hits them?

It's the most wonderful tiiiiiiiime of the year!  Ladies and gentlemen, with the calendar turning to the month of June, we can declare trading season officially open.  But before the real rumors start churning out of the speculation mill, I must perform my annual public service of crafting the definitive (according to me) 2011 Angels wishlist.

I wish the Angels hadn't already blown their wad on Vernon Wells.

Daily Links for the LA Angels including Vernon Wells expected to start rehab this weekend, checking the Angel mock drafts, Segura is climbing the prospect rankings and much more...

The Story: The Angels are hoping to send Vernon Wells out on a rehab assignment this weekend.

The Monkey Says: Even if Wells continues to stink the joint up, the Angels will be better off having his glove in left and without having their depth streched so thin.

The Story: The mock drafts are pouring in for the Angels.

The Monkey Says: Most of the drafts I've seen have the Angels selecting a high school pitcher, but it doesn't seem like they've locked in on one specific player like they have in the past.

The Story: Jean Segura is in Keith Law's updated top 25 prospect list.

The Monkey Says: Segura is still years away from the majors, but him climbing the prospect rankings is always worth getting excited about.

What started out as pretty nice game for the Angels went awry pretty quickly when Joel Pineiro got rattled and threw the game away... literally.

Royals 7, Angels 3

There I was minding my own business watching the Angels jump out to a rare early lead, feeling pretty good about the Halos' chances.  Joel Pineiro was cruising early and seemed to be well on his way to that elusive 100th victory.  But then he had to go and get greedy.

Maybe this is just my own personal bias, but I always get nervous when a pitcher has to field the ball.  Not that most MLB pitchers aren't skilled athletes, but fielding the ball just isn't something most pitchers do on a frequent basis.  I'm not saying they can't field.  I just think most pitchers aren't fully prepared to handle anything other than a routine play.  This is why I screamed "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" when I saw Pineiro field that third inning dribbler and wheel towards second to try and start a doubleplay.

Actually, Pineiro didn't wheel towards second base itself, more like where the second baseman usually places positions himself before the pitch.  The result was a throwing error that caused Pineiro to unravel completely.  Rattled by his mistake, Pineiro proceeded to allow five runs on four hits before finally wiggling out of the inning.

Oh, Joel, if only you had not tried to get fancy and just taken the easy out at first.

@

Los Angeles Angels Anaheim (29-27) @ Kansas City Royals (23-30)

Pitching Probables: LAA – Joel Pineiro (2-1, 3.15 ERA)  KC – Jeff Francis (1-5, 4.52 ERA)

Game Info: 5:10 PM PT; TV - Fox Sports West; Radio - KLAA 830 AM

I didn't think yesterday's comeback victory could be more improbable than it already was, but the fallout from the Angels ninth-inning rally has managed to do just that.

As it turns out, the Angels not only got knocked out Joakim Soria in the ninth inning yesterday, they knocked him all the way out of the closer's role.  Soria has been embattled of late for sure, but we are talking about a guy who has probably been the best closer in baseball the previous three seasons.  What I want to know though is whether or not this demotion was merely the culmination of a bad two-week stretch or the sheer embarrassment of gagging away such a cushy lead to such an inept offense.

Relax, I'm kidding around.  But seriously, when is the last time the Halos hit four homers in a game?  A head has got to roll, right?