I may not be good for much, but I am a man of my word.  As such, here is this week's poll asking: who is your favorite Angel player?  I know that seems like a kind of lame question to ask, but thinking about it, it is rather interesting to ask in this very moment.

Vladimir Guerrero is long gone.  Nobody knows when (if?) we'll ever see Kendrys Morales again.  Torii Hunter's best days seem to be behind him.  There doesn't really seem to be anyone on the current roster that has the credentials to be the beloved face of the franchise, at least in my estimation.  Surely someone has to have captured the hearts of the fans though, right?  I just don't know who it, so hit the poll and hit it hard to let me know where your allegiance truly lies.

Time to vote!

Daily Links for the LA Angels including details of the second Morales surgery, examining if the Angels are blocking Mike Trout, Kazmir's second rehab outing goes horribly and much more...

The Story: Details of Kendrys Morales' second surgery.

The Monkey Says: There actually aren't a whole lot of details, unfortunately.  What does concern me though is the term "bone graft."  I'm no doctor, but that doesn't sound good.

The Story: Are the Angels blocking Mike Trout?

The Monkey Says: This topic is something of an elephant in the room, but I don't think there is a need to be so alarmist about it.  The part of this I especially detest is the notion that the team is "allowing" Abreu's option to vest.  Yes, it could be avoided and we can all agree that it would be best if the option didn't vest, but who exactly are the Angels supposed to give Bobby's at-bats to?  It isn't like they are overrun with offensive depth right now.  Giving him a vesting option in the first place, now that it is something worth complaining about.  What I think will eventually happen for the Halos to clear a spot for Trout is to find a team to dump Abreu on next season or, maybe even dump Torii Hunter via trade instead.  I really don't see trading Peter Bourjos as an option the Angels would seriously consider even though it would be the easiest way to make room for Trout.

The Story: Scott Kazmir's second rehab outing for Salt Lake started well but finished in horrific fashion.

The Monkey Says: Kaz apparently was decent in the first two innings, but the wheels came off entirely in the third when he allowed all 10 runs in the third inning, getting only one out before he got yanked.  I suppose the team will continue running him out there until his 30-day rehab allowance expires, but I don't see how he could possibly improve from these two awful outing to the point that he would the Angels would allow him back on the big league roster.  In fact, I wouldn't be shocked if they just cut him loose now.

On the anniversary of Kendrys Morales' disastrous walk-off homer, the Angels narrowly avoided a walk-off loss to add salt to the wound that still hasn't healed one year later.

Angels 6, Twins 5

Ironically, It was Kendrys Morales' de facto repalcement, Mark Trumbo, who ended up being the difference in the game by belting a ninth inning solo homer.  Yes, a homer, what poetic justice, that gave the Angels the exact amount of insurance runs they needed to survive a shaky Jordan Walden outing.

I can only imagine what the mood of Angel fans would have been had Waldo not been able to close the door after all.  Nothing would have been worse for our collective psyche than to fall victim to a walk-off loss at the hands of the worst team in baseball.  But instead, the Angels survived... barely.  Just like they are barely surviving as contenders without Morales.  Now, with Kendrys' second surgery and first anniversary of his injury behind them, let's just hope we can all finally move on from this whole bit of ugliness.

Well at least we have the return of the dominant version of Jered Weaver to celebrate. Too bad the offense decided to take the day off in a major way. ONE FLIPPIN HIT!?!? That's all the could put together against a guy who didn't top 92 all night. I guess I should have seen it coming because heaven forbid they put together a winning streak. 

You got the sense early on that this was going to be a low scoring game since Jered was dealing and Twins pitcher Anthony Swarzak was doing nothing but throwing strikes. By the fifth inning, I was very concerned that a no-hitter was a realistic option. By the 8th, I didn't care anymore if the Angels won, perferring to root for a hit to relieve the drama of the no-hit bid. In the end, the Angels didn't really deserve to win this one and, thanks to Kevin Jepsen, they return to the comforts of the .500 mark.

Angels 0 Twins 1

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Los Angeles Angels (26726) vs. Minnesota Twins (16-33)

Pitching Probables: LA -- Jered Weaver (6-4, 2.35 ERA) MINN -- Anthony Swarzak (0-2, 7.71 ERA)

Game Info: 4:10 PM PT; TV - Fox; Radio - KLAA 830 AM  


The Angels will look to build off last night's come from behind effort and try to avoid another trip back to .500. The Twins, on the other hand, should really start thinking about what they have in the farm system since I think their season might already be over.

     All those who thought the Angels were going to sleepwalk through another shutout loss raise your hand? Yeah, me too. Things looked mighty bleak until the magical 8th inning when all of a sudden the Halos exploded for a five spot to tie it and then one more in the 9th to eek out a win. Twins fans must be kicking themselves. I wonder what it must be like to have starter sparkle only to have a shaky bullpen blow it late...oh, wait, yeah I know exactly what that feels like

Angels 6 Twins 5

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Los Angeles Angels (26-26) vs. Minnesota Twins (16-32)

Pitching Probables: LA -- Tyler Chatwood (3-2, 4.06 ERA) MINN -- Scott Baker (2-3, 4,12 ERA)

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

The Angels head back out on the road with a chance to pick up some ground in the West by feasting on the once mighty Twins. What happened to this team? They have always been contenders but apparently the combination of injury and lack of payroll has finall caught up to them. Meanwhile in Angel Land, Wells is on the DL, Kendrick is on the DL so we get the return of Bobby Abreu to a full time outfileld spot. Sorry, give me a minute, I need to clean up the mess off my keys from all the heaving...
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