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After weeks of boring, unimportant games the playoffs are finally here.

I’m a little mad at Anaheim right now after the Ducks spanked the Bruins 6-1, but I’m very excited about the Sox and their familiar foe, the Angels. The Angels have lost to the Red Sox three out of three times in the ALDS, and are 0-4 to them all-time in the playoffs. History would give the Sox the edge, but the Angels are a different team this year.

Jon Lester is pitching tonight against John Lackey. The Sox clearly have the pitching advantage, with the only match-up that favors the Angels being Game 3’s Bucholz-Kazmir duel. The teams are even at the plate, with the Sox having the power edge and the Angels having the small-ball advantage.

The umpiring crew may be a factor in this series, as some of baseball’s worst are among it. Curt Schilling called in to WEEI this afternoon and had some words of wisdom about the crew. He said a few of them sucked, and he went so far as to calling Joe West and ass and criticizing him for being against the Red Sox. Whether or not this will be a factor remains to be seen.

Another positive note for this postseason is the coverage TBS will provide for the series. Chip Caray is working the Yankees-Twins series this year (suckers!) and working the Sox-Angels is none other than NESN play-by-play man Don Orsillo. Sure we have have to contend with Buck Martinez mispronouncing Ortiz’ name again, but at least this will only happen every few innings.

Even after Nick Adenhart had reached the Majors, the promising pitcher would wax nostalgically about his most memorable games in youth baseball, lucidly thinking as far back as when he was an eight-year-old.

So when his mother, Janet Gigeous, contemplated the appropriate way to honor the memory of Nick, killed by a hit-and-run drunk driver in an Orange County accident in the wee hours of April 9, the decision was easy.

Thus, Janet and Duane Gigeous have set up the Nick Adenhart Memorial Fund to support youth baseball leagues throughout the country.

“Looking back over Nick’s career, he had very fond memories of playing Little League and Pony League baseball,” said Janet. “There were other possible directions for us to go in, such as anti-drunk-driving programs, but we felt strongly about the baseball side.

“So this will be our work. It’s a good way to honor Nick.”

Donations to the Nick Adenhart Memorial Fund can be sent to:

Geier Financial Group
2205 Warwick Way
Suite 200
Marriottsville, MD 21104

Contributions will go toward helping defray expenses of youth leagues in Baltimore native Nick’s tri-state area, as well as in leagues around the United States.

Source: AngelsBaseball.com

Red Sox 4, Angels 5

A long, dreadful…….horrible day for David Ortiz. Ortiz finished the game going 0-7, while leaving 12 runners stranded on base. The biggest offensive contributers for the Los Angeles Angels were Jeff Mathis and Torii Hunter.

Mathis hit an RBI single in the 12th inning, Hunter had a two-run double and an RBI triple, and the Angels beat the Red Sox 5-4 on Thursday. Ortiz has gone 144 at-bats since his last home run on Sept. 22 against Cleveland’s Zach Jackson at Fenway Park. He is one at-bat from equaling his longest dry spell in the majors.

“A guy like that who’s big and strong, he’s going to knock out eight home runs in 12 days somehow and he’s going to catch up with everybody once he gets that swing down,” said Hunter, Ortiz’s teammate in Minnesota. “I’m almost 100 percent sure both those injuries have a lot to do with his homerless streak.

“When you have a wrist injury and a knee injury at the same time, it messes up your mechanics and you’re trying to figure out ways to hit while you’re hurting,” Hunter added. “So you’ve got to tweak your swing — and that’s not his swing. But he’s going to be fine. I just told him, `Just go out there and do what you do, and at the end of the season watch what you have.”

Ortiz struck out three times — once with the bases loaded in the fourth — and left the bases loaded again in the 12th against Jason Bulger (1-1) with a dribbler in front of the plate.

Juan Rivera led off the 12th with a single against Manny Delcarmen (1-1). Pinch-runner Reggie Willits advanced on Erick Aybar’s sacrifice and scored when Mathis lined a 1-1 pitch to left-center.

Pedroia had four hits in his return to the lineup after missing two games because of a groin strain. One was a two-out RBI single against reliever Scot Shields that tied it 4-all in the eighth — increasing Shields’ ERA to 7.90 in 16 appearances.Ervin Santana, one of the mainstays of the Angels’ injury-ravaged rotation, made his season debut after missing the first 32 games because of elbow pain. The right-hander, who pitched in his first All-Star game last season, allowed three runs and seven hits over five innings.Brad Penny was charged with four runs and seven hits over 6 1-3 innings.

Source: ESPN

Notes: What I tend to do heavily in my rankings, unlike all the other rankings, is group players together based on their position/projection/potential. For example, in round 8/bubble I grouped together 4 cl (Brad Lidge and Jon Broxton as well as Matt Capps and Heath Bell). Broxton has had a great start and Lidge has had a rough one, but by season’s end the stats should be about the same. I also grouped together 6 sp (Rich Harden, Joba Chamberlain, Adam Wainwright, Yovani Gallardo, Josh Johnson, and Erik Bedard). These are all great sp’s with ?’s though – inning/injury concerns. Of course, I have 3+ weeks of the season now to include in my rankings (upping Zach Greinke and Josh Johnson on my list, but honestly guys like Carlos Quentin and Matt Kemp I already thought should be ranked where I have them), but here, I posted my rankings followed by a notes section [In the notes section,  I’ve bolded the players that are in the referenced round]. Within the rankings, I bolded some guys I like and ranked higher than most others, and italicized others I didn’t like as much or ranked lower than others or have since been hurt.

Top 12/Round 1:

In 2009, I think Miguel Cabrera could break 37 homers and 127rbis he had last season. He’s already off to a hot start, batting .431 up to this point. With an increase in runs from 85 to about 100 and to me – a sure increase in batting average from .292 to about .315, I think Miguel Cabrera could be ranked above David Wright this year. Similarly, I see Ryan Braun breaking 40hr and 15sb. If his avg raises passed .300, and I think it will, he too, could surpass Wright because of the HR total, but obviously I would take Wright over both Miggy and Braun b/c of 3b eligibility – Is Miggy 3b eligible in your league though??? Chase Utley to me at 2b just beats out Ian Kinsler (2b) because of the RBI total. He’s healthy, and he’s already got 4hr and 2sb with 12r, 12rbi, and a .362avg. One guy who is absolutely on fire, and probably will stay that way if healthy for a full season, is 2b (position scarcity) Ian Kinsler. His line is already: 15r-5hr-16rbi-7sb-.381avg. Most projections call for about 25sb, but I didn’t see why he can’t break 30 (now 35) with a full season – 118r-26hr-84rbi-34sb-295avg anyone??? Like I said, I’d honestly rank him above Utley if it wasn’t for Utley’s rbis’s – and for that matter at 2b he could also be above Wright/3b, Miguel Cabrera/1b, and Ryan Bruan/of by year’s end. Kinsler had 23 and 26sb respectively in the past 2 seasons in 483ab’s and 518ab’s. With health, and in that lineup, he should approach 550ab’s, score a ton of runs, and should have a decent amount of rbi opportunities. Evan Longoria jumps into the first round again because of position scarcity (3b) over Josh Hamilton (of) and Mark Teixeira (1b). He’s already on fire batting 10r-5hr-16rbi-1sb-.386avg.

Round 2/Players 13-24:

There may be some surprises in round 2. Justin Morneau is so clutch, I just can’t rank him any lower. I think 27-30hr and 120rbi with 95r and 300+ avg is justified where I have him. Alex Rodriguez will miss time, but there’s no question he could still go 100-32-105-12-300. There is only 2 more sure thing 3b’s in Kevin Youkilis and Aramis Ramirez in the next 4 rounds (Chone Figgins, just there for speed and Chipper Jones is so injury prone I think he should be in round 7). The New-B’s here are Carlos Quentin (of) (who is already studding it up, and I have no idea why most projections were so low on him maybe batting avg. He’s got 7hr already); Matt Kemp (of) (don’t love his lineup spot, but still a great lineup with a lot more rbi opp’s and he’s such a great power-speed combo – already at 13r-3hr-14rbi-4sb-.362); Nick Markakis (of) (who would be first round material if he gets more than my projected 23-25hr and 9-12sb. He should hit 100-105r and 105-110rbi with a .307-.315avg.

Round 3/Players 25-36:

Tim Lincecum/Manny Ramirez/Dustin Pedroia/ BJ Upton are all still 2^nd round material to me depending on if you like drafting one ace very early in Lincecum or stolen bases in Upton or position scarcity in Pedroia. Kevin Youkilis somehow remains underrated (especially because he’s 3b eligible). He contributes greatly to 4 categories: about 100-105r; 27-30hr; 109-115rbi; 3sb-4sb; .305-.315avg. I just don’t love Matt Holliday outside of Coors and in Oakland, but his 95/25/95/15 potential is still 2^nd round material if that’s his line by season’s end. Aramis Ramirez could be ranked right before Kevin Youkilis or maybe early into round 4, but at 3b, I still love him in the Cubbies lineup.

Round 4/Players 37-48:

Ichiro Suzuki is sometimes ranked in the top 24, and his avg, runs, sb’s make him worth it there, but his lack of hr and rbi keep him down here for me. I’m usually doing fine with sb providers by now (say Kinsler/2b-27sb, Longoria/3b-11sb, Kemp/of-30sb) or (Wright/3b-18sb, Soriano/of-25sb, and Markakis/of-10sb) – that’s 68sb and 53sb respectively. If you end up with like: Howard/1b-1sb and Santana/sp, and Crawford (of) or Roberts (2b) are already off the board, than Ichiro can get bumped up if you think you’ll need the sb. I’d rather someone else and go for Shane Victorino/Jacoby Ellsbury in round 5 though. To me, Brian Roberts is Ichiro Suzuki at 2b, so Roberts is much more valuable to me. Some people still think Carl Crawford can approach 20hr in a season, and depending on his lineup spot he could knock in 85rbi, but in the 2-whole it looks like he should have a line of 90runs;10-12hr;70-75rbi;30-40sb;283-287avg, which will still justify this rank or even a little higher. I think by now he can be considered injury prone. I honestly think he has top third round potential, but every guy I have in round 3 just knocks him down to round 4. Brandon Phillips is great at 2b, and he’s a solid 4 stat contributor with a nice young lineup, but his average keeps him in round 4 to me. I like Cole Hamels and Brandon Webb here so long as they’re healthy because they symbolize the end of the 4 category top-notch fantasy aces (w,era,whip,k). Josh Beckett, Roy Oswalt, and Chad Billingsley are great, but Beckett’s era could be somewhat high as can Billingsley’s whip, and Oswalt looks to be slowing down a bit and striking out less batters although he was fantastic in the 2^nd half of last year. I like the 3 catchers: Victor Martinez, Brian McCann, and Russell Martin here. McCann’s eye is a worry and Martin’s starting off somewhat slow, but by season’s end I think they’ll be worth it here. If the latter 2 slip into round 5, fine.

Round 5/Players 49-60:

I usually have top power guys (David Ortiz/Carlos Pena), top speed guys (Rafael Furcal/Shane Victorino/Jacoby Ellsbury), or power-speed combos (Nate McLouth/Bobby Abreu/Corey Hart/ Carlos Granderson) as well as position scarcity (Geovany Soto/c; Rafael Furcal/ss; Alexei Ramirez/2b-ss) all in round 5. Soto is just too good to let drop for a catcher. I could see him being a 4^th rounder next year with another consistent year – similar to where McCann, Martin, and a healthy Victor Martinez are. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Victor Martinez, Brian McCann, Geovany Soto, Russell Martin, Joe Mauer, and Matt Wieters all go in round 4 next year. 12 players-6 catchers-1 round…Mark it (round 5 the latest).

Round 6/Players 61-72:

I love Joey Votto for his 7-10 sb and .290-300avg in addition to 24-28hr and 90-100rbi. I wouldn’t mind going with Robinson Cano here either at 2b in the Yankees lineup either. I love Cano slipping to round 7/8 because I think he can perform to the line of 90-95r;18-20hr;90-95rbi;4-5sb;.292-.302avg. Here, I like the 4 closers too: Mariano Rivera, Joe Nathan, Joakim Soria, and Francisco Rodriguez – all great 3 category pitchers with a good amount of k’s for relievers as well, however, personally I wait to draft closers and may look to draft 3 in a row, come round 13/14. Chad Billingsley is already showing why I have him ranked here with 4 wins and a 26:9 k:bb ratio, and a Dodger team that should be just as good for years to come. [Dodgers Lineup: Furcal-Hudson-Manny-Ethier-Loney-Kemp-Martin-Blake] – wow! If Billingsley keeps the whip down, he’ll jump to round 4/5 prior to Beckett and Oswalt. I don’t love Chone Figgins at 3b or Dan Uggla’s avg, but you can’t go wrong with Figgins’ sb’s and Uggla at 2b. Ryan Ludwick (already at 5hr and 16rbi, 1sb, and batting .370), after a great year last year, was way too underrated in this year’s drafts – the power and rbi’s should be there.

Round 7/Players 73-84:

Chipper Jones gets drafted much earlier, and at 3b, he’s so good, but he just doesn’t stay healthy enough for me to rank him higher. We should all know about Chris Davis’ potential by now (and flaws). Carlos Delgado could be Delgado of 2008-2^nd half or 2008-1^st half. I think he’ll go 33-35hr; 110-115rbi. Aubrey Huff was great again last year, and at 3b & 1b, I like him a lot with Brian Roberts, Adam Jones, and Nick Markakis in front of him. I like Garret Atkins enough to rank him in round 6 at 3b, but to me everyone above him as a little more potential/better power/better position scarcity ala Michael Young (ss;3b). Adam Dunn, Joe Mauer (c), and Andre Ethier are all solid options here as well. Dunn looks to be on a mission; I love Ethier batting clean-up in that Dodger’s lineup (and he should get you some sb’s with a nice avg.) I like James Shields and Zack Greinke (round 8 ) b/c each will have both good era’s and whip’s, where as the next few sp’s could have a high whip or era.

Round 8/9; Players 85-104:

Here, as you can see, I favor sp’s. I actually get my first ace in round 7 or 8 and then attempt to draft 3 or 4 in a row. Felix Hernandez and Scott Kazmir can have fairly high whips, while AJ Burnett can have a fairly high ERA, and as good as the next wave of SP’s are (Harden; Joba; Wainwright; EBedard; JJohnson; Gallardo), they all have question marks in some way (inning concerns, injury concerns, or not enough of a sample size). Derek Lee is in a solid lineup, but hit only 22 and 20 hr in the past 2 years. Without pop, and slowing down in sb as well, I can see him falling out of the top 9 rounds next year.

As I said in my notes section, I group players based on positioning/potential/and your statistical needs. I probably won’t rank the next 15 rounds only because I over/under-rate some players based on position, stats, and potential, and then I’d give away all my strategy.Feel free to question/criticize/comment.

First off, I would like to wish everyone a Happy Easter and to also congratulate the Boston University Terriers for winning the National Championship in hockey.

Now to baseball, where things got a little out of hand in the 1st inning of the final game between the Sox and Angels. Bobby Abreu called time as Josh Beckett was delivering his pitch, sending it near Abreu’s head. Both benches cleared, some words were exchanged, and when the smoke cleared Torii Hunter, LA batting coach Mickey Hatcher, pitcher Justin Speier, and manager Mike Scioscia were heading to the locker room. Beckett really isn’t to blame since the late time threw him off his rythem, as it does to all pitchers, and the ball happened to be near Abreu. Had it been anyone other than Abreu—a former Yankee—and had the Adenhart tragedy not been so fresh in their minds, cooler heads most likely would have prevailed.

Kevin Youkilis and JD Drew started the offense in the 2nd with back-to-back solo home runs. The Angels would strike for three runs in the 3rd then one more in the 5th to take a 4-2 lead into the 6th. The Sox then drew within one that inning, but could not hold off LA, falling 5-4 and suffering their fourth loss of the season.

Boston heads to Oakland to take on the Athletics for a three game series. Jon Lester gets the ball for Boston, opposing Dallas Branden. First pitch is 10:05 in the east, 7:05 out west.

Brad Penny made his debut in a Red Sox uniform—the “retro roadies” as they’ve been coined—and snapped a three game losing streak. He gave up three runs on five hits through six innings and Jonathon Papelbon, despite a shaky 9th, picked up the save for a 5-4 win.

The Angels took a 2-0 lead into the 5thbefore Mike Lowell tied the game up with his first home run of the year, a 2-run shot. Mike Napoli would hit his second home run of the game in the bottom of that inning to put the Angels back in front. Penny would depart after the 6th down 3-2.

In the 7th Jason Bay would belt a 2-run homer to put the Red Sox in front and put Penny in line for the win. He would add a solo shot in the 9th to give the Sox a 2-run lead. Torii Hunter’s leadoff home run put the Angels within a run in the 9ththen the Angels would load the bases with two outs before Howard Kendrick’s ten pitch at-bat ended with a line out to Rocco Baldelli in right to end the game.

This is not the kind of post we enjoy making here at MLB, but with respect to this man I felt it necessary to let you all know who have not heard.

Los Angeles Angels rookie pitcher Nick Adenhart was killed in a car crash Thursday morning in Fullerton, Calif., police said.

The vehicle that Adenhart was traveling in was hit by a driver who ran a red light. Three people were killed in the accident.

The driver who ran the red light fled from the scene but was later taken into police custody.

Adenhart started for the Angels in Wednesday night’s 6-4 loss to the Oakland Athletics. He allowed seven hits over six scoreless innings, struck out five and walked three. It was his fourth career major league start.

The right hander was selected in the 14th round of the 2004 amateur draft by the Angels out of Williamsport High School in Williamsport, Md.

Didn’t really pay THAT much attention to this game. I just want to see some more starters in the lineup. KC pretty much had their opening day lineup out there today. We only had, I think, 1 starter in the starting lineup. But, we still won. Two pitchers that are fighting for the 5th spot in the rotation, Dustin Moseley and Nick Adenhart, both pitched today. It’s a tough choice between the two. And, since Kelvim Escobar’s progress is going really well, I say put Adenhart in there for a month until Kelvim gets back, just to see if Adenhart is major league ready. Anyways, here’s the box score, and here’s the recap….

Angels 6, Royals 4
at Tempe, Ariz.
Sunday, March 1

Angels at the plate: Reggie Willits singled and walked twice in three at-bats, stealing a base. Mike Napoli banged a two-run single, and Terry Evans had two singles, driving in a run. Sean Rodriguez doubled and walked in three at-bats, Chris Pettit delivered an RBI single, and Freddy Sandoval doubled and drove in two runs.

Royals at the plate: David DeJesus singled twice and walked, scoring a run and driving in another. Willie Bloomquist singled home a run and scored, and John Buck had a double and walk, scoring a run.

Angels on the mound: Dustin Moseley, launching his bid for the fifth starter role, delivered two hitless innings and finished with a flourish, striking out the side: Mike Jacobs, Alex Gordon and Buck. His only blemish was a two-out walk in the first inning. Nick Adenhart, also launching his bid for the starter’s job, yielded one earned run in two innings on two hits and a hit batsman, striking out one.

Royals on the mound: Gil Meche had a rocky outing, surrendered three earned runs on four hits and a walk, striking out two in his lone inning of labor. Henry Barrera worked a scoreless inning with a walk and strikeout.

Cactus League records: Angels 4-1; Royals 2-2-1.

Up next: The Angels travel to Tucson, Ariz., to face the Rockies on Monday at 12:10 p.m. PT. John Lackey gets his first start of the spring for the Angels against southpaw Franklin Morales of the Rockies. Lackey said he’ll be looking to put his fastball in good spots and just regain the feel of pitching again in a game. Expected to follow him to the mound are right-handers Fernando Rodriguez and Ryan Brasier, along with southpaw Alex Torres.

The Brewers handed the Angels their first lost of the spring. It’s pretty crazy that my friend that graduated high school last year, one class older than me, is now playing for the Brewers. He made an appearance in the Brewers’ game yesterday, scoring a run. He’s also the son of Lenny Dykstra. If anyone’s interested, my friends name is Cutter Dykstra. He’s really good, really knowledgable of the game. He could make it big in the coming years. Anyways, enough of that. Here’s the box score. And here is the recap…..

Brewers 5, Angels 3
at Maryvale Baseball Park, Phoenix
Saturday, Feb. 28

Angels at the plate: The Angels were held scoreless on three hits until the sixth, when Chris Pettit and Ryan Mount hit RBI singles off Brewers Minor Leaguer Matt Ginter. Matt Brown tied the game at 3 in the seventh with another RBI single, but the Brewers pushed ahead in the bottom of the frame and sent the Angels to their first Cactus League loss.

Brewers at the plate: Ryan Braun played seven innings in his final tuneup before departing for the World Baseball Classic, hitting a go-ahead single in the third inning and then doubling and scoring an insurance run in the seventh. Prince Fielder also hit an RBI single for Milwaukee but aptly named Minor Leaguer Brent Brewer delivered the key hit, a solo home run in the seventh that snapped a 3-3 tie and sent the Brewers to their second straight win.

Angels on the mound: Starter Shane Loux worked around three Brewers hits in two scoreless innings of work before reliever Scot Shields surrendered Milwaukee’s first run on a walk and a hit. Rich Thompson worked a scoreless sixth inning but took the loss after surrendering a pair of runs in the seventh.

Brewers on the mound: Right-hander Braden Looper was scheduled to make his unofficial Brewers debut but was scratched minutes before the game when he tweaked a muscle in his lower back. Eddie Morlan, who was supposed to appear in relief, moved up to start and held the Angels scoreless in two innings despite allowing a hit and three walks. Minor League right-hander Richie Gardner (1-0) took the win and Nick Green notched a two-inning save.

Cactus League records: Angels 3-1; Brewers 2-1-1

Up next: The Angels host the Royals on Sunday with two of the four fifth-starter candidates on display. Right-hander Dustin Moseley will start opposite Royals right-hander Gil Meche, and Nick Adenhart is scheduled to work in relief. Adenhart was supposed to pitch the Angels’ Cactus League opener on Wednesday against the White Sox, but he was scratched because of the flu.

The Angels moved to 3-0 with the win. It’s really nice to see some of our youngsters get the job done. Here’s the box score. And here’s the recap…

Angels 5, Rockies 3
at Tempe, Ariz.
Friday, Feb. 27

Angels at the plate: Bobby Abreu’s first two hits in an Angels uniform were doubles. Bobby Wilson singled twice, walked and drove in a run, and Mark Trumbo doubled and singled. Sean Rodriguez doubled in a run, Hainley Statia singled and walked, Freddy Sandoval had a single and sacrifice fly and Luis Figueroa had an RBI single.

Rockies at the plate: Garrett Atkins had an RBI double, and Brad Hawpe singled in a run, leaving the game after lacerating his left pinkie sliding into second. First baseman Edwin Bellorin doubled and scored on outfielder Dan Ortmeier’s double.

Angels on the mound: Starter Sean O’Sullivan yielded two runs on two hits and a walk in his lone inning of work. Fernando Rodriguez struck out four without a walk and gave up two hits in two scoreless innings. Southpaw Alex Torres had two strikeouts and a walk, facing the minimum six hitters in two innings, and Ryan Brasier delivered two perfect innings.

Rockies on the mound: Southpaw starter Greg Smith surrendered three hits and three earned runs in two innings. Lefty Glendon Rusch worked two scoreless innings, striking out two and allowing two hits.

Cactus League records: Angels 3-0; Rockies 0-3.

Up next: The Angels make their first road trip when they face the Brewers on Saturday in Phoenix at 12:05 p.m. PT. Right-hander Shane Loux, competing for the fifth spot in the rotation, gets his first start of the spring for the Angels against Braden Looper of the Brewers. Heading to the World Baseball Classic, Scot Shields and Brian Fuentes (Team USA), Jose Arredondo (Dominican Republic) and Rich Thompson (Australia) are expected to follow Loux in their final tuneups before joining their Classic teams. Matt Wilhite also is scheduled to throw an inning.