In an emotional night during which Nick Adenhart was honored, Boston dropped to the lowest you will see them all season—last place—after a 6-3 loss to the Angels.

Tim Wakefield was solid through six, giving up three runs on six hits, but Jered Weaver was better giving the Sox only one run—unearned—through 6.2 innings. After a rare poor performance by Justin Masterson in the 7th, a two run 8th could not pull the Red Sox out of the hole.

Reigning MVP Dustin Pedroia had a hit in three at-bats, a sign he might be coming out of his slump. Kevin Youkilis was 2 for 4 as he continues to tear the cover off the ball. It seems like him and Pedroia are evening each other out. For every line drive in the gap that Youkilis hits, Pedroia hits a line drive right at someone, like his scorcher into the glove of a leaping Chone Figgins.

I didn’t tune into this game until about the 4th inning since I wasn’t very pumped up for baseball after a 5-4 OT Bruins win over the Canadiens on Thursday which was Boston-Montreal at its best and ugliest. After the disappointing game on Friday, I’m still not very pumped up for baseball. I’ll still probably watch the game on FOX though, unless I go to the Boston Blazers fan fest at TD BanknorthGarden. Post-opening week April is always a dull time for me, especially when both the Celtics and Bruins are doing so well. Come the Yankees series on the 24th I’ll be back into it.

Red Sox Notes

Brad Penny makes his Sox debut today.

Jed Lowrie is just 1 for 11 so far on the season.

After three poor games against Tampa, Jacoby Ellsbury was 2 for 4 in Friday’s game.

Sox color commentator Jerry Remy fell ill before the game, leading NESN to bring in some guests to the booth, my personal favorite being the always entertaining color commentator for the Angels, Rex Hudler.

NL East Preview/Projection

*The NL East is the only division that can attempt to match the AL East with a lineup of…

Jose Reyes (ss-NYM)-With the epitome of range at SS and speed & OBP now at the top of the lineup

(120-17-68-60-295)

Chase Utley (2b-PHL)-The patience to be the perfect #2 hitter but the greatness to bat anywhere

(115-30-110-13-296)

Hanley Ramirez (lf-FLA)-Talent to bat leadoff or third & now he has Bonaficio and Maybin to drive in

(116-33-106-29-303)

Ryan Howard (1b-PHL)-HR & RBI leader of the MLB last year and again this year with a better AVG

(96-45-135-1-275)

David Wright (3b-NYM)-Has Reyes & Murphy in front and Beltran & Delgado behind; Got to love his line

(112-31-122-20-305)

Carlos Beltran (cf-NYM)-Batting 5^th will hurt his runs but gold glove CF with power & speed combo

(92-26-115-22-279)

Brian McCann (c-ATL)-Great line at Catcher; Another year under his belt and less weight above his belt

(68-24-94-3-298)

Jimmy Rollins (dh-PHL)-Rather Reyes at SS & Hanley in LF, but I’ll take Rollins at DH against the AL East

(119-19-75-39-278)

Jeff Francoeur (rf-ATL)-Gun for an arm and a rebound year for our last OF spot

(77-22-90-3-269)

….and a rotation of:

Johan Santana (NYM)-18 straight starts without a loss and A NEW BULLPEN – 20+ wins?

(20-2.85-1.15-209)

Cole Hamels (PHL)-Same fastball/changeup repertoire that BAFFLES hitters; Health issues?

(16-3.19-1.09-194)

Derek Lowe (ATL)-Durable. That’s all I have to say, but with all his groundouts, he would probably be effective even with Colorado, or Texas.

(14-3.75-1.25-140)

Ricky Nolasco (FLA)-Still underrated? Doubt it, but he’ll be almost as good this year.

(14-3.84-1.21-171)

Josh Johnson (FLA)-Better k-rate than Nolasco with Worse WHIP, but stud if healthy.

(14-3.65-1.33-175)

…and a solid bullpen of Brad Lidge(38sv), Francisco Rodriguez(42sv), JJ Putz(6sv), Mike Gonzalez(30sv), Matt Lindstrom(23sv), Joel Hanrahan(25sv) and let us not forget about ambidextrous Billy Wagner pitching with determination and for another contract later in the year.

*Breaking down the NL East by position and using a sample rank system, I came up with the following (as objectively as possible):

c: McCann(atl-5) – Really no other C in the NL East can compare

1b: Ryan Howard(phl-5pts); Carlos Delgado(nym-4pts); Jorge Cantu(fla-3pts); Adam Dunn(was-3pts); Casey Kotchman(atl-2pts) - Howard is the clear favorite; A somewhat offensive bounce-back from Kotchman is in place; Delgado, Cantu, and Dunn should all be solid again; Cantu is definitely still underrated with Bonifacio, Maybin sometimes, and Hanley Ramirez in front of him.

2b: Chase Utley(phl-5pts);Dan Uggla(fla-3pts);Kelly Johnson(atl-2pts); Luis Castillo(nym-1pt) – Castillo can be an effective 2b still at the 8-spot in the Mets lineup; Kelly Johnson can go 85-17-75-9-287 with maturity and confidence. Obviously, the Nationals have a 2^nd baseman in Anderson Hernandez/Ronnie Belliard – I just don’t think they’re worth writing about.

3b: David Wright(nym-5pts); Chipper Jones(atl-4pts); Ryan Zimmerman(was-3pts) Emilio Bonifacio (fla-3pts) – Chipper does deserve 5 points along with Wright if he could just stay healthy enough; If Bonifacio sticks to leadoff he can be a runs and sb stud; and Zimmerman should have a 85-20-85-5-285 line. His defense is fantastic and he has potential for 85-25-95-5-290. Pedro Feliz isn’t worth ranking albeit solid defense.

ss: Hanley Ramirez(fla-5pts); Jose Reyes(nym-4pts); Jimmy Rollins (phl-4pts); Yunel Escobar(atl-2pts) – I wanted to give 5 points to both Rollins and Reyes as well, but It’s true that Hanley is in an offensive class all by himself since he’ll have lots of rbi opportunities this year; I personally think Reyes can belt 19 home runs this year, but 16hr + 60sb is beautiful with a stellar .293-.297 avg.

lf: Raul Ibanez(tilde over the n)(phl-5pts); Daniel Murphy(nym-4pts); Matt Diaz(atl-3pts); Josh Willingham (was-2pts) – I love Daniel Murphy batting 2^nd in the Mets lineup. I think a very healthy 90-17-75-7-286 is very possible; Ibanez will be stellar there in the Phillies Lineup; Matt Diaz with playing time can be very good. Along with Brian McCann, he slimmed down a bit.

cf: Carlos Beltran(nym-5pts); Shane Victorino(phl-4pts); Cameron Maybin(fla-3pts); Lastings Milledge(was-2 pts); Jordan Schaeffer (atl-2pts) – Jordan Schaeffer is young and good. He’s already got 2 hr this year. He could switch with Kelly Johnson/Yunel Escobar for the top of the lineup if slow starts occur for either of the 2 or when Chipper sits (which will be enough) and Omar Infante is in the lineup. I think he can be good for 17hr-15sb. Maybin should bat 2^nd but may find himself at the bottom of the lineup enough to hurt. His lineup spot should have the following breakdown: 50% batting 8^th, 35% batting 2^nd; and 15% batting lead-off. A line of 85-15-65-25-269 seems great for where he went in drafts; Like I said prior, Beltran will lose out on runs and protection batting 5^th, but he should bat 4^th enough against lefties when Delgado bats 5^th.

rf: Jeff Francoeur(atl-5pts); Jayson Werth(phl-4pts); Jeremy Hermida(fla-2pts); Elijah Dukes-Austin Kearns(was-2pts); Church-Sheffield(nym-2pts) – Hermida was regarded very highly just a few years ago, and the rbi opportunities are there. He could get time batting 2^nd as well. I actually like him for a line of 75-18-75-6-260; Werth should be very good when healthy since right field is his. I see 24hr-15sb due to injury concern; Platoons and split-time between the Mets and Nationals right field situations should yield above average numbers. The difference between them and Francoeur however is obviously not nearly as great between say Chase Utley at 2b and Ronnie Belliard at 2b so I think they deserve 2 pts to Francoeur’s 5 pts.

sp1: Johan Santana(nym-5pts); Cole Hamels(phl-5pts); Derek Lowe(atl-4pts); Ricky Nolasco(fla-4pts)

sp2: Josh Johnson(fla-5pts); Javier Vazquez(atl-3pts); Brett Myers(phl-3pts); Maine/Pelfrey/Perez (nym-3pts) – To me, Josh Johnson is clearly the best #2 starter here with the other 3 teams having fairly similar numbers at the #2 rotation spot. The thing with the Mets is I’m not sure who the #2 will be by year’s end – same for their number 3 and 4 starters, and I’m a Mets Fan; Brett Myers Could be good at times and a mess at others. I think he’s better than Moyer this year (even though Moyer may be ageless the way he pitches) so I’ll put him here and Moyer in the 3-whole.

sp3: Jair Jurjjens(atl-4pts); Jamie Moyer(phl-3pts); Maine/Pelfrey/Perez(nym-3pts); Volstad(fla-3pts)

sp4: Joe Blanton(phl-4pts); Kenshin Kawakami(atl-3pts); Maine/Pelfrey/Perez(nym-3pts) – I think Kawakami can be as effective as the teams’ other #4’s since no one has seen him.

sp5/Minor League P call-ups: Tommy Hanson(atl-4pts); Jordan Zimmerman(was-3pts); Carlos Carrasco(phl-3pts); Jon Niese(nym-1pts) – the Phillies, Nat’s, and especially the Braves have a future Ace or #2 in the whole, while the Mets, to me have a future #4. I think the Phillies will need Carrasco quicker than the Mets need Niese or Braves need Hanson, but Hanson is the best among the new wave of NL East Starters. Jordan Zimmerman could and should put up better than league average numbers in his first season.

P.S. Livan Hernandez will be horrendous for the Mets. Hopefully they sign Pedro Martinez or Jon Niese and Tim Redding can be effective enough. However, I do see a deadline SP deal for the Mets, which comes later in the post.

closer: Brad Lidge(phl-5pts); Krod(nym-5pts); Mike Gonzalez(atl-3pts); Matt Lindstrom(fla-2pts); Joel Hanrahan(was-2pts)-Krod and Lidge will be great again. Gonzalez is underrated and can save 35 games without Rafael Soriano getting a chance. Tommy Hanson could get some opportunities if both Gonzalez and Soriano are unhealthy, but I think they’ll keep him as a SP as he sores to the Majors. Lindstrom can be very good with his 100mph fast ball and slider so long as he stays healthy. Per pitch, he was the hardest thrower in the majors last year, and let’s not forget about Jon Broxton/LAD or Joel Zumaya/DET.

setup: JJ Putz(nym-5pts); Rafael Soriano(atl-2pts) – If Krod goes down, the Mets should still be OK because of JJ Putz - just OK. JC Romero of PHL could have been here if he didn’t get suspended for substance abuse, but hey thanks for helping the Phillies win the World Series and thanks for playing in the World Baseball Classic. Horrendousness.

Figure 1.0: Results

Point-Breakdown:

*Obviously, this is a very basic statistical way (almost a weight system) of ranking the NL East, but still feasible. Those not ranked, still received 1 pt for the contingent positions. The above system ranks each team as follows: Phillies (53pts) Mets (51pts) Braves (48pts) Marlins (38pts) and of course lastly, the Nationals (25pts). So here, the Phillies rank 1^st. However, there are definitely contingencies this year, such as how the Braves play against the Phillies. They were 4-14 against the Phillies last year. The Braves rotation with Lowe, Vazquez, Kawakami, and Hanson later on in the season, will be much much better, and their offense should pick up quite a bit as well. Most Importantly – The Mets. They had the 3^rd most blown saves last season with 29 (Both the Cardinals and Mariners had 31). The additions by subtractions and additions by great additions/call-ups (Krod, Putz, Sean Green, Brian Stokes, Bobby Parnell) should subtract at least 15 of those 29 blown saves – and probably many more!!! All three referenced NL East teams need to watch out for the Marlins, but I don’t think they have the bullpen and rotation depth to compete for 162 games in the 2^nd best division in the Major Leagues for 2009.

Mets Trade Rumors:

*Lastly, there will always be trade rumors throughout the season, and at the deadline. It may be more intense this year than last due to the economy, and some non-competing teams may be very willing to rid of their expensive talent. I think the Mets will be big players in a sundry of discussions – mainly with the Blue Jays, Mariners, and potentially the Padres. I think Erik Bedard (sp) along with Jose Lopez (2b), Roy Halladay (sp), as well as Jake Peavy(sp) would be fantastic additions after Johan Santana in the Mets Rotation. Another interesting difference this year, can be the Mets POTENTIAL willingness to trade Fernando Martinez, the Mets top OF prospect since they found a stud in Daniel Murphy. I think an offer like Fernando Martinez(of), Jon Niese(sp), and either a Reese Haven(ss) or Brad Holt(p) + Nick Evans (of) could potentially help us land a Roy Halladay or Erik Bedard. If we can land Jose Lopez for 2b along with Erik Bedard, I don’t see how the Mets wouldn’t easily win the NL East.

Mets Roster Additions:

*I think Sheffield was actually a good right-handed bat of the bench for the New York Mets, and

can be a great platoon with Ryan Church (left-handed). Livan Hernandez/sp just won’t be effective anymore, and the Mets should attempt to woo Pedro Martinez for 1 year at 2.5 million.

*2009 NL East Projections: (Honestly I think the Phillies and Braves are Interchangeable)

1- New York Mets (91-71)

2- Philadelphia Phillies (88-74) – WC

3- Atlanta Braves (87-75)

4- Florida Marlins (85-77)

5- Washington Nationals (63-99)

*Very Early 2009 MLB Playoffs Projections:

Mets vs. Dodgers

Phillies vs. Cubs

NL Championship: Mets vs. Cubs

WS Championship: Mets vs. Red Sox

WS Champions: Red Sox

AL Championship: Boston vs. Yankees

Red Sox vs. Angels

Yankees (WC) vs. Twins

Did You Know:

Did you know in college, Mike Lieberthal had a Homerun Cycle – He hit a grand slam, a 3-run homerun, a 2-run homerun, and a solo shot.  I read this on the back on his 1991 Topps Rookie Card! Amazing!!!

Did you know – The founder of this Site, Jeff Gross’, Favorite player was [LAD/TEX/ANA/TOT/CHC/SEA/SAN/FLA Pitcher] Ismael Valdez. Fantastic.

Also Fantasy-eers – Don’t forget Brandon Inge/c-3b on the Tigers is eligible at CATCHER! But make sure you have Pujol’s avg on the team, b/c Inge will hurt that badly!

RIP Nick Adenhart. Best wishes to the Angels (no corny joke), his friends, and most importantly, his family.

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.

After scoring 12 runs against the Chicago White Sox, the Angels come back with a whopping 3. There were only 3 players in the starting lineup that will make the starting lineup come April, so I can’t really complain. For an extended look, here’s the box score. And here’s the recap….

Angels 3, Athletics 1
at Tempe, Ariz.
Feb. 26, 2009

Angels at the plate: Kendry Morales went the opposite way for a line-drive single and pulled a double into the right-field corner. Kevin Ramos, who will play in the World Baseball Classic for Panama, tripled and singled home a run. After getting robbed of extra bases twice in the opener, Brandon Wood doubled and singled in three at-bats. Reggie Willits had an RBI single, and Jeff Mathis doubled and scored.

Athletics at the plate: Jack Cust blasted a solo homer, his first of the spring, down the right-field line. Ryan Sweeney singled twice, and Chris Carter doubled.

Angels on the mound: Starter Jordan Walden showed why he is a favorite of scouts, striking out three hitters in two scoreless innings, including veterans Cust to end the first and Rob Bowen to close the second. Walden yielded two hits and no walks. Brian Fuentes made his debut in an Angels uniform and worked a scoreless third, striking out Eric Chavez and retiring Cust after yielding a pair of singles.

Athletics on the mound: Starter Sean Gallagher surrendered three hits, including a double and triple, but worked out of jams in both of his innings, striking out two and walking one. Brett Anderson yielded three hits and a walk in a two-run fourth, his lone inning of work.

Cactus League records: Angels 2-0; Athletics 0-1-1.

Up next: The Angels host the Rockies on Friday at 12:05 p.m. PT. Sean O’Sullivan will start against Colorado’s Greg Smith.

ST Game #1, A’s/Brewers: 3-3

Yes, a tie in the desert. In 10 innings the Brew-Crew tied with the A’s. Its like kissing your sister. Travis Buck and Bobby Crosby both had good showings today, both hitting home runs, Buck a two run HR, and Crosby a solo-shot. Outman looked good in two inning of work, 2 innings, 1 hit, 1 K. Out of all pitchers, Schorder made the best showing, by striking out 2 batters in one inning.

Notables: Holliday, 1 for 3 , Giambi, 0 for 3

Box Score

The A’s will be taking on the Angels tomorrow at 12:05

That is it for today, more updates tomorrow!

I only wish it was on TV. I got to listen to it on my computer, for free. Thanks to the Angels, they made an agreement with MLB.com so all Angels Spring Training games will be radio broadcasted for free! Anyways, here’s the recap.

Angels 12, White Sox 3
at Tempe, Ariz.
Feb. 25, 2009

Angels at the plate: Cleanup man Mike Napoli, robbed of a hit in his first at-bat, cracked a two-run double in the third to left center. Hainley Statia doubled twice, scoring a run and driving in another. Hank Conger drove in three runs with a pair of singles, Freddy Sandoval doubled, singled and drove in two runs, and Ben Johnson

cracked an RBI double.

White Sox at the plate: A.J. Pierzynski’s second single, a liner to left, produced a pair of runs in the second inning. Josh Fields singled and doubled, scoring a run. Jerry Owens opened the game with a drag-bunt single and had a sacrifice fly.

Angels on the mound: After Matt Palmer yielded two runs on five hits, Scot Shields and Jose Arredondo each pitched a perfect inning of relief, Shields striking out one man and Arredondo a pair. Rich Thompson delivered two perfect innings.

White Sox on the mound: Starter Clayton Richard worked two scoreless innings, giving up one walk. Octavio Dotel was nicked up for three runs on two hits, a walk and a hit batsman. Lefties Matt Thornton and Randy Williams each pitched a scoreless inning of relief.

Cactus League records: Angels 1-0; White Sox 0-1.

Up next: The Angels host the Athletics on Thursday at noon PT. Jordan Walden will start for the Angels against Sean Gallagher of the A’s.

According to Mike DiGiovanni of the L.A. Times, the Angels front office plans to contact John Lackey’s agent on a possible long-term extension before the start of the regular season. He is open to re-signing with the Angels, but also stated that free agency is intruiging.

John Lackey should be expecting a contract extension soon.

“There are a lot of guys who worked hard for us to have that right,” said Lackey, who has a 91-63 career record and 3.81 ERA in 6 1/2 big-league seasons. “A lot of guys would like to check it out at least once.”

Personally, I don’t think the Angels can afford to let Lackey sign with another team during the offseason. I’m expecting the Angels to confront Lackey on a deal somewhere between 4-5 years and around $10-$12 MM per (5 yrs, $60 MM) season.

I’m no fantasy baseball expert, but, let’s take a look at what I project for the 2009 Los Angeles Angels for you fantasy junkies.

Let’s start with the starting pitching. One of the most underrated pitchers in the game is SP John Lackey. He doesn’t get much recognition anywhere. He led the league in ERA in 2007, and pitched 224 innings that year. He’s averaging over 7 strikeouts per 9 innings in his career. Because he only started 24 games last year, he may be lower in some draft projections. Look for him, he’ll be a sleeper.

Ervin Santana, who spent time in the minor leagues during the 2007 season, had an All-Star 2008. The guy has so much upside. His blazing fastball and tight slider along with 214 k’s over 219 innings had him finishing with a 16-7 record. In 2006, his .241 BAA was second best in the AL to, yes, you guessed it, Johan Santana.

So, here’s what I think the pitchers statistics will look like for 2009.

John Lackey: 18 W – 7 L, 3.15 ERA, 200+ IP, 200+ K’s

Ervin Santana: 17 W – 8 L, 3.30 ERA, 200+ IP, 220+ K’s

Joe Saunders: 15 W – 10 L, 3.75 ERA, 180+ IP, 125+ K’s

Jered Weaver: 15 W – 11 L, 4.00+ ERA, 180+ IP, 200+ K’s

Dustin Moseley/Nick Adenhardt (combined): 13 W – 10 L, 4.50 ERA, 125+ IP, 100+ K’s

Vlad is looking healthier than ever as he enters the 2009 season.

As for hitters…..

3B Chone Figgins - .280 AVG, 5 HR, 50 RBI, 100+ R, 50+ SB

DH/OF Bobby Abreu – .300 AVG, 20 HR, 100 RBI, 100 R, 20 SB

DH/OF Vladimir Guerrero – .300 AVG, 25-30 HR, 125 RBI, 80 R, 5 SB

CF Torii Hunter – .275 AVG, 25 HR, 80 RBI, 90 R, 20 SB

DH/OF Juan Rivera – .280 AVG, 20 HR, 80 RBI, 70 R, 10 SB

1B Kendry Morales – .275 AVG, 15 HR, 70 RBI, 70 R, 10 SB

C Mike Napoli – .255 AVG, 35 HR, 80 RBI, 60 R, 15 SB

2B Howie Kendrick – .325 AVG, 10 HR, 60 RBI, 70 R, 25 SB

SS Erick Aybar – .270 AVG, 10 HR, 50 RBI, 60 R, 30 SB

To some, these may be biased. But, as a true Angels fan, I if anyone, know what these players are capable of. And it’s not too far fetched to see these guys achieve these numbers.

Hi all. I’m a new author here, and I’ll be covering mainly Angels baseball. Let me introduce myself first. My name is Anthony, I live in the beautiful Southern California, and I am absolutely obsessed with baseball. Specifically, Angels baseball. I want to thank Jeffrey for giving me the opportunity to post Angels news, rumors, and information on his wonderful website. Now, let’s talk Angels baseball.

Who’s new to an Angels uniform?

After letting record-setting closer Francisco Rodriguez walk away and sign a lucrative contract with the New York Mets, Los Angeles thought they could use players on the inside to fill the void. However, after hearing former Colorado Rockies lefty Brian Fuentes express his interest in returning home to Southern California, the Angels looked in to it. The two sides agreed on a two-year, $17.5 MM deal. Fuentes isn’t looking to perform like K-Rod did, he’s looking to just do his job, close games. I’m looking at Brian Fuentes having a good year. Something like 35 – 40 saves, with an ERA from the 2.00 – 2.75 range.

Another new player, that came to a surprise to some of us, was outfielder Bobby Abreu. Just after you thought the Angels had enough Major League outfielders, 5 at the time, they added another. Abreu is projected to start in left field.

Abreu will be hitting 2nd, in front of Vlad in the lineup.

However, after resigning Juan Rivera to a 3-year, $12.75 MM deal, someone is going to have to start at DH. 8-Time Gold Glove center fielder Torii Hunter, for one, surely won’t get many starts at DH. Vladimir Guerrero has openly stated that he has no desire to take that role either.

So with the rotation of Abreu, Guerrero, Hunter, and Rivera, this leaves out OF Gary Matthews Jr. Matthews may miss the start of the season due to offseason knee surgery, and he struggled through knee trouble all year en route to a season that saw him hit .242 with just eight homers and eight steals despite appearing in 127 games. We can give him a little bit of a mulligan for that, but at 34 and coming off of knee surgery, we can’t expect a big bounce in his numbers. The signing of  Abreu renders him potentially just a fifth outfielder, so playing time could be really hard to come by, lessening his chance of a rebound.

Matthews, highly overpaid, is a possible trade candidate come July. The Angels have absolutely no use for him, and his no-trade clause ran up at the end of last season.

Kelvim Escobar’s phenominal spring training came to a halt on Monday, when the righty began to feel tightness in his left calf during morning stretches. The veteran right-hander shouldered past two significant hurdles on Friday and Saturday, throwing comfortably from a mound and waking without pain the following morning. “I was worried about how I was going to feel today,” Escobar told MLB.com on Saturday afternoon, “and I felt great. I had good range of motion and no problems at all when I went out to do my long toss today. That was big, very important. You usually find out the next day where you are, and I’m really excited.

More Angels news to come soon. I hope you enjoyed my first post as an author of Major League Blogging. Have a great evening everyone.

If there was one thing the Mets really, really needed it was the solidification of their weak bullpen of 2008. As a Mets fan, I was disgusted with the number of late inning leads blown throughout the 2008 season. Looking back on it, I remember myself dreading innings 6-9 each and every day I watched them play. This has changed though, and in my opinion, it changed a great deal. (Keywords…Great Deal ) 

The Mets signed K-Rod to a three-year, $37 million deal this offseason to become their closer, then completed a 12-player trade with the Mariners and Indians as well. That deal netted them Putz, reliever Sean Green and outfielder Jeremy Reed in exchange for Aaron Heilman, Endy Chavez, Joe Smith and four Minor Leaguers.

Minaya Said: 

To get one closer like Frankie would have been a good winter. I think to get two guys like this is a great winter. And that being said, we’re not done yet.

I couldn’t agree more. We all know K-Rod is quite capable of finishing out games. Granted, those games were with the Angles, but I feel the same or similar opportunities will present themselves here with the Mets in 2009. The same goes for Putz, although he is used to closing as well, I feel he will adjust well to the new role as setup man or a top 3 closer in baseball, K-Rod.

So, way to go Minaya! This falls into the number 2 slot in his top 5 moves by Minaya. Coming soon…the number one pickup for Minaya…I am sure you can all guess whats coming.

Until next time, Happy Blogging!

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