News
Weaver looks to slow much-improved A's
Los Angeles (1-2) vs. Oakland (2-1), 7:25 p.m. PT
Jered Weaver will face one of the game's top prospects on Thursday. (Jeff Chiu/AP)
By Lyle Spencer / MLB.com
04/09/09 3:00 AM ET
ANAHEIM -- The Athletics clearly are more athletic. With more speed and power, they should be more competitive than they were last year when there wasn't a more ineffective offense in the American League. How much better remains to be seen, but they look like a club that could hold the Angels' attention in the AL West from start to finish. "Everybody wants to say they're our rivals in the [division], but we look at everybody the same way," said Jered Weaver, who takes aim at the restructured A's in the series finale on Thursday. "We always seem to battle them. They've added some veteran guys. They have some strength in their lineup. "Everybody was [talking about] Seattle last year, and it didn't turn out that way. It's going to be interesting to see how it unfolds." Weaver will be facing one of the game's premier young starters in Brett Anderson, a 6-foot-4 southpaw with primetime stuff. The Angels faced Anderson this spring and were impressed. The A's saw Weaver, but he wasn't around for long. It was early, and he was just getting the feel of his delivery after shoulder stiffness put him a little behind. All along, as he made steady strides, Weaver reassured everyone he would be ready when it counted. It counts now, and the 6-foot-7 Simi Valley tower looks ready to his manager. "He had a strong outing last weekend," Mike Scioscia said. "He got up to the mid-90s and got up and down seven times. He should be able to get to 100 pitches easily." After leading Major League Baseball in virtually every offensive category this spring, the Angels have been hit and miss in the early going. Scioscia might not be overjoyed with what he's seen, but he's not upset, either. "It's been a little spotty," he said. "We're working deep counts and drawn some walks. We're getting opportunities. That's the first step. Now we have to take advantage of it. There are some positives and some things we need to be more consistent with, such as situational hitting." Scioscia said he likes the look and feel of his lineup but is always open to changes that "could give us more offensive consistency." With the Red Sox coming to town this weekend, Scioscia plans to give his bench players -- Robb Quinlan, Maicer Izturis and Gary Matthews Jr. -- playing time. He'll continue to have Jeff Mathis and Mike Napoli sharing catching duties. Pitching matchupLAA: RHP Jered Weaver (0-0, -.-- ERA)
His spring was delayed by shoulder soreness and then set back briefly by a back strain, but he bounced back and finished strong and appears ready to go fairly deep in games. Weaver gets by on deception with his delivery, quality stuff and a competitive instinct that enables him to do some of his best work in high-pressure situations. He was 0-1 with a 2.08 ERA in two outings against the Athletics last season and is 2-2, 2.56 in seven career starts against them. Weaver was better at home (6-5, 3.71) than on the road (5-5, 4.91) in 2008. If he puts it all together, he could fulfill the expectations of his dominant rookie season in 2006. OAK: LHP Brett Anderson (0-0, -.-- ERA)
Anderson, ranked by Baseball America as the top prospect in the A's organization and No. 7 in all of baseball, earned a spot in Oakland's rotation in his first trip to big league Spring Training, A 21-year-old who's drawn high praise from coaches and teammates for his poise on the mound, Anderson was a busy young man in 2008; he split the regular season at Class A Stockton and Double-A Midland, pitched in the All-Star Futures Game at Yankee Stadium, played for Team USA in the Beijing Olympics, and finished the year on Triple-A Sacramento's playoff roster. A second-round pick of the D-backs in the 2006 First-Year Player Draft, Anderson was acquired by Oakland in the December 2007 trade that sent Dan Haren to Arizona. Tidbits
The big night arrives for Chuck Finley and Brian downing, who will be inducted into the Angels Hall of Fame before the game. Finley, a four-time All-Star, is the franchise leader in wins (165), innings (2,675) and starts (379). Downing left the Angels in 1990 as their leader in games (1,661), runs (889), hits (1,588), total bases (2,580), doubles (282), home runs (222) and RBIs (846). He eventually was supplanted by Garret Anderson or Tim Salmon in all those categories. ... Finley and Downing join Nolan Ryan, Rod Carew, Bobby Grich, Don Baylor, Jim Fregosi and Jimmie Reese in the Angels' Hall. ... Kelvim Escobar reported Wednesday that his right shoulder fatigue had dissipated and he was feeling better. He'll test his arm in the next day or two, Scioscia said, calling it "a little bump in the road, that's all." Tickets
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• KLAA 830, KFWB, KWKW 1330 (Español) Up next
• Friday: Angels (Shane Loux, 0-0, -.--) vs. Red Sox (Tim Wakefield, 0-0, -.--), 7:05 p.m. PT
• Saturday: Angels (Joe Saunders, 1-0, 0.00) vs. Red Sox (Brad Penny, 0-0, -.--), 1:10 p.m. PT
• Sunday: Angels (Dustin Moseley, 0-0, 4.50) vs. Red Sox (Josh Beckett, 1-0, 1.29), 12:35 p.m. PT
Lyle Spencer is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
