News
Angels look to lock up AL West
Los Angeles (91-64) vs. Texas (85-70), 7:05 p.m. PT
By Lyle Spencer / MLB.com
09/27/09 8:20 PM ET
ANAHEIM -- Here come the Rangers, with one purpose: make the Angels perspire as if they're deep in the humid heart of Texas, not alongside the soothing Pacific Ocean. The Angels have a magic number of two, which means all they need is one decision over the Rangers and a third consecutive American League West title sends them on to the postseason -- and another crack at the Wild Card Red Sox. This came into focus after the Rays rallied from a five-run deficit on Sunday to topple the Rangers, while the Angels prevailed against the A's, who'd taken the first two in their three-game weekend series. "I don't care about Texas," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said on Sunday when asked about the upcoming business with a team that has beaten the Angels 10 times in 15 meetings. "I don't care about any other club. At no point in the year do I care about another club, what they're doing." Scioscia, who hands the ball to Ervin Santana in a duel with Tommy Hunter in the series opener, was visibly relieved on Sunday. The Angels put all phases of their game -- quality pitching, air-tight defense, power production in the offense -- back together after a four-game losing spin, their longest of the season. "Today's ballgame is much more in line with the things we've done all season," Scioscia said, taking particular note of superlative glove work by his infield in support of Joe Saunders. "This last month hasn't been good for us," Scioscia said. "We haven't hit to the level we can, although we've pitched exceptionally well. We have not played to our potential the last month. We have to target where the breakdowns are and get more consistent." That starts and pretty much ends with offense. After months of working counts and getting into favorable hitting situations, the Angels seemingly reverted to their former free-swinging ways during a September swoon. They appear to have emerged from their funk the past two days, however, producing 17 runs with muscle -- homers by Bobby Abreu, Juan Rivera, Kendry Morales and Mike Napoli -- and the familiar speed on the basepaths. "When we're expanding our zones at a time we shouldn't, that's not a quality at-bat," Scioscia said. "When you see a guy get a pitch and try to hit it 600 feet and it's not that kind of pitch, it's not a quality at-bat. "There are a lot of little details we have not done this month. I don't see it as a matter of mental fatigue, physical fatigue. It's a matter of focus. We've played some terrific games, but focusing in on the offensive side, a lot of things have been sloppy that affected us." The Rangers seemingly were buried after dropping two of three at home to the Angels last weekend, but a four-game losing streak by Scioscia's troupe against the Yankees and Athletics maintained Texas' pulse. The Rangers have had Josh Hamilton back taking swings as a designated hitter after missing almost half the season with various injuries, most recently a pinched nerve in his lower back. He didn't play on Sunday. Third baseman and team leader Michael Young has not made it back from a strained left hamstring but vows to return sometime during the final week. "When I come back, I'm playing third base," said Young, who injured the hamstring on Sept 1 and aggravated it when he came back on Sept. 15. "It doesn't do anybody any good for me to DH. When I come back, I want to be ready to play third base." Hamilton is trying to recapture his stroke in time to do some damage. A series of physical issues began when he made a spectacular catch against the wall at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington on May 17, robbing the Angels' Howard Kendrick of an extra-base hit. "It's obviously frustrating," Hamilton said. "You can't help but be [frustrated]. You can't find a rhythm playing when you're not out there doing it. It seemed like whenever I finally get back feeling good with my swing and everything, something else would happen. So personal goals have been out the window for awhile. "It [isn't] like I got hurt from not being in shape or by like swinging or running or throwing or anything like that. It was from hitting the wall. And after that, it was one thing after another. You can't predict when you're going to get hurt. ... You play, and if you get hurt, it's part of the game." Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler joined the 30-30 club on Friday with his 30th homer of the season, one day after notching his 30th stolen base. He joins Alfonso Soriano (2005) as the only Rangers players in club history to put up a 30-30 season. Before joining the club, Kinsler had gone 20 games and 78 at-bats without a homer. Pitching matchupLAA: RHP Ervin Santana (7-8, 5.46 ERA)
Santana had good movement and velocity on Tuesday night against the Yankees, but the Yankees' bats were just as lively, smoking three homers and scoring five runs (four earned) in six innings. Santana's seven strikeouts matched his season high, and he walked two while yielding nine hits. Santana has gone at least six innings in 10 of his past 11 starts, and 5 2/3 in the other one. He lost to the Rangers at home on July 8, giving up five earned runs in four innings, and is 7-6, 6.67 in 15 career starts against Texas. TEX: RHP Tommy Hunter (9-4, 3.67 ERA)
Hunter was the winning pitcher in the Rangers' 9-8 victory over the Athletics his last time out, even though he allowed a season-high seven runs in 5 2/3 innings. He is 3-1 with a 5.34 ERA in five starts in September and he is 3-1 with a 4.12 ERA in seven starts on the road. He is trying to become the ninth Rangers rookie to win 10 games in a season. The record is 12, held by Edwin Correa in 1986, Kevin Brown in 1989 and Chris Young in 2004. He lost to the Angels, 2-0, on Sept. 18 when he allowed two runs in five innings. That's his only start against them. Tidbits
Too bad for the Angels they don't play postseason games in sunlight any more. They're 32-13 in day games for a .711 winning percentage. ... Angels starting pitchers have gone at least six innings in 21 of the past 25 outings, assembling a 2.75 ERA as a group in the past 31 games. The Angels avoided being swept by the A's for the first time since 2004. ... Rangers outfielder Julio Borbon has 19 steals in 38 games. Only two players in Major League history have stolen 20 bases while playing in 46 games or fewer: Donell Nixon (21 in 46 games) for the Mariners in 1987 and Billy North (26 in 46 games) for the Giants in '81. ... Rookie pitchers Derek Holland and Hunter have combined for 15 wins as starters this season. It's tied for the fourth most the Rangers have received from rookie starters in one season. Tickets
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• KLAA 830, KFWB, KWKW 1330 (Español) Up next
• Tuesday: Angels (Scott Kazmir, 9-9, 5.06) vs. Rangers (Scott Feldman, 17-6, 3.90), 7:05 p.m. PT
• Wednesday: Angels (Jered Weaver, 15-8, 3.84) vs. Rangers (Derek Holland, 8-12, 6.14), 7:05 p.m. PT
• Thursday: Angels (John Lackey, 11-8, 3.77) vs. Rangers (Kevin Millwood, 12-10, 3.75), 3:05 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.
