If you read the title of this article and nothing else you would assume how this is supposed to be a positive spin on the horrible start the Angels have had. It is not going to be anything like that. I am tired of writing optimistic article after optimistic article claiming the Angels are going to start winning. I have beat that horse to death. Time to switch things up and start placing blame on the some of these players/coaches. Here are the 5 people/circumstances that I think are to blame for another horrible start to the season.
5. Arte Moreno
I am not one to blame the owner of a ball club, because most owners are just there to sign the checks. Moreno is not that type of owner. He likes to get involved in everything the Angels do. I like that aspect, but sometimes he needs to let the real baseball geniuses do their jobs. Signing Josh Hamilton was nice, but couldn't we have spent that money on more pitching help and some solid prospects? No, we wanted to spend insane amounts of money on an aging, somewhat beaten down slugger. There is a slight problem there.
#4 Mike Scioscia
I am the first person to defend Scioscia as a really good manager. The reason I think he is slightly to blame is that sometimes teams that are struggling need to see a coaching change. Scioscia has been the Angel manager for what seems like forever and I think it may be getting close to the time when we replace him with a new face. I will be sad to see that day come, but I don't think this team is set up to play the Scioscia style. Scioscia always liked the singles that lead to stealing second base and then manufacturing runs by playing small ball. This team is not built for that.
#3 Injuries
23 games into a season is not the best time to start talking about how injuries are affecting a team. Right now the Angels have 7 players on the DL. That list includes their pitching ace, a possible closer, and the starting left side of the infield. Injuries are a part of any sport and every athletes career, this just means that other players need to step up in their absence. So far that really hasn't been the case. The players that have filled in for these injured players have done their best, but we need a healthy team to make sure that this current slide doesn't continue.
#2 The Pitchers
A 4.82 ERA is not all that terrible and yet it isn't good at all. I don't who has been a bigger disappointment so far this season, the bullpen or the starters. The relievers have only had 3 saves in the 9 wins and have blown as many leads as they have saved the leads. The starting pitching has been atrocious. Unable to get outs or throw strikes when they must. What's even worse is that our best pitcher is still on the DL and even with him back in the rotation I don't see anybody else that is a quality starter. That could change as the season continues, but I am talking about what I have seen so far. Something has to be done about the poor pitching that has been shown through 23 games this season.
#1 Pujols/Trout/Hamilton
I have been hard on Hamilton so far this season, but he isn't the only superstar hitter to blame here. Pujols and Trout have both had there struggles at the plate this season. Albert is playing through injury and he may need to sit a game or two and see if he can get a little better before he really hurts himself bad. Trout has been striking out way too often and he just can't seem to find that same magic that made him 2nd in the AL MVP voting last season. I have faith in them to break out of this early season funk and get things going here pretty soon. Then there is Hamilton. I have tried to be optimistic with his horrid start, but he just doesn't look like himself out there yet. Hitting .228 with nearly as many strikeouts as total bases isn't going to make you many fans. I don't see anything in Hamilton's swing that makes me feel like he will break out of the slump soon. I see a long, rough season for him and I really hope he proves me wrong here.
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