After a convincing 12-3 win yesterday against the Tampa Bay Rays, the Angels find themselves 2 games below .500 and third in the AL West. After sweeping the Kansas City Royals earlier this month, the Angels faced some tough competition (Toronto, Boston, Minnesota and Tampa Bay) and have come out 4-8. Because they lost two-thirds of their games during that span, they are 10 games behind the Texas Rangers with 34 contests left in the year (18 home, 16 away). The climb to first seems so far away right now, but the Rangers are having trouble holding on to the top spot. There is still hope after looking at the upcoming schedule!
BALTIMORE ORIOLES
Record/Place: 45-82/5th AL East
Winning Percentage: .354
Last 10 Games: 4-6
The Angels trail the series 3-0 this year against the Baltimore Orioles. This team has seen new life after a managerial change, but still has the second worst record in all of baseball. They’ll be playing at Angels stadium, and the O’s have an 18-44 road record.
SEATTLE MARINERS
Record/Place: 50-77/4th AL West
Winning Percentage.394
Last 10 Games: 4-6
The Mariners have struggled against the Angels all year, only taking 3 games out of the 13 that they’ve played. The Angels will play two series against them; one at home and one in Seattle. This looks like it could be six games in the bag for the Halos.
OAKLAND ATHLETICS
Record/Place: 63-62/2nd AL West
Winning Percentage: .504
Last 10 Games: 6-4
The Angels are 7-6 against the Athletics this year (3-4 on the road and 4-2 at home). Both teams will host a series, and we know that Oakland is not a team to be taken lightly. However, they are a very beatable team.
CLEVELAND INDIANS
Record/Place: 50-76/5th AL Central
Winning Percentage: .397
Last 10 Games: 2-8
The Indians hosted a series early in the season, and lost two out of three. They are currently 26th in runs, 27th in batting average, and 26th in ERA. The Angels will play a series at home and on the road, and again, this could be six wins against another team under .400.
TAMPA BAY RAYS
Record/Place: 78-49/2nd AL East
Winning Percentage: .614
Last 10 Games: 7-3
We just saw them here, and we know what they can do. Right now, they hold the AL Wildcard spot. They have a ton of tough games ahead of them, facing the Yankees the Red Sox a couple of times. They could be worn down the next time they host the Angels for a 3-game series in Tampa Bay.
TEXAS RANGERS
Record/Place: 72-54/1st AL West
Winning Percentage: .571
Last 10 Games: 5-5
We are going to have to absolutely play our asses off against the Rangers. The Angels will host a 3-game series before concluding their season with a 4-game series in Texas. Yea, that’s right, the Angels post-season future could depend on whether or not the Angels can close out the first place Rangers at home.
CHICAGO WHITE SOX
Record/Place: 68-58/2nd AL Central
Winning Percentage: .540
Last 10 Games: 3-7
The Angels won a quick 2-game series against Chicago early in the year, but then lost four straight to the White Sox on the road. Frankly, Chicago embarrassed us offensively, as they outscored the Angels 19-5 earlier in July. The White Sox look like they may be derailing a little bit, going 3-7 in their last 10 games, and their schedule doesn’t get much easier. Again, the Angels have beat them before this season; they need to do it again.
The Angels will play three teams under .400 as well as the A’s who, who barely have a winning record. The Halos will have to dig deep and figure out how they are going to win a majority of these games and take first place from Texas. We’ve put ourselves in a big hole, but the important thing is, we can still climb out by playing some solid baseball. Go Halos!
Kevin H
