91 Angels Update- oh, how the worm turns

Last week's record: 13-6

This week's record: 20-20

7-14 this week. Not good, Bob. The Angels were flying high, but May struck and struck hard. The offense couldn't get on track at all.

Let's look at the starters:

Sax: started .305/.805 OPS

now (through May 22): .310/.745

Van Slyke:

.260/.837

.238/.802

Mattingly:

.186/.507

.257/.639

He improved, but he had nowhere to go but up.

Mitchell:

.268/.894

.264/.867

Thomas:

.256/.807

.221/.657

Startling downturn from Thomas.

Justice:

.311/.859

.233/.665

Pronounced slump from Justice as well.

Those are the main offensive guys. Sax and Mitchell stayed pretty consistent, but a nosedive from Thomas and Justice and still not enough production from Mattingly have sunk the Angels.

Pitching:

Marichal's slumped in three starts in May. His April starts were very dominant, though. Paige lost three in a row before a no-decision. 

The bullpen has suffered as well. Eck's not yet on track and Carl Willis has been hit hard.

Angels Weekly Update

Record: 13-6

Division: tied with Oakland for first

Bright Spots: 

The starting rotation is strong, led by Marichal and Paige. Bolin has also been solid. Bearden had two bad outings to start the season, but has since rebounded. Guthrie has been adequate. 

Most of the bullpen has been good as well. Willis, Porterfield, and Cook have given solid innings.

Offensively, Sax has been a good table-setter, getting on base and stealing bases. Mitchell is off to a hot start with 7 HR. Justice and Thomas have gotten off to good starts.

Concerns:

Offense: Mattingly can't get on track. He's hitting just .149. 

Bullpen: Eckersley has been very shaky. He is 2-1 with a 9.82 ERA.

Upcoming:

The Angels see some teams that they haven't yet played. There's a lot of Milwaukee, Detroit, and Toronto, and then some West opponents.

'91 Angels Update

After 12 games, here are the trends:

• Excellent starting pitching, especially the first two guys. Marichal and Paige both have ERAs under 1.50. The only one struggling is Bearden, who has been blown apart in two starts.
• Bullpen improving. Eckersley has rebounded in his last three outings after getting shellacked in his first few appearances.
• Hitting for average and OBP needs to improve. The team has a .243 average and .297 OBP. No wonder the lineup has been getting shuffled lately.
• Struggles for some hitters. Mattingly in particular is off to a slow start.
• Team is using strategy to bring home wins. Strong starting pitching and subbing out poor defenders has helped in the late innings

91 Angels- Rotation

 

Opening Series- vs KC

Result: WLW

Record: 2-1

Good: Marichal dominant in G1, three HR in G1. Bolin has very solid outing in G3. Mitchell off to hot start with 2 HR

Bad: Offense not as potent in G2, Eckersley gives up four runs.

Opening Day- vs Kansas City

 

vs 

    

Result: 

Opening day is a big success, as Marichal throws a complete game. Three home runs for the Angels, as Sax, Mattingly, and Mitchell all notch their first longballs. 

Debuts:

Everyone who played, but Velarde comes off the bench to play third, Buhner pinch-hits and Dascenzo subs in the OF.

162-0? Maybe not, but good vibes with this start.

1991 Angels- Opening Day!

It's opening day!

Lineups:

2B- Sax

CF- Van Slyke

1B- Mattingly

DH- Mitchell

RF- Justice

3B- Thomas

C- Scioscia

SS- Alomar

LF- Wilson

Bench:

C- Wilkins

1B- Guerrero

2B, 3B- Backman

SS- Velarde

OF- Dascenzo

RF- Buhner

Rotation:

Marichal

Paige

Bolin

Bearden

Guthrie

Bullpen:

Eckersley (CL)

Willis

Kennedy

St. Claire

Cook

Porterfield

Zoldak

Introducing...1991 California Angels

The 1991 California Angels will be the next team for OOTP GO 24. The inaugural draft is underway, and the twist is that several historic teams were added to augment the draft class. The first pick in the draft was SP Juan Marichal. Another pick daily!
Roster:

Pitchers:
SP Juan Marichal (1)
SP Satchel Paige (6)

SP Bobby Bolin (9)

SP Gene Bearden (12)

CL Dennis Eckersley (11)

Catchers:
Mike Scioscia (4)

Infielders:
3B Frank Thomas (7)

2B Steve Sax (8)

1B Don Mattingly (10)

SS Sandy Alomar (13)

Outfielders:
LF Kevin Mitchell (2)
RF David Justice (3)
CF Andy Van Slyke (5)

Lineup:

2B Sax

CF Van Slyke

1B Mattingly

DH/LF Mitchell

RF Justice

3B Thomas

C Scioscia

SS Alomar

DH/LF

Not yet filled:  SS.