APRIL 8, 2002



GAME 6 - MARINERS AT ANGELS



 



By Joe Haakenson, AngelsWin.com Contributor - 



 



ANAHEIM Jarrod Washburn threw 5 1/3 scoreless innings, but the Angels bullpen blew a 3-0 lead in a 5-4 win by the Seattle Mariners Monday night before 16,908 at Edison Field.



 



Donne Wall gave up two runs and Ben Weber three as the Mariners rallied in the seventh and eighth innings. Ex-Angel Shigetoshi Hasegawa (1-0) earned the victory in relief over Weber (1-1).



 



Brad Fullmer had two hits and Bengie Molina drove in two for the Angels, but it was not enough to overcome the defending division champs.



 

As has been mentioned already, Mike Trout’s greatness is largely the result of his well-rounded game: he’s a bonafide .300 hitter (career .305 BA, five of eight years above .300), a prodigious power hitter (six of eight seasons of 30+ HR, career .581 SLG), steals bases (averaging almost 25 per season), and is a good defender. But perhaps the key to the entire mix is his plate discipline. Trout is known for his ability to work the count, his pitch recognition, and a rather selflessly patient approach that leads to a ton of walks.

#18a: Walks Through Age 27

Mickey Mantle 892


Eddie Yost 874


Mel Ott 803


Mike Trout 803


Jimmie Foxx 781



As you can see, Trout 4th through age 27, behind Mantle--a very similar player (which we'll look at later)--and a few high walk players who all started very young. Foxx and Ott are well-known Hall of Famers, while Yost is not. As an aside, he was an interesting and rather rare player: he drew 100  walks--123 or more, actually--eight times in his career, leading the AL five times. His career triple-slash was .254/.394/.371, meaning he walked a ton but didn't hit for a high average, never hitting .300, and had little power, only surpassing 12 HR once (21 in 1959, near the end of his career). He also didn't steal bases, meaning he was a one-tool player--drawing walks--but one of the best all-time.

By Joe Haakenson, AngelsWin.com Contributor - 

APRIL 7, 2002
RAINED OUT - ANGELS AT RANGERS

NOTEBOOK

ARLINGTON, Tex. -- Tim Salmon didn't blink when he saw Saturday's lineup, which showed he was the designated hitter instead of his normal spot in right field. But it wasn't as easy to shrug off when it happened again Sunday.

Though Sunday's game against the Texas Rangers was rained out and it never actually happened, Salmon was left to wonder why.

''I guess Garret (Anderson) and Darin (Erstad) fought harder than I did,'' Salmon said of his fellow outfielders. ''I guess Garret and Darin didn't want to do it.'' Salmon said he talked with manager Mike Scioscia about it.

''He said, 'It's your's,' '' Salmon said. ''I said, 'What about the other guys?' He said  they didn't want to do it.''

Salmon was the DH Saturday as Orlando Palmeiro started in right field. Sunday, Jeff DaVanon was listed in the lineup as the right fielder.

''Tim handles DH better,'' Scioscia said. ''I think DaVanon's more comfortable in right field (than the other outfield spots). And I think Timmy's still battling that knee a tad. If there's an opportunity to get him off his feet, we'll take it.''

Salmon was hit by a pitch on his right knee during spring training, but said his knee is fine. Asked if he was concerned about back-to-back games as a DH, Salmon said he wasn't.

''No, because those guys will get their days,'' he said.

Salmon has a .285 career average as a DH, where Erstad has hit .338 at DH and Anderson .323. But Salmon has more experience as a DH than the others. Because of a foot problem, Salmon spent nearly all of the 1998 season as the DH. He has 613 career at-bats as a DH, compared to 154 for Erstad and 127 for Anderson.

By Joe Haakenson, AngelsWin.com Contributor - 

APRIL 6, 2002
GAME 5 - ANGELS AT RANGERS

ARLINGTON, Texas -- It was the perfect situation for your $22-million-per-year superstar. Bases loaded, two out in the bottom of the ninth, his team down by three.

APRIL 5, 2002

GAME 4 - ANGELS AT RANGERS

By Joe Haakenson, AngelsWin.com Contributor


ARLINGTON, Tex. -- Scott Schoeneweis did Friday what Jarrod Washburn, Kevin Appier and Aaron Sele could not in the Angels' first three games of the season -- pitch into the sixth inning.

In fact, Schoeneweis went a few steps further, going into the ninth inning and leading the Angels to a 3-1 victory over the dangerous Texas Rangers Friday afternoon before Vice President Dick Cheney and a sellout crowd of 49,617 at The Ballpark in Arlington.



 



While his fellow starters needed around 100 pitches to get through five, Schoeneweis walked off the mound with one out in the ninth having made 99 pitches. He gave up one run and five hits, struck out six and walked only one.



 



The Rangers' murderers' row of Alex Rodriguez, Juan Gonzalez, Rafael Palmeiro and Ivan Rodriguez combined to go 2 for 12 with four strikeouts against Schoeneweis. Alex Rodriguez struck out three times himself, including taking a called third strike in the ninth inning that caused him to slam his bat to the ground.



 



''I don't know what happened to us,'' Rodriguez said. ''He took it to us. Our thing is, I think we were too aggressive.''



 



Schoeneweis kept the Rangers off balance by changing speeds and throwing fewer sinkers, his primary pitch.



 



''We mixed it up,'' catcher Bengie Molina said. ''They all know he throws a sinker, but we mixed in a fastball and changeup. We got 'em by surprise. Last year he didn't have a changeup.''



 



Schoeneweis entered the ninth inning and gave up a leadoff double to Gabe Kapler. He struck out Alex Rodriguez looking on a slider and was taken out of the game. Al Levine came in and retired Gonzalez on a groundout and Palmeiro on a flyout to earn his first save.