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Erick Aybar hasn't made many pinch-hit appearances during his big league career, but he came through with a big pinch-hit single against Team USA on Thursday to send the Dominican Republic to the semifinals in the World Baseball Classic. View the full article

An MRI of Bill Hall's left calf today showed just a strained muscle, although it remains to be seen how much time he'll miss. He will see Dr. Lewis Yocum on Friday morning.Hall, 33, is trying to win a job on the Angels bench. The veteran utilityman... View the full article

Erick Aybar came off the bench in the ninth inning on Thursday night at Marlins Park and drove home Nelson Cruz with a pinch-hit single off Craig Kimbrel, sending the D.R. on to a 3-1 victory over Team USA. View the full article

If the veteran utilityman can't play soon he might not make the Angels' roster for the season. He has a strained left calf. TEMPE, Ariz. -- Bill Hall's chances of sticking with the Angels were dealt a severe blow Thursday when the veteran utility player hobbled off to have an MRI exam performed on his strained left calf. View the full article

Angels 12, Chicago White Sox 4 View the full article

THE GAME: The Angels played a crisp, complete game, combining strong pitching, hitting and defense, in a 12-4 victory over the Chicago White Sox at Tempe. The Angels are 4-11-3.PITCHING REPORT: LHP Jason Vargas gave up two hits and one run in 4 2/3... View the full article

For Michael Kohn, this spring is about regaining his form while recovering from Tommy John surgery, which sidelined him all of 2012. But it's also about showcasing, because there's a bullpen spot to be had -- probably two -- and Kohn wants to win one. View the full article

Luis Jimenez got a gift from Albert Pujols on Thursday morning: His very own first base mitt. View the full article

Rule of thumb: if a guy is still hitting .500 halfway through March, you ought to find out a little about him.So, meet Matt Young.Young, who is 8 for 16, has very little chance of making the opening day roster because he's not on the 40-man roster... View the full article

Utilityman Bill Hall, who hasn't played since Feb. 27, went this morning for an MRI exam on his left calf, which he hurt during infield drills on Wednesday morning."I'm concerned," Hall said.Hall, 33, came to camp as a non-roster invitee, but he... View the full article

Spring training: Reliever gives up two runs, four hits in 8-6 loss to Padres, but Manager Mike Scioscia says he's on track. Joe Blanton and Ernesto Frieri also pitch. PEORIA, Ariz. — It wasn't the debut Sean Burnett hoped for, the Angels new bullpen acquisition giving up two runs and four hits in the span of five batters Wednesday in an 8-6 loss to the San Diego Padres. View the full article

Mike Trout and Peter Bourjos each have two hits for the Angels. Joe Blanton gives up two runs in five innings.<br/><br/>San Diego 8, Angels 6<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/latimes/sports/baseball/mlb/angels/~4/x7NwIrOATok" height="1" width="1"/> View the full article

Albert Pujols' recovery from offseason knee surgery cleared another, albeit small, hurdle on Wednesday: He ran for himself. View the full article

Minor League first baseman Efren Navarro is back in Angels camp now, but just four days ago, he was in the middle of one of the ugliest baseball incidents in recent memory, when tempers flared, punches were thrown and even objects were tossed in a heated scrum between Team Mexico and Team Canada at the World Baseball Classic. View the full article

THE GAME: The Angels blew a four-run lead and gave up six runs in the seventh and eighth innings, falling 8-6 to the San Diego Padres at Peoria. The Angels are 3-11-3.PITCHING REPORT: RHP Joe Blanton gave up two runs in five innings in his third... View the full article

The Padres scored four runs in the bottom of the eighth inning Wednesday for an 8-6 Cactus League victory over the Angels at the Peoria Sports Complex. Joe Blanton allowed two runs on five hits in five innings. He had two strikeouts and didn't walk a batter. View the full article

Lefty reliever Andrew Taylor, who made three appearances as a September callup with the Angels last year, has a small tear in his labrum, a MRI on Monday revealed. View the full article

When C.J. Wilson walked across the field before this morning's workout, he was carrying a bat. It was a rare sight for spring training, and one probalby not repeated in any other American League camps. The Angels, however, have the distinction of... View the full article

By Robert Cunningham, AngelsWin.com Staff Writer 2013 Outlook: Jason adds another left-handed, workhorse arm to our rotation. He doesn't feature strong strike out totals but he compensates by limiting walks and hits. He features one of the best change ups in the game which can really force batters to make weaker contact. Using the change up is part of the reason that Vargas has been able to pitch so many innings consistently over the last three years. Moving Vargas to Anaheim switches one pitcher's park for another. However what has changed is the defensive arrangement playing behind him and the move to Anaheim should benefit a fly ball pitcher like Jason. Last season Vargas was really able to reduce the hits and walks he gave up; however he did give up an unusual amount of jimmy-jacks. In 2013, what you see is what you will get with Jason: An innings eater, fly ball pitcher who will give our powerful offense the opportunity to win games. Vargas is a competitor and although he is not the flashiest pitcher in the Major's he is reliable and can buckle down when things get tight. Oh and don't forget that he is a former Dirt Bag, like Weaver, and how can any team not make the playoff's with two Cal State Long Beach grad's towing the rubber? View the full article

A road trip to Arizona for spring training features a semi-epic home run and adventure of biblical proportions. PHOENIX — Let me tell you about Josh Hamilton's first rocket ship of spring. It isn't a perfect home run. He gets under it a bit more than he would've liked, so it's towering, corpulent, full of cha-cha. View the full article

On a day that most of the Angels take off, the left-hander has a strong outing pitching against minor leaguers. TEMPE, Ariz. — For most major league veterans, spring training is a pretty low-key affair. All you have to do is get a little work in, break a sweat occasionally, and fine-tune a few things for the regular season. View the full article

C.J. Wilson, who struck out seven batters while giving up a couple of tough-luck runs in a four-inning stint at Tempe Diablo Stadium's main field, reached the 60-pitch range on what was an off-day for most of his teammates. View the full article

By Robert Cunningham - AngelsWin.com Staff Writer 2013 Outlook: So clearly Joe Blanton isn't the "Big Splash" that everyone was thinking of when the Angels acquired a pitcher during the offseason. No one is here to argue that. However, like Hanson, Joe could prove to be a "Value Splash" based on a recent history (since 2010) of increased strikeouts, with the addition of a cutter to his repetoire. If you take a glance at Joe's numbers from 2010 until now, you'll notice a) his strikeout rate has significantly increased over his career numbers, his walk rate has declined significantly over his career numbers, c) his xFIP has decreased significantly over his career numbers, and d) his BABIP has been above his career average. What does all of this indicate? Upon examination everything points to the cut fastball Blanton has added to his arsenal. The king of the cutter, Mariano Rivera, has used this pitch successfully to tally high K/9 rates and that helps to explain Blanton's increased strikeouts. Additionally the cutter helps to induce weak contact (including broken bats) resulting in more ground balls and less walks. On top of all this his xFIP is saying that if he wasn't giving up an unusual amount of fly balls, the last 3 years, his ERA would significantly improve and, if his BABIP wasn't so high, less of those balls that are hit wouldn't find so many holes in the infield and outfield. Signing Blanton was a pure statistical value play by Jerry Dipoto. Although it lacks a lot of flash from a fan-perspective, the decision to sign Joe, barring injury, should prove to be a plus for the Angels pitching staff. View the full article

By Ellen Bell - AngelsWin.com Staff Writer I've got this Spring Training thing down. Where to stay....where to sit at the game...where to wait for autographs...the basics. But there is one aspect of the Spring Training experience that has eluded me all these years; where to eat. When it comes to finding a great dining experience near Tempe Diablo Stadium, I've struck out more times than Mo Vaughn. No matter how I try, I usually end up in the wrong place at the wrong time, ordering the wrong thing. Like the time when I the hotel concierge suggested that I take my ten year old son to a local sports bar and grill to watch some March Madness basketball. “It’s a great place,” he said. “Full of local color. You’ll love it.” I should have known what I was in for when we pulled up to the Monkey Pants Bar and Grill and read the sign out front that said, “We've Got Crabs.” I will never forget that dinner. Neither will Tyler. But It hasn't all been scary food and sketchy sports bars. I have a few favorites that I can recommend. Riazzi’s Italian Garden http://riazzis.com 2700 S. Mill Ave Tempe, AZ 85282 A classic Italian spot that is rumored to be a favorite of the Angels Manager. I didn't see Mike Scioscia when I was there, but a group of umpires were in the booth next to me getting their daily carb load. Get the veal. Rustler’s Rooste http://www.rustlersrooste.com 8383 S. 48th St. Phoenix, AZ 85044 A beer,a brew and a view. What more could you want after a long afternoon of baseball? How about live country music every night or an indoor slide that leads into the dining room for the kids? Rustler’s Rooste is a hop, skip and a cow pie toss from Tempe Diablo Stadium, and the great kids menu makes this a good option for families. Monti’s La Casa Vieja http://www.montis.com 100 S. Mill Tempe, AZ 85281 This classic steakhouse is perfect for those who like to mix dinner with local history. Located inside an old adobe hacienda, Monti’s has been a Tempe staple for over a century. Steak. Loaded Baked Potato. Don’t bother me. I’m eating. I’m also a fan of the old favorites like Don and Charlie’s and The Pink Pony in Scottsdale. Even with these great options, I’m still searching for the perfect place that will hit it out of the gastronomical ballpark. Something with great food, fun atmosphere and a price point somewhere in between Ruth Chris Steakhouse and Whattaburger. So I throw it out to you, AngelsWin.com.. What’s your favorite Spring Training restaurant? View the full article

Sabermetrics! The new lens with which many view the game of baseball! So ummm … what is it? What are all these new stats and measurements that GMs and commentators are using to evaluate the players we love (and hate)? Does it sometimes seem like you need to be a rocket scientist to figure this stuff out? Well, it feels that way to us too sometimes. So we decided to bring in Robert Cunningham, AngelsWin.com member and real life rocket scientist, to help us make sense of this stuff. Join host Geoff Stoddart and AngelsWin.com founder Chuck Richter as they talk with Robert about how pitching stats like WHIP, FIP and xFIP apply to the the Angels staff. Do the changes that Jerry Dipoto made to our starting rotation during the offseason make sense? Is the marine layer actually going to be our friend this year? Listen to internet radio with AngelsWin on Blog Talk Radio View the full article