| Shane Cobb. 6th October, 2005 - 1:29 am
 The Angels best ball definitely came when it was needed the most. Winning 14 of their last 16 games, the Angels locked up a playoff appearance as they clinched the AL West title for a second straight year. This season can easily be described using just three words: Pitching and Defense.
With their offense performing inconsistently all year long, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim needed their pitching and defense to step up, and it sure did. In fact, the Angels were the only team in the AL with 3 pitchers in the top 10 in ERA. Jarrod Washburn led the team with a 3.23 ERA, followed by John Lackey?s 3.44 ERA and Bartolo Colon?s 3.48 ERA. Bartolo Colon submitted a season that would put him in contention for the AL Cy Young award. With his American League leading 21 wins, it looks as if his only competition is the Yankees closer, Mariano Rivera. Rivera has put up some great numbers such as 43 saves, 0.87 WHIP, and a 1.40 ERA. However, for a closer to win the Cy Young award, he has to put up Eric Gagne?s 2003 type numbers. Therefore, Colon?s wins can make a very strong case.
The Angels starting pitching was great with Colon as the catalyst. The team had five different pitchers in double digit wins. Bartolo Colon, John Lackey, Scot Shields, Paul Byrd, and rookie Ervin Santana were among those pitchers. The Angels relief pitching was also very reliable down the stretch. Kelvim Escobar?s coming off the DL certainly ignited the bullpen. Instead of putting Escobar in the starting rotation, the team went with Ervin Santana putting Kelvim in the middle relief spot. This move helped the whole team giving the players confidence when Escobar was brought in to the games. In his first full year as a closer, Francisco Rodriguez shared a league leading 45 saves with Indians closer Bob Wickman. Rodriguez replaced long time Angels closer Troy Percival.
Defense played a significant role in the team's success this season. They had several players play gold glove seasons. Darin Erstad was great all year only making 4 errors giving him a .997 Fielding Percentage. At second base they had Adam Kennedy who would win a gold glove this year, had it not been for Orlando Hudson. Kennedy made one more error then Erstad putting him at a .991 Fielding Percentage. The only player that seems to have the gold glove award on lock is Orlando Cabrera. His .988 Fielding Percentage ranks him first in the AL among shortstops.
While it seemed like a year of ups and down by the Angels offense, they did have some positives. Vladimir Guerrero came through with another good year, hitting .317 with 32 homeruns and 108 runs batted in. However, the Angels MVP was easily Chone Figgins. Figgins led the league with a career high 62 stolen bases. He is one of those players who aren?t great at one spot, but good at them all. He played numerous positions such as third base, second base, shortstop, and all three-outfield spots. Figgins remains a very underrated player who will only do better next year.
The Angels head into the postseason for the second straight year. Clinching home field, the Angels will face off againgst the New York Yankees in the ALDS. Last year the Angels got swept by a team that turned out to be the World Champions. The Halos are determined to not let that be the case this year. |
