Angels need offense for second-half AL West race

Baseball Betting Lines

07/15/2010 -

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) -After Torii Hunter spent the past 48 hours shaking hands, hosting parties and generally serving as the Angels' unofficial host of the All-Star game, the Los Angeles outfielder was more than ready to get back to his day job.

``I had about 30 family members here, and they don't believe in sleep,'' Hunter said. ``I was up at 7 in the morning every day. I thought this was the All-Star break, man.''

While the All-Star festivities were a big success, the Angels' quest for a fourth straight AL West title could be in trouble if Hunter and his teammates don't get it going soon. The Angels, who open the second half at home with a four-game series against Seattle, lost six of seven leading into the break, getting outscored 44-14 on a trip to Chicago and Oakland.

``Hopefully guys weren't even watching the game,'' Hunter said Tuesday night after going 0 for 2 at Angel Stadium. ``Hopefully they were just relaxing on the beach, taking a step back from the game, and getting ready to come back.''

Los Angeles entered the break at 47-44, trailing first-place Texas by 4 1/2 games in the AL West. The deficit would have been even worse if the Rangers hadn't lost four straight to lowly Baltimore before the break.

Hunter is the Angels' clubhouse leader, but he also has been the most potent offensive force in a lineup that could use a little more pop - either through improved efforts or a trade.

After Los Angeles led the majors in multiple offensive categories for long stretches of last season, the bats aren't helping out a solid starting rotation. The Angels fielded a lineup with nine .300 hitters in August last season, but nobody on their current roster is hitting .300.

``We have to all come together,'' said Hunter, batting .298 with 15 homers and 62 RBIs. ``Some guys need to step up. I need to step up. We can make it happen. Every team has that dry spell. We had it in the last week, but we can get back.''

The Angels have won five of the past six division titles, but this season hasn't seemed terribly promising for a lineup that still hasn't recovered from the offseason departure of leadoff hitter Chone Figgins and slugger Vladimir Guerrero.

So far, the Angels' season has been most memorable for two reasons: The All-Star game, and one of the wackiest serious injuries in baseball history.

Kendry Morales, the Angels' slugging Cuban first baseman, was lost for the year when he broke his leg jumping on home plate after a game-ending grand slam against Seattle on May 29.

The injury will go down in sports infamy, but it isn't making the Angels laugh just yet.

``The break came at a good time,'' said ace Jered Weaver, who made his first All-Star game but wasn't allowed to pitch because he had been on the mound last Sunday in Oakland. ``The injury to Kendry hurt us from a lot of standpoints. A lot of guys are playing more than they normally would have, so hopefully the break gave everybody a chance to get recharged.''

Catcher Mike Napoli has filled in capably at first base for Morales, producing 14 homers and 37 RBIs. Others haven't been so sharp: Veteran slugger Bobby Abreu is batting just .257 with 10 homers and 47 RBIs, while Hideki Matsui has been mostly unimpressive in his first season on the West Coast. The reigning World Series MVP is batting just .252 with mediocre power numbers as the replacement for Guerrero, who rebounded to make the AL All-Star team with Texas.

Manager Mike Scioscia knows the Angels likely need reinforcements on offense to keep up with the Rangers, who dramatically improved their pitching by acquiring Cliff Lee from Seattle. Yet Los Angeles has never been a team to loot its farm system for a desperate postseason run, and general manager Tony Reagins seems unlikely to change that philosophy.

``Our lineup needs to get deeper,'' Scioscia said. ``If there's someone out there who can make us deeper, Tony is going to act on it. The offensive end obviously has been a concern.''

Scioscia credits his starting pitching for the Angels' ability to ``hold our heads above water.'' Indeed, all five starters in his solid rotation have won at least six games, with Weaver (8-5, 3.20 ERA), newcomer Joel Pineiro (9-6, 3.95) and Ervin Santana (8-7, 3.76) all posting strong numbers.

``We can get it together,'' Hunter said. ``It's still July. This team knows what time it is.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

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Chiefs' Treen Green out for Sunday's game

How long Trent Green will remain sidelined is unknown. Coach Herm Edwards said Monday he will miss a second straight start Sunday when the Chiefs host the San Francisco 49ers.

A two-time Pro Bowler, Green was going into a feet-first hook slide when he was knocked unconscious by a thunderous, head-snapping hit from Cincinnati's Robert Geathers.

Oddsmakers at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com currently have the Chiefs listed as 7-point favorites versus the 49ers.

The 49ers got beat by Philadelphia 38-24 as a 6.5-point underdog last week. The combined score went OVER the posted over/under total (42.5).

Alex Smith completed 27-of-46 passes for 293 yards with a touchdown. Michael Robinson rushed for 29 yards and a pair of touchdowns on five carries.

The Chiefs lost 9-6 to Denver last week as an 11-point underdog. The combined score was well UNDER the posted over/under total (38).

Larry Johnson rushed for 126 yards on 27 carries. Damon Huard completed 17-of-23 passes for 133 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions.

To visit this online sports book got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.

Big East Conference odds

Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence

Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.

Work left to do:

Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.

Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.

DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...

West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.

Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.

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