Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Be Cool
Everybody take a deep breath, consult your calendars and, please, calm the f_ck down.
This current Angels-A's series in Anaheim is obviously a big one with first-place on the line, but let's not get ahead of ourselves and dramatize it into being the make-or-break, be-all-end-all series that will decide the ultimate fate of all mankind. The Angels lost a heartbreaker last night thanks to their slumping offense, it's true. But even if that slump continues and the Halos lose the next two to give Oakland the series sweep, it's still only going to be a 4-game deficit.
Four games out of first. Twenty-nine still to play. Four in the final week at Oakland. With a team as talented as the Angels are, somebody's gonna tell me that situation is hopeless? Please.
Here's what the San Francisco Chronicle's Ray Ratto had to say in his column, special to espn.com:
A week ago, they all knew the race was over. They were 3½ games ahead of the A's, heading into Tampa Bay, baseball's Doctor Feelgood...And now they know the race is over, again. The A's are two games in front, a 5½-game swing in six days, and there is nothing quite like a late-season slump to make you wish you had a football team.
The "they" he refers to are the Angel fans he observed last night in Anaheim. I sure hope his assessment is based on actual fan interaction and not simply his view from the pressbox. I don't know any Angel fans that thought this race was over heading into the Tampa Bay series and I sure as hell don't know any that think it's over now. Plenty are panicking, sure, but calling this race over because the team is 2 games back in August? In the words of my buddy Mike Burns...Dude. Seriously?
These next two games are, in a word, Large. If the Angels can stop the hemorraging and beat Oakland twice in a row, then all will be squared in the standings and both teams can begin their September sprint to the finish. But even if they lose the next two, why should we assume the Angels will roll over and die?
This is a very resilient team. Can they boast of going from fifteen games under .500 to fifteen games over? No, of course not. They played well enough in the first half to not need to do that. But just because they haven't haven't had a Cerano-led season a la the Indians of Major League, don't tell me the Angels are going to psychologically concede the season with a month to play. Don't tell me they don't have the character to pick themselves up out of the dirt and get back to playing great baseball. Don't tell me that despite being in a horrific slump (.220 avg, 1 RBI in last 14 games) that the reigning American League Most Valuable Player can't take this offense on his back and give them a personal piggyback ride into the postseason. And whatever you do, do NOT tell me they don't have enough time. If you're gonna tell me that, then, to quote Dave Moss, you've got the memory of a f_ckin' fly.
Anybody remember this date? As late as September 24th of last year, the Angels trailed the fun-loving, free-wheeling A's by a full 3 games. Anybody else remember how that turned out?
For a team dubbed the Angels, there sure isn't much faith in them these days.
I'll be rooting for the Angels to win these next two games more than anyone. But even if they drop two more seemingly back-breaking losses, don't look for me to be reallocating my Angels Playoff Ticket Fund. Just to add a little more drama to the race (as if it needed any), Joe and I have made a little bet. If the Angels do indeed get swept in this series and continue their downward spiral through September, I will be washing his car. If the Angels make it interesting and finish within 2 games of the do-no-wrong A's, he'll be washing mine. If the Angels repeat history and finish atop the division once again, I'll be getting a wax job out of the deal to boot.
C'mon Vlad. Let's go, Halos. Pappa needs a fresh coat of Turtle!
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This current Angels-A's series in Anaheim is obviously a big one with first-place on the line, but let's not get ahead of ourselves and dramatize it into being the make-or-break, be-all-end-all series that will decide the ultimate fate of all mankind. The Angels lost a heartbreaker last night thanks to their slumping offense, it's true. But even if that slump continues and the Halos lose the next two to give Oakland the series sweep, it's still only going to be a 4-game deficit.
Four games out of first. Twenty-nine still to play. Four in the final week at Oakland. With a team as talented as the Angels are, somebody's gonna tell me that situation is hopeless? Please.
Here's what the San Francisco Chronicle's Ray Ratto had to say in his column, special to espn.com:
A week ago, they all knew the race was over. They were 3½ games ahead of the A's, heading into Tampa Bay, baseball's Doctor Feelgood...And now they know the race is over, again. The A's are two games in front, a 5½-game swing in six days, and there is nothing quite like a late-season slump to make you wish you had a football team.
The "they" he refers to are the Angel fans he observed last night in Anaheim. I sure hope his assessment is based on actual fan interaction and not simply his view from the pressbox. I don't know any Angel fans that thought this race was over heading into the Tampa Bay series and I sure as hell don't know any that think it's over now. Plenty are panicking, sure, but calling this race over because the team is 2 games back in August? In the words of my buddy Mike Burns...Dude. Seriously?
These next two games are, in a word, Large. If the Angels can stop the hemorraging and beat Oakland twice in a row, then all will be squared in the standings and both teams can begin their September sprint to the finish. But even if they lose the next two, why should we assume the Angels will roll over and die?
This is a very resilient team. Can they boast of going from fifteen games under .500 to fifteen games over? No, of course not. They played well enough in the first half to not need to do that. But just because they haven't haven't had a Cerano-led season a la the Indians of Major League, don't tell me the Angels are going to psychologically concede the season with a month to play. Don't tell me they don't have the character to pick themselves up out of the dirt and get back to playing great baseball. Don't tell me that despite being in a horrific slump (.220 avg, 1 RBI in last 14 games) that the reigning American League Most Valuable Player can't take this offense on his back and give them a personal piggyback ride into the postseason. And whatever you do, do NOT tell me they don't have enough time. If you're gonna tell me that, then, to quote Dave Moss, you've got the memory of a f_ckin' fly.
Anybody remember this date? As late as September 24th of last year, the Angels trailed the fun-loving, free-wheeling A's by a full 3 games. Anybody else remember how that turned out?
For a team dubbed the Angels, there sure isn't much faith in them these days.
I'll be rooting for the Angels to win these next two games more than anyone. But even if they drop two more seemingly back-breaking losses, don't look for me to be reallocating my Angels Playoff Ticket Fund. Just to add a little more drama to the race (as if it needed any), Joe and I have made a little bet. If the Angels do indeed get swept in this series and continue their downward spiral through September, I will be washing his car. If the Angels make it interesting and finish within 2 games of the do-no-wrong A's, he'll be washing mine. If the Angels repeat history and finish atop the division once again, I'll be getting a wax job out of the deal to boot.
C'mon Vlad. Let's go, Halos. Pappa needs a fresh coat of Turtle!
# posted by j.h.k. @ 2:32 PM 
