Wednesday night Matt Palmer went the distance against Boston in the Halos 8-4 victory. After a rough first two innings Palmer settled down and struck out 8 Red Sox. Meanwhile the offense teed off on Tim Wakefield for seven runs. Torii Hunter and Mike Napoli homered again in the victory.
This afternoon Ervin Santana will make his season debut for the Angels after starting the season on the disabled list.
Bobby Abreu has been a productive member of the Angels offense, however he is still yet to hit his first home run of the season. The Angels aren't worried.
A couple of the reasons Brandon Wood is being kept at AAA Salt Lake, number one is Mike Scioscia sees Wood as a third baseman and not a short stop, thus Scioscia is not willing to move Erick Aybar or Macier Izturis out of the position. The other reason and a more valid one, is there is no reasonable replacement in the lead off spot if Chone Figgins is not in the lineup.
However, currently Abreu has a higher on base percentage at .397 (Figgins is at .345), has more walks than strikeouts and is also 13-0 in stolen base attempts is more than a reasonable replacement for Figgins if not an upgrade. .
With the Angels 26th out of 30 MLB clubs in homers, Brandon Wood destroying AAA pitching, Figgins in his walk year and the bullpen struggling it's something to think about, especially when Vladimir Guerrero returns.
Roster notes -
To make room for Santana, the Angels optioned Rafael Rodriguez to AAA Salt Lake.
With Matt Palmer sporting a 4-0 record with a 3.06 era and 0.97 whip he has secured a rotation spot. Shane Loux will be shifted to the bullpen to accommodate the return of John Lackey on Saturday.
Rudy Seanez has also been signed to a minor league contract.
The Angels close out the home stand against Boston at 12:35 pm
TV - Fox Sports West
Radio KLAA AM830, KFWB & KWKW 1130
Ervin Santana (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. Brad Penny (3-1, 6.90 ERA)
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