We do know who will be on first for today's opener against Texas, it'll be Mark Teixeira obviously. The question is, who's on third? And who's on second? And who's at short? 3b Chone Figgins didn't play yesterday because of a sore toe. 2b Howie Kendrick left the game with a hamstring injury, as did SS Erick Aybar a few innings later. If these three guys are day to day and can't play today, what do the Angels do? Send down a pitcher and call up Brandon Wood to play SS?

Juan Rivera played 2b in the 9th inning yesterday, I guess because he's taken infield practice at 1b, a move that luckily worked because he didn't have to field the ball or turn a double play. Which might have been interesting to watch!

The Angels can't win the World Series with a AAA infield. S-Rod, Wood and Brown can handle the defense but none of the three hit worth beans earlier in the year, and while one weak bat can be somewhat hidden and compensated for in a lineup, three weak bats can't.

They should have had Reggie Willits taking some infield practice earlier this year when they were trying to cope with all the injuries. At least he can get on base and be a substitute leadoff guy if Figgy is unavailable. Last night's substitute leadoff guy went 0 for 5, and if you guessed that was Gary Matthews you guessed right. If Gary's game-winning hit the other night earned him some more playing time, his 0-fer last night earned him a seat right back on the bench.   

The Angels haven't won any of their last four series, splitting two games with Seattle, losing to Cleveland and Tampa 2-1, and splitting with the Twins 2-2. After last night's loss to the A's they need to win the last two games or it'll be five straight series without a series win.

A couple weeks ago this team looked unbeatable, now they don't look like they could win a playoff. What's the difference? Like I said in the last column, Mighty Maicer. They're now 4-7 and counting since losing him for the year.

Still no more victories for Angel starters, holding at 5 wins this month with only six games to go. We've got wins on the:

17th - Lackey

12th - Garland

8th - Weaver

6th - Santana

1st - Santana

Which translates into only one Angel victory by a starter in the past two weeks.

New Base-running Strategy Dept: Every time you're caught in a rundown, just stick your arm out and fall down. Umpire David Eddings made up this new rule the other day when AJ Pierzynski did just that when caught between 2nd and 3rd, and was ruled safe. Way to go AJ, I still don't understand why you're not running to first base every time you strike out. 

On Star Trek, whenever Captain Kirk beamed down to a planet and somebody got killed, it was always one of the guys wearing the red shirts. How does this relate to the Angels? It doesn't. Just thought I'd mention it since the Angels also have red shirts they use on occasion.

Earlier this year during one of their many offensive funks, the Angels switched to the red jerseys for a few games and won them all, initiated by Joe Saunders on one of his starts. Having a tough time on the road in Cleveland and Tampa the past week, the Angels switched to the red jerseys for the final game of the trip and eked out a 5-4 win. So after a dismal offensive outing wearing the normal white jerseys in the first game at home against the Twins, they switched back to the red shirts and had an even more dismal game. If the red shirts won't work, maybe they should try the white sleeveless jerseys. Although I don't think they've won a game this year using those shirts. Worth a try though!

The Angels look tired after the grueling series with Tampa, probably why Torii Hunter was at DH last night and a good move as far as resting a tired player who banged the wall a couple times recently, but not a good move as far as helping out a once-again-struggling offense. Now if Willits had been able to play center instead of Matthews...

2-6 without Mighty Maicer, not a very good omen for playoff time. Willits is coming back tomorrow though, they need to get him in the lineup somehow. Maybe it's time to move Kendrick into the 2 hole. Permanently. Although he's been struggling lately too...

When was the last time an Angel starter got a win? Seems like forever, be right back after a bit of research.... oops, Lackey got his 10th win last Saturday. Prior to that... Garland got a win on the 12th, Weaver got a win on the 8th, Santana got wins on the 6th and 1st. That's 5 wins for the starters in the month of August. Not so hot. Saunders' last win was July 30th against the Red Sox.

Tonight I expect Vlad Guerrero to get a "night off" at DH, but hopefully Rivera will be in RF instead of Matthews...  

Frankie blows a save last night when he doesn't get a called third strike, then argues with the umpire as he's leaving the mound and gets tossed. Next time he pitches with the same ump behind the plate (Jerry Davis I think it was) I wonder if he'll get the benefit of any borderline calls? Not Likely! Way to go, K-rod, if this ump is behind the plate in game 7 of the World Series and you come in to save a 1-run game, don't expect any favors.

The Halos finally lost a game that Gary Matthews didn't start, the last time that happened was July 11th. They're now 18-6 after the all-star break, 15-1 w/o Matthews and 3-5 with. Hurry up and get back from the DL, Reggie Willits. Maybe Matthews should go on the DL for a rest after Reggie comes back, it looked like his knee was really bothering him the last time he ran the bases and got thrown out at home. Kudos to Gary for not saying a word about his knee but after that play it seems fairly obvious that something's wrong.

Fearless Predictions For Next Year Dept: Teixeira signs with the Yankees. K-Rod signs with the Mets. Shields is the closer with Arredondo as setup guy. Shields will falter at some point and they'll switch roles. Juan Rivera will sign elsewhere (unfortunately), unless Matthews can be unloaded, in which case they'll offer Juan enough to get him to stay. Justin Speier won't be on the team. GA's option is picked up (possibly with an extension at a lower rate), Figgie is offered arbitration. Garland signs elsewhere for big bucks, for whoever needs a solid starter (just about everyone). Kendry Morales is the opening-day 1st-baseman.   

In the last Angels' game against the Red Sox (you know, that team that clobbers other teams in the playoffs who happen to have their entire starting outfield injured), they used an interesting camera angle that I'd never seen before. The camera was directly behind the pitcher's mound, and you could get a clearer view of balls and strikes than when the camera is shifted to the right as it usually is. Pitches from left handers and right handers suddenly looked exactly the same. That "sweeping curve" from the left handers we're always hearing about? Change the camera angle and it disappears, it's no different than a curveball from a righty.

The Angels are undefeated since the all-star game in games Gary Matthews hasn't started, going 11-0. They are 2-5 in games he has started, which includes the losses in three of their last four games (Juan Rivera started in the game they won). In fact one has to go all the way back to... hang on, I'm still looking... July 11th when they lost to the A's 9-2 just before the all-star game, to find the last time the Angels lost when Matthews wasn't in the lineup. Since that time they are 12-0 in games Matthews hasn't started, and 3-5 in games he has. I wonder if this should factor into who plays and who doesn't? I wonder... Is there a lack of confidence in Matthews' bat that causes the Angels' pitchers to give up when they see his name in the lineup? How many more comebackers and 0-for-5 games can we stand to see?

Manny on the Dodgers... I'm still not going to watch any of their games. Unless maybe when they play Atlanta, to check out how Casey Kotchman is doing.

It was refreshing to see FOX the other day discussing the Teixeira trade and what might happen if he doesn't sign with them for next year. Ken Rosenthal actually mentioned that they have Kendry Morales waiting in the wings. Which is somewhat amusing after hearing an ESPN guy saying the Angels are courting disaster with this deal. What does ESPN know? Nothing obviously.