Anaheim is not Los Angeles. Why Mike Scioscia Should Stick to In-n-Out Burgers

Face it. The Red Hot Chili Peppers are the face of Los Angeles.  Seeing them perform at the Greek is seeing a Los Angeles band in harmony with their city.

The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, on the other hand, are not an L.A. team.  They never were and never will be. The Angels are not in harmony with the City of Los Angeles.

The team from Anaheim, with a capped payroll of $125 million is certainly the favorite to win the West, but so was Hillary the favorite to sail into the Oval Office. How many times have we gone to the races and bet the chalk, and then wound up ripping up those tickets?

Face the facts. Most major league teams average between 5 to 5.5 runs per game. Teams are so close in their rankings; a misstep by management in the batting order often causes the runs per game to drop. For instance, placing Gary Matthews in the number two hole with his broken down body, just because the team paid him a ton of cash is typical of the Angels management style. Overall, it is Mike Napoli with the better OPS and a better fit for the number two hole.

If you've been a season ticket holder of the Angels, you've undoubtedly seen Scioscia leave a pitcher in the game for one batter too many too many times. If a fan sitting in the stands sees the pitcher out of gas after 5 1/3, then why can't Scioscia see it? If baseball is a business, then why is that pitcher getting clobbered and can't make it to two outs in the sixth?

We have witnessed an injury riddled Angels team. We can expect Escobar, Figgins, Matthews, Weaver, Speier, Vlad, Anderson, Howie and numerous other players will join the injured list and disturb the rhythm of the team. These are great athletes.

The season however, is a steeplechase and not a sprint.  We've seen the effects of the race on key elements of the Angels during the latter half of the year, specifically Scot Shields. He's signed the four-year deal even though his new family life clearly had a huge effect on his performance. Shields has a lot to prove.

Frankie is not J.J. Putz. When Frankie comes in, the crowd holds their breath during the second half of the season. Also, a player with a grudge against the team is like a cancer.

So the Angels will not win the West. Too many negatives. Players must accept their roles. Can Willits, Morales, Vlad, Anderson, Rivera, Saunders, to name a few, accept their new roles on the team? Will this constant unknown of who's on first work? Time will tell.