Los Angeles Angels: Why They Lost Their Opening Series at Home

Too little hitting and no effective starting pitching from Dan Haren and Ervin Santana led to a loss of the season's opening series against the Kansas City Royals, a team that looked like a pushover on paper. But as fans know, no games are ever won on paper.

Haren and Santana looked as bad as they looked good in spring training. Neither could keep the ball in the strike zone, and when they did, their pitches seem to hang over the center of the plate in every hitter’s power zone. Four home runs by the Royals in a series on the road is more than Ned Yost, their manager, expected against a staff with the reputation and expectations of the Angels.

Surprisingly, the Angels’ relievers looked better than their starters. If the starting pitching continues the way it did opening weekend, they will need to.

A frustrated and unhappy Mark Trumbo committed his third error in two games, now on pace to break the century mark for errors this season. He looks slow turning to his left and even slower charging bunts. His throws have been erratic, and by his own description, it is an adventure. Mike Scioscia ’s dream of Trumbo becoming a hard-hitting third baseman is looking more and more like a disaster every day.

But the real problem is in left field, where Vernon Wells, who is already hearing the boo birds, went 1-for-11, stranding scores of Angels on base before hitting a home run with no one on. Ironic and frustrating for fans.

In the third game of the series, Wells swung at three awful pitches high up in the strike zone after watching the Royals’ starter walk players before him. You would think that patience would be the best strategy against a wild pitcher throwing a succession of walks. But Wells will never be accused of being a patient hitter. Nor will he ever be known for taking balls.

Twice Wells struck out to end an inning on out-of-the-strike-zone pitches with runners on base. Despite the home run, Wells is hitting .153 for the year and is on a pace to make Angels fans erase memories of Wells’ poor 2011 season with a 2012 that is even worse. His home run is just a tease and is an excuse for Scioscia to keep playing Wells while denying the obvious.

If the Angels are willing to live with two poor-hitting left fielders in Bobby Abreu and Wells, then why not just play either Mike Trout or Alexi Amarista and at least have speed in the outfield and on base. Scioscia is repeating his history of staying with older, high-salaried ballplayers too long.

And if Scioscia is sincerely looking for a place for Trumbo to play, then converting him to left field makes more sense and requires far less transition time. He is no slower than Wells, yet he has a stronger arm. And he can hit for power and average far better than Wells can.

While Kendrys Morales had a terrific series hitting from the left side, he was equally awful from the right side, still looking for his first hit right-handed. In many cases, he struggled swing at pitches across the middle of the plate that he would hit out of the park left-handed. The way Morales hits left-handed, it should not matter who is pitching to him or from which side of the mound the pitch comes from.

Perhaps it’s time for Scioscia to let Morales hit left-handed against left-handed pitchers. And Morales must either resign himself to hitting left-handed pitching from the left side or sit down against left-handed pitching and Scioscia must let Trumbo hit DH.

A rotation of Trumbo playing left field, DH and a few games at first to rest Pujols, coupled with Morales only hitting against right-handers, may make a good rotation until the team feels it’s time for Mike Trout to play left.

The Angels outhit the Royals 11-10 on Sunday, but they left 12 runners on base in a 7-3 loss. The Royals hit 4-for-11 with runners in scoring position, while the Angels went 0-for-14. The Angels left men on base in every inning except the fourth. Too little plate discipline and too many swings at bad pitches.

It seemed like the Angels’ hitters were swinging at bad pitches while letting good pitches go by them for strikes.

Morales, Wells, Hunter and Bourjos combined for 11 strikeouts, many with runners in scoring position.

In the end, the Royals looked like the much-anticipated 2012 Angels, and the 2012 Angels looked like the forgettable 2011 Kansas City Royals. Hopefully, this is not a trend.