Why the Los Angeles Angels Are Guaranteed to Be in the Postseason in 2012

It happens all the time.

Teams go out and ink a few star players to massive contracts expecting to put themselves over the top.

This past offseason, the Angels would become the latest professional sports organization to do just that when they signed the best player on the market in Albert Pujols and one of the best pitchers on the market in C.J. Wilson, adding to an already impressive squad.

The Angels, however, got off to one of the more disappointing starts in recent memory (and Albert Pujols in particular seemed to be feeling the pressure of his new $240 million contract).

Since starting 18-25 though, the Angels have rebounded to win eight straight, including their last two against the universally hated New York Yankees.

At 26-25, the Angels now sit just two games behind the Cleveland Indians for the final American League wild card spot.

With teams like Cleveland, New York and Toronto ahead of them, it is hard to imagine a scenario where the Angels don't wind up clinching one of the two wild card spots.

For starters, Albert Pujols finally looks like he's returned to form.

Since being benched on the fifth of May, Pujols has only been held hit-less four times and has hit .293 with eight home runs and an incredible 23 RBI.

With that middle-of-the-order presence now in the lineup, the Angels become a much tougher team to pitch against.

Then there's the young tandem of Mike Trout and Mark Trumbo, who have been excellent so far in 2012 for Los Angeles.

After being called up from Triple-A Salt Lake earlier this season, Mike Trout has been a force both at the plate and on defense.

In his first real stint with the Angels, Trout is hitting .304, with an OPS of .886, along with five home runs and eight stolen bases (he's only been caught trying to snag a base twice) through 115 at-bats, providing a real spark at the top of the rotation that the team desperately needed.

As for Trumbo, he is on pace to improve on his 2011 totals that nearly won him rookie-of-the-year honors (the young slugger finished second to Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Jeremy Hellickson).

Through 151 at-bats, Trumbo is batting .338 and has clobbered nine longballs, helping him post an OPS of an even 1.000.

Trumbo is also surprising some on the basepaths, as he's been successful in four of his five stolen base attempts.

While he needs to continue to improve defensively, Trumbo's bat has been instrumental in the Angels turning their season around.

Considering it will only be a matter of time before Torii Hunter and Howie Kendrick find their groove and Vernon Wells returns to the Angels everyday lineup, Los Angeles only stands to get even better from here on out offensively.

When it comes to pitching, no one has doubted the depth of the the Angels rotation.

Even with the recent injury to Jered Weaver (luckily for Angels fans it wasn't anything to do with his arm), the Angels still have top tier talent in C.J. Wilson and Dan Haren.

Those two, along with a surprise start to the year from Jerome Williams and an Ervin Santana who seems to have re-discovered his mojo (Santana is 2-1 with an ERA of 2.91 in his five starts this month), will allow the Angels to power through the loss of their ace for the next two to three weeks.

Already a game above .500, look for this resurgent Angels ball club to not only cruise into the postseason, but potentially challenge the mighty Texas Rangers for the AL West crown.

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