Looking for a good Angels vs. Dodgers primer?

The Angels are clearly the better team right now, or even in the past 10 years. More championships, more playoff wins, more World Series wins, what else do you want to compare them on?

But they still play in Anaheim, a place that's hard to get to because of traffic, and rather sterile once you do get there. Dodger Stadium is no picnic of a drive, but it's a whole lot closer and doesn't take an hour to get home from at the end of the night.

We're off to the big A on Sunday for the interleague finale. With luck, the team in blue will rise to this occasion.

Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports ran a great look at the LA area team's young first basemen, Loney and Kotchman.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_ylt=ArATHQ5i1Qf85b
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hoo&type=lgns

Definately worth a read. Interesting to note the two used to split time in the Arizona fall league.

Granted i live in upstate NY, but i still don't consider the Angels an "LA" team.

Go Blue!

It must be hard for the angels to play knowing that they are the far superior team.

I mean, they are so good Repko should be playing for them... or at least Tiffee.

Matt Kemp better than Vladimir Guerrero???

That's like saying Derek Anderson is better than Tom Brady. Kemp's a nice kid who has yet to see 500 at bats while Vladimir is one of only two or three players in all of MLB history to hit .300 25+ HRs and 100 RBIs ten years straight.

Laugher.

Being loyal to your team is fine, but c'mon. The Angles are superior to the Dodgers at every phase of the game.

That's right AT EVERY PHASE OF THE GAME.

Start with the obvious pitching. The Dodgers have only one bona fide starting pitcher under 30 in Billingsley. The Angels have five. Sauders, Santana and Weaver all came out of their farm system, are all 25 and under and the other side of every single trade proposal the Angels turned down for a power hitter in each of the last three seasons. Lackey and Garland in their late twenties make this staff, arguably the best in all of baseball. If they get Esky back this year, that makes them that much better.

Lowe, Loaiza and Kuroda are alll over thirty and showing it. Penny is looking older and older every start. Lowe, Loaiza and Park are all free agents after this year and probably all goners.

Advantage Angels.

Bullpen; is there any one-two punch you'd rather have than Shields and Franky coming out of the pen? Maybe Joba and Rivera, or Okajima and Papelbon but the Angels can hold their own with the Yankees and Red Sox. Saito's almost forty too and Broxton is a meathead. If the Dodgers keep getting only five innings out of their starters, their bullpen is going to be taxed come July and August. Didn't we see this last year?

Advantage Angels.

Defense; The Angels once again are atop the MLB in fielding percentage. The Dodgers are not. The Angels have four outfielders. The Dodgers barely have two. Mike Scioscia is a whiz at getting guys to play in different spots and to get contributions from his bench. Game in and game out.

Offense; The Angels are currently second in the AL in HRs so I guess they've figured out the power gap. Vladimir has yet to get hot but June is still ahead of him. Tori Hunter has been worth every penny they paid him so far. Kotchman and Napoli have hit six and eight HR's from the 6 and 9 spot. How's Andrew Jones worked out so far for the Dodgers? Jeff Kent is showing his age. He too is in the last year of his contract (I'm detecting a theme with many of the Dodgers and their long-term status with the team). Unless Rafael Furcal, their lone bright spot is batting leadoff and unless Jeff Kent swings at a good pitch, the Dodgers offense is just as inept and leaves just as many runners in scoring position as last year. What good is .OBP if you don't cross home plate?

And I won't even mention how the Angels, again lead the league in aggressiveness on the basepaths, be it stolen bases, going first to third and forcing opposing defenses to have to make defensive plays in order to get outs. More often than not it leads to errors, which leads to runs. Jusk ask the Dodgers catcher who can't even throw the ball back to the pitcher tonight what speed does for you.

Advantage Angels

Manager; If we're comparing Scioscia's Angels to Torre's Yankees, that's a split decision. Torre has four rings to Scioscia's one but the one team that had a winning record against Torre and the Yanks was the Angels. Who was the first AL team to knock the Yankees around in the playoffs, the Angels in 2002. Who won both of their five game playoff series in both 02' and 05', Scioscia's Angels. How many playoff series have the Dodgers won in twenty years. Zero. Torre is no doubt an upgrade over Grady Little, but he still has the same mediocre players. By the time the Dodgers finally absorb his wisdom, his three year deal will be up and the Dodgers, again, looking for a new manager. Their fourth in less than ten years. My hunch is that Mike Scioscia will still be running the Angels in 2011.

Advantage Angels.

Ownership; HaHaHa. Go ahead and complain all you want about the Los Angeles Angels, it simply means you have an insecurity complex about who the better team is, and will continue to be in SoCal for the foreseeable future. The Angels have appreciated in franchise value over the last five years more than any other team in baseball, they sport the fourth highest payroll, they don't charge you fifteen bucks to park your car and you won't spend two innings waiting in line to buy a hot dog and beer. Nor will it cost you ten dollars for Bud Lite. Arte Moreno doesn't have to take the names of his players off the backs of their jerseys only to put them back on two years later. Arte Moreno doesn't keep young kids away from the field level railing so they can catch a glimpse, a smile and maybe an autograph from the players the way the McCourts do for fans who show up late and leave early. Arte Moreno doesn't have to hire and fire general managers and field managers every other season. Arte Moreno doesn't take his team on a field trip to China right in the middle of spring training when young players and a new manager need all the time they can together to prepare for a 162 game season. Arte Moreno doesn't have his front office executives call up post-game talk show hosts to scold them because they are objective and not toeing the company line. Arte Moreno doesn't have to go to his arch rivals to find a fill-in general manager, he promotes from within. I could go on and on. And on.

But I think it obvious.

There's a reason the Angels have outgrown their small to medium market mentality to be a perennial contender with the likes of the Yankees and Red Sox and now the Indians, Tigers and Mariners. There is a reason the Angels are one of the most sought after teams by free agents looking for a new club to play for. There is a reason the Dodgers have a bunch of (too many) young kids and aging veterans without a single franchise player. Watch the newest commercials for the Dodgers on KCAL. They still parade Tommy Lasorda in his home uniform out as a gate attraction. The Angels have Vladimir Guerrero. How many Andrew Jones #25 jerseys have the Dodgers sold so far this year?

Like I said above, the Angels are superior to the Dodgers in every phase of the game. They are a better team. They are a better organization. They have become the better franchise. It didn't use to be that way, but the Patriots and Spurs aren't NFL and NBA royalty either and I'd say things have turned out well for them. It's not what you were or what you did it's what you continue to do and the Dodgers, beginning with their owner continue to make poor decisions. The Angels don't.

The results speak for themselves.

Los Angeles is the City of Angels after all.

Thinking red instead.
~cmh

My best team of MLB is The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim . This why I always fallow their games especially whenever I have some time. I’m always trying not o miss any of their game and hear about the team’s news. But The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim tickets get more pricy especially when there are some hot games. But, if we’re really good fans we should try not to be mean when we’re talking about a favourite teams. It’s not only the Angels tickets that got pricy, but there are other major teams too, so the team needs our support and we should provide as much as we can.

dodgers havent won a world series like in 20 years or more , they reminnd me of the chicago cubs lmao..... but angels last team to bring a world series to california peoples!!! if your right with your self your blood should b red lol and dodnt think blue think red!! LAA