I hate the Red Sox

And everything they stand for. I am incredibly happy the Angels swept them this weekend, but we still got treated to this article by Dan Shaughnessy, a Sox beat writer. Here's a snippet:

But I can't rid myself of the images in my head. I see Manny's' majestic walkoff home run over the Coke bottles against K-Rod. I see Schilling baffling the Halos on sheer smarts and location. I see David Ortiz hitting a walkoff ALDS winner in '04. I see Chone Figgins - the Swiss Army knife of baseball players - struggling mightily in playoff games at Fenway.

Bleh. I can't rid myself of the image of smug Boston fans in pink hats and Schilling throwback jerseys all jumping on the back of a wagon...and that wagon rolling off a cliff.

If you're looking for a reason why the Angels haven't beaten the Sox in the playoffs, it's because they haven't hit. Vlad and Garret were both injured last season (Garret had that weird eye injury). Matthews was playing every day. And it seemed like every single one of their players went into a slump at the same time.

Maybe the pressure really does get to them. I'm especially hoping that Vlad can finally have a good playoff series to show that he doesn't disappear in the playoffs. On the other hand, it's a 5-game series, which is a really small sample size. Anything can happen. So let's not chalk this all up to "the Red Sox just know how to win in the postseason and the Angels don't." I do think the Angels could stand to get some more hitting for a playoff run, but let's review:

Vlad is starting to hit better, and has started to crush some balls, which is a good sign. He's also not going to be tired or hurt from doing a home run derby. Hunter is a good upgrade in the lineup over Matthews Jr. Howie Kendrick is a stud and now has playoff experience.

This team should start to hit a little better. And their pitching is just as good, if not better, than last year. Yeah, the Red Sox are scary. With Ortiz in the lineup, I think they're probably the best team in baseball. But if the Angels hit like they normally hit, they could take a series from Boston, even if every win was by one or two runs.

I hope the Angels beat the Red Sox in the playoffs to end this stuff.

Closers. What are they good for?

Absolutely nuthin'! Well, that's not technically true - they often pitch high leveraged innings and strike out a lot of guys. So there's that.

I bring this up because of the situation with K-Rod on the Angels. He's already stated that he's going to test free agency. There has apparently been some sort of attempt on the Angels part to sign him to an extension, but it sounds like they were nowhere close to a deal. So how much will K-Rod command on the open market, and is it a good idea for the Angels to let him walk without trying to make a large offer?

A lot and yes.

Whew, glad we got that out of the way. Onto other things...Just kidding. Let me explain. No, there is too much. Let me sum up.

I think this all stems from whether or not you think there is something to the whole "closer mentality" thing. I try to bridge the gap between the stat guys and the old school guys, meaning: I think that there is a TON of merit in using stats to evaluate players rather than judging guys based on intangibles. But I do think that intangibles mean something: I like watching scrappy guys like Erstad and Eckstein, I think a guy's clubhouse presence is somewhat important, stuff like that. So I like stats, but it's comments like the last one that keep me from being accepted into the kingdom of stat guys.

All that to say, I do think there's something to the closer mentality. I don't think Scot Shields would do all that well as a full time closer. When he's on, he's just as good as K-Rod, but K-Rod has that attitude, that flair that lets him get through the 9th. I think that's why the "closer by committee" plan has failed in the past for some teams. A certain amount of cockiness is an asset when you're going out there to close a ballgame. But if you don't know whether or not it's going to be you, it's hard to develop that attitude. But is the "closer mentality" really worth $5 - 10 million per year? I find that really hard to believe.

The bottom line is that I just think K-Rod is going to be too expensive. $14 million for a guy who'll pitch maybe 65 - 70 innings is too much for a team that desperately needs to spend some more money on hitting. (I mean good hitting, not Gary Matthews Jr. hitting, if you can even call it that) Another point is that he is definitely slipping. This may be a one season thing, but his control is worse than it's ever been and he's lost 3 MPH on his fastball over the last two years or so. You always worry about some kind of tear in his shoulder with that violent pitching motion.

Lastly, I think Arredondo could step into the role. I could foresee the Angels signing a proven free agent closer for one season to really mentor this kid, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Arredondo in that role next year already. He's got great stuff, he closed in the minors, he seems to have some of that attitude (not nearly as much as Frankie, but that's tough to match); I would say his only issue is controlling his pitches. If he can improve that even a little bit, sign him up!

Actually, I don't care about any of that stuff. My buddy did some interviews of the Angels and said Frankie's a giant d-bag, so that sold me. Let him walk, I say! Wow, not so much summing up on that, but oh well. It's my blog and I can cry if I want to.