The Angels lack of consistent offense is a cause for concern (Image: Christopher Hanewinckel-US PRESSWIRE)

Previous Series

Angels @ Padres (W 7-2, L 2-3, L 2-3 (13))

The Angels kicked off their interleague schedule for 2012 with a trip to San Diego for a three game series. The Angels sent Jered Weaver to the mound in Game 1, who bounced back from his worst start of the year for another strong showing in an impressive 2012, so far. He pitched seven innings, giving up two runs on three hits while striking out four and walking three. He would also help his own cause with a hit, a walk, and a run scored. Mike Trout would lead the Angels offense with three hits, including an RBI triple, as the Angels cruised to an easy win.

For Game 2, Dan Haren looked to turn around his recent struggles where he’s seen his command, and his offensive support, disappear. He looked much sharper on the hill than in previous outings, going 6.2 innings, giving up three runs on six hits with five strikeouts and one walk, but couldn’t get enough help from his offense. Erick Aybar did his best with four hits, including an RBI triple in the second, but it was the former Angel Alexi Amarista who did all the damage in this game. Amarista, who the Angels traded to San Diego as part of a deal for reliever Ernesto Frieri, scored the first two Padres runs and knocked in the go-ahead run in the seventh to push the Padres past the Angels.

For the rubber match in the series, the Angels gave Ervin Santana the start to see if he could continue his modest winning streak he’s started, winning in his last two starts. He gave another consecutive strong performance, pitching 6.0 innings, surrendering two runs on six hits, striking out six and walking two. However, he would leave with the contest tied in what turned into a mini-marathon game where both teams emptied their benches trying to manufacture a run. The Angels would use 21 of the 25 players on the active roster, including Dan Haren as a pinch hitter in the 13th (he would strike out swinging). In the end, an error by Howie Kendrick, who was playing in left field due to injuries, allowed the Padres to score the winning run and resulted in the Angels dropping another series.

Athletics @ Giants (L 6-8, L 0-4, W 6-2)

The A’s began their interleague schedule with a three-game set against their rivals from across the bay. Jarrod Parker started Game 1 and bombed, failing to record an out in the third inning, surrendering six runs on four hits and walking four batters before getting lifted. His struggles put the A’s in a deep 6-1 hole after three innings, but Oakland’s offense would mount a rally. Josh Donaldson led the way for Oakland with a home run and a pair of doubles to set career bests with three hits and five RBI. In the end, their rally fell just short as they could not catch the Giants.

In Game 2, the A’s sent Tyson Ross to the hill who got himself into a pitcher’s duel with San Francisco’s Ryan Vogelsong. Ross would pitch six scoreless innings before the Giants broke through in the seventh, scoring all four of their runs during the frame. The A’s managed just a single hit on the night, a soft bloop single by Seth Smith in the fifth inning, but could not find any answers for Vogelsong or the Giants bullpen. The loss marked the 11th straight defeat the A’s have suffered while visiting the Giants.

For Game 3, Bartolo Colon took the hill to try and salvage the series for Oakland. He was strong on the day, going 5.0 innings giving up just two runs on six hits and striking out seven. The Oakland offense came alive finally, scoring four runs in the fourth en route to scoring the final six runs of the game. Collin Cowgill drove in a pair of runs with a single to put Oakland ahead, and would later come around to score in a home-plate collision with Giants starter Tim Lincecum, who would be forced to leave the game afterwards. Josh Reddick added a two-run home run to seal it in the seventh and the A’s won for the first time in San Francisco since 2008.

Pitching Matchups

May 21: Jerome Williams (4-1, 3.86 ERA) vs Tommy Milone (5-3, 4.09 ERA)

Williams has quietly become one of the Angels better pitchers this season. He’s won four straight decisions, allowed three runs or fewer in five of his last six starts and has struck out five or more hitters four times this season. His last start was a gem of working out of trouble as he gave up ten hits over eight innings to the White Sox, but allowed just two runs while striking out five and walking none. He hasn’t shown a terribly great ability to maintain success in his career, so Halos’ fans watch his strong 2012 with some trepidation, but the pitcher friendly confines of Oakland Coliseum should provide a great opportunity for Williams’ hot start to continue.

Milone has been a very up and down pitcher all season. He’s allowed two runs or fewer in four of his starts, while allowing four runs or more in the other four, including seven against Boston and five against Tampa Bay. In his last start, Milone took the loss against Texas, giving up four runs on nine hits through 7.0 innings with four strike outs and one walk. He’s got a respectable 1.13 WHIP but his ERA is high at 4.09. He’s also had a relatively low strike out rate this season, fanning just 29 batters in 50.2 innings of work.

May 22: C.J. Wilson (4-4, 3.35 ERA) vs Graham Godfrey (0-3, 5.06 ERA)

Wilson has cooled off a bit after starting the year with six straight quality starts. He’s lost two straight decisions (including the shortened start in Texas) and has walked more batters (10) than he’s struck out (eight). In his last outing, he went just 3.2 innings against the White Sox, giving up four runs (one earned) on four hits, walking six and striking out just three. Wilson complained of a stomach virus that was affecting him during that start, though, which was likely the reason for his missing command. He’s still given up three earned runs or fewer in eight of his nine starts, though, so he’s pitching quality games. He’s been historically very good against the A’s, allowing just 15 hits over 133 at-bats (.155) and no home runs. He’ll look to get his command back under control and get himself back on track against the struggling Oakland bats.

After getting optioned down to Triple-A April 21, Graham Godfrey makes his return to the majors as the replacement for Brandon McCarthy, who has landed on the DL with a sore shoulder. Before getting demoted, Godfrey was struggling with his command, allowing as many free passes as strikeouts (seven), and was struggling to get deep into games. In his last start on April 20, Godfrey gave up four runs on three hits in 5.0 innings against the Cleveland Indians, striking out three and walking five. After getting sent down, Godfrey went 3-0 with a 1.21 ERA in five starts. The A’s hope he brings that kind of stuff up with him this time rather than a return to the form that got him demoted.

May 23: Jeff Weaver (6-1, 2.80 ERA) vs Jarrod Parker (1-2, 3.90 ERA)

Weaver followed up his worst outing of the year with another gem as he continues to state his case for the AL Cy Young. Against San Diego, Weaver went 7.0 innings, giving up two runs on three hits (two singles and a solo home run), striking out four and walking three. Outside of the home run, it was exactly the kind of dominant outing the Angels expected from their ace. This will be Weaver’s second start against Oakland this season. In the first time around, Weaver took a shutout into the seventh inning, giving up five hits, striking out six and walking one. He’ll look to duplicate those results this time around and close out this series strong.

Parker was called up by the A’s in late April and has made five starts so far this year. Through his first three, he was looking very good, giving up just four runs and 15 hits, striking out 12 and walking eight, coming away with a win and two no-decisions. In his last two outings, he has fallen off quite a bit, giving up eight runs on ten hits, striking out five while walking eight in a pair of losses. His last outing against the Giants was his worst yet, giving up six runs in just 2.0 innings off four hits, walking four and striking out none. It will a tall task for the young righty to regain some confidence after back-to-back tough outings by putting together some strong innings.

Storylines to Watch

The Angels offense continues to be a topic of conversation as it still can’t seem to gain any traction towards becoming the offense that they were supposed to be. After a strong showing in the series opener against San Diego, putting up seven runs, they fell back into their typical practice of disappearing for the rest of the series. Now, there are also going to be some concerns about the depth of this team. Thought to be one of its biggest strengths when Spring Training broke, the release of Bobby Abreu and injuries to Chris Iannetta, LaTroy Hawkins, Vernon Wells, and Ryan Langerhans will be stretching the roster pretty thin. Can they withstand the diminished lineup, or maybe even flourish as some young talent gets a chance for every day playing time?

The A’s can commiserate with the Angels on their injury woes. The A’s have eight players on the disabled list right now, including: Yoenis Cespedes, Coco Crisp, Dallas Braden, Brett Anderson, Brandon Inge, Joey Devine, Scott Sizemore, and most recently Brandon McCarthy. That’s pretty much the heart of their offense, defense, and pitching staff sitting on the shelf. Yet, they’ve continued to play .500 baseball in spite of it, and even taken four of six from the Angels this season. Can they keep treading water until their strength returns to them and maybe make some noise late in the summer?

Season Implications

The implications in the AL West race are pretty easy to see. The Angels slipped back into fourth place after dropping two of three to San Diego and are now half a game back of Seattle, three games behind Oakland, and a dreadful eight games back of Texas. With a quarter of the season in the books, the Angels need to start making a move up the standings and getting a shot at a club they are directly chasing is a good way to get that done.

The Athletics are performing better than anyone expected them to. They’re in second place and sitting at .500 despite having one of the worst offenses in all of baseball and having the lineup decimated by injuries. They’d like to keep this run going, and putting a little extra cushion between them and one of the teams chasing them would do a great deal to help the A’s and their fans sleep a little bit better at night.

The Hangout View

The Vernon Wells injury may turn out to be a blessing in disguise for the Angels. The move will force Mike Scioscia to play both Mike Trout AND Peter Bourjos in the same lineup, which is going to significantly increase the team’s speed in the field and on the basepaths. Maybe transitioning to more small-ball tactics using their speed and patience at the plate will help the club to manufacture a few extra runs rather than waiting for the big bats to show up and save the day. Getting the trio of Williams-Wilson-Weaver on the hill for the series is a big help too, leading to a very successful series for the Halos. The Angels will sweep the A’s in Oakland.

Previous Series

Angels @ Rangers (L 3-10, W 4-2, L 6-13)

The Angels headed down to Arlington with a showdown with the first place Rangers, who continued their big swinging start to the 2012 season. In the series opener, C.J. Wilson took the mound in his much anticipated return to Texas, but faced just five batters and got one out before rain delayed the game for nearly two hours. The Angels decided not to send Wilson back out after long layover, who was charged with four runs on three hits with a walk and a strikeout to take the loss. Jerome Williams, originally scheduled to start Saturday, instead came out after the delay to face the Rangers. He also got roughed up, giving up six runs on 11 hits, including three home runs, over 6.2 innings, striking three and walking a pair. Mike Trout led what little offense the Angels could muster with a two run home run in the third, but the Halos couldn’t muster a rally from the 7-0 deficit they found themselves in after two innings.

Wilson got a chance for a re-do on Saturday as he took the hill in Game 2 in place of Williams. He became the first Angels pitcher to start consecutive games and the first pitcher to do so in baseball since 2002. He fared much better in his second try, pitching into the sixth inning, striking out four and walking three, giving up just two runs on five hits. Mark Trumbo led the offense in this game with a two-run blast in the fourth off the second deck of seats, and scored the go-ahead run in the seventh off a Kendrys Morales sacrifice fly. Wilson left the game with a tie score, so he was stuck with the no-decision as David Carpenter came on in relief for the win and Scott Downs returned from a knee contusion to earn his third save of the season.

For the series finale, Jered Weaver took to the hill and ran into trouble with the dangerous Texas lineup. Weaver matched his worst outing ever, giving up eight runs on ten hits over just 3.1 innings. It was his shortest outing since 2009 and his first loss of the season after starting 5-0. Weaver entered the game with an AL leading .174 average against, but couldn’t seem to get these Rangers out, giving up a third inning grand slam to Nelson Cruz on a change up that Weaver thought he had thrown well and gotten Cruz to get out in front of. However, the hitter-friendly confines of Arlington allowed him to muscle it out for a 6-2 Rangers lead. The Angels attempted a rally behind home runs from Mark Trumbo, Vernon Wells, and Kendrys Morales, but couldn’t match the torrid pace Texas set early, and dropped the game in a footballian 13-6 slugfest and lost just their second series over the last five.

Athletics vs Tigers (L 6-10, W 11-4, W 3-1, L 1-3)

The A’s welcomed the Detroit Tigers to Oakland and played them tough throughout the four game series. In the series opener, Bartolo Colon took the hill and continued his up and down performances on the hill. He lasted just 2.1 innings, giving up seven runs on nine hits as the Tigers exploded for eight runs in the third inning where they chased Colon from the game. Former Tiger Brandon Inge made the final score look closer than it was with a late grand slam in the eighth inning, but the A’s were out of this one early.

In Game 2, Oakland turned the tables on Detroit, scoring 11 runs on 13 hits in support of Tommy Milone. Milone looked strong for Oakland, pitching seven innings, giving up two runs (one earned) on five hits and striking out six. Inge once again led the way for the Athletics as he stuck it to his former club with four RBI, including a three-run home run in the sixth to put the game out of reach. The offense erupted even without the services of Cuban rookie Yoenis Cespedes, who missed his fourth straight game with a strain of the top of his left hand. It was the most runs scored by Oakland since they won 15-5 in Boston last August.

For Game 3, Brandon McCarthy took to the mound and went toe-to-toe with Tigers starter Doug Fister in a pitcher’s duel and came out on top. McCarthy, who had been nursing a sore shoulder, looked to be in fine shape on Saturday as he went seven innings of shutout ball, scattering four hits and striking out 10. He got one run in support in the bottom of the first from Jonny Gomes, who singled in a run, and McCarthy made it stand up. The pitching gem was much needed as the A’s placed the slugging Cespedes on the disabled list before the game started and took pressure off a lineup that managed just one run on five hits against Fister.

For the series finale, the A’s sent Jarrod Parker to the mound with a chance to take three of four from the Tigers. He had a very strong performance, but had the misfortune of having to duel defending AL MVP and Cy Young winner Justin Verlander, who turned in another dominant outing. Parker went 5.2 innings, giving up just two runs on six hits and struck out five, but came away with the loss as the A’s bats were able to only muster two hits on Verlander including a solo home run by Seth Smith in the fifth for the only offense of the day. The A’s wouldn’t get another hit for the rest of the game.

Pitching Matchups

May 14: Dan Haren (1-3, 4.19 ERA) vs Tyson Ross (1-3 7.71 ERA)

Haren is coming one of the worst starts of his career. Against the Twins, Haren couldn’t finish the fourth inning, giving up five runs on eight hits with two walks, and failing to strike out a single batter for just the third time in his career and for the first time in almost eight years. After the game, Haren complained of lower back stiffness which could have contributed to the rough outing, and put this start in jeopardy. He feels good enough to go, however, and continues his impressive streak of never missing a turn in the rotation for his entire career, but there has to be some worry about his health moving forward. If soreness in the back caused him to give up eight hits to a Twins team that had just 20 hits over their previous five games, then there may not be much hope that he can shut down any lineup.

Tyson Ross is on thin ice for keeping his spot in the rotation. After a pair of solid starts to open the season (including a 6.0 inning, two runs on seven hits, three strikeouts no walks performance against the Angels), Ross has been ineffective over his last three outings. After giving up just two runs on 11 hits through his first two starts, teams have been teeing off on the young righty, scoring 19 runs on 25 hits over his last three starts. In his last outing against Toronot, Ross went 5.2 innings, giving up three runs on five hits with three strikeouts and three walks, which was actually a marked improvement over his previous couple of outings. Ross will need to find something to get hitters out (maybe like a still slumping Angels lineup) or face demotion out of his starter’s role.

May 15: Ervin Santana (1-6, 5.09 ERA) vs Bartolo Colon (3-3, 3.96 ERA)

Santana finally won his first game of the season when the Angels bats finally woke up for him. After six straight losses, five of which the Angels scored zero runs in support, Ervin Santana was able to control the Minnesota Twins and get some help from his offense to end one of the worst stretches of futility in his career. Santana went 7.1 innings, giving up just two runs on six hits, striking out just one and walking three. It wasn’t his sharpest performance, but it was good enough to keep the Twins lineup off balance. It was Santana’s third straight quality start after giving up 20 runs through his first four starts of the season. Santana will look to take advantage of another offensively challenged club and see if he can start a little winning streak.

Bartolo Colon has been an up and down pitcher for most of this season, but lately has been more down than up. After starting the season strong, going 3-1 with a 2.63 ERA through his first four starts, including the infamous 8.0 inning, four hit shutout of the Angels when he threw 36 straight strikes, Colon has been sliding since, going 0-2 over his next four starts and seen his ERA jump up to nearly four. He’s coming off his worst start of the season against Detroit, where he gave up eight runs (seven earned) on nine hits through just 2.1 innings of work. In Colon’s three wins this season, he’s been dominant, going deep into games and giving up just a single run combined on just 10 total hits. In the rest of his starts, he’s been less than stellar, surrendering 21 runs on 41 hits in 27.0 innings over five starts. Depending on which Colon shows up, the A’s could be asked to ramp up the offense to stay in the game.

Storylines to Watch

The Angels continue to wallow in mediocrity, seemingly incapable of putting together a string of strong performances. The offense is unreliable without nearly enough people contributing big on any given night, and the pitching has been infuriatingly up and down and the bullpen is still a mess. For a team that was picked by many to represent the AL in the World Series, things really couldn’t be going much worse. Can the Angels finally wake up and start to make up some ground in the division race? Can someone in their lineup strike some fear into an opposing pitcher? Speaking of disappointing hitters, Albert Pujols is still stuck at one home run on the year and is still swinging with a sub-.200 batting average.

For the A’s, they’re biggest storyline is their health, or lack thereof. With Cespedes on the DL, they have a bit of a hole in the heart of their lineup which hasn’t been helped by Brandon Inge, arguably Oakland’s hottest hitter, missing time with a tight groin, Kurt Suzuki nursing a sore thumb, Kila Ka’aihue missing back-to-back games with a strained hamstring, and Jemile Weeks missing a game after leaving Saturday’s contest with a sprained ankle. At this rate, they’ll be having drawings for fans to come out of the stands and take a few hacks. But they’re over .500 and sitting in second place in the division despite scoring the fewest runs of any team in the AL West, so they have something going right for them. Can they withstand half their lineup missing time with injury and continue to find ways to win?

Season Implications

For the Angels, it’s all about making up ground in the division. After dropping two of three to Texas, they’re now eight games back, and still a half game behind Seattle in the cellar. They need to start to climb up the standings by snapping out of this funk they’re in before it gets to be too late. They need to start winning games against division opponent, especially the A’s (who they’re just 1-3 against this season) and the Mariners (who they haven’t played yet) to make up some ground on Texas if/when they drop a couple of games here and there. While they’d like to start making their move on Texas, they need to focus on baby steps at this point and overcome Seattle to get out of the cellar.

The A’s are going to try and hold onto the second spot in the division for as long as possible. They’re sitting three games ahead of Los Angeles and five games back of Texas, so this series could really help them take control of second place…or it could bring them back down to the pack at the bottom of the division. They can’t lose second place in this series, but they can lose momentum pretty easily.

The Hangout View

This short series is going to feature two teams that are much more similar than anyone thought they would be. Both teams have some solid starters, with others that are frustratingly inconsistent, with bullpens that have let them down and offenses that have gone missing for stretches. The difference is that the A’s have found ways to win a couple extra games. However, the talent is stacked in the Angels’ favor and injuries to everybody will undercut the momentum that Oakland has been able to build. Halos take both games, sweeping the short series and evening up the season series in the process.

Previous Series:

Angels @ Yankees (L 0-5, W 7-1, L 5-11)

The Angels continued their road trip west in the home opening series for the Yankees. The same stumbling blocks that plagued the Angels in their first two series (pitching and offense) once again cost them two of three against the Yanks. Ervin Santana continued his woeful outing against the Yankees, lasting six innings, giving up five runs, two home runs, striking out five while walking three. The Angels offense meanwhile, had no answer for the Yankees Hiroki Kuroda, who shut out the Halos lineup and spread out five hits over eight innings. C.J. Wilson came out the next day and made his case towards being the top Angels pitcher of this young season. Helped by an offensive rush on the Angels’ part, Wilson controlled the Yankees lineup, going six innings, striking out two and walking another two while giving up just one run, while the offense launched three home runs, a three-run blast by Howie Kendrick leading the way to go along a two-run shot by Chris Iannetta and a solo dinger by Vernon Wells. Jerome Williams took the mound for the series finale in a start that he admitted to be “anxious” about beforehand, and got chased early. He lasted just 2.2 innings in his first start of the season, giving up five runs on five hits, striking out one hitter while walking three. His inability to sustain a start put additional pressure on an already taxed bullpen, who weren’t able to stop the bleeding, giving up another six runs the rest of the way. Also of note: still no home runs for Albert Pujols (marking his longest drought to start a season in his career) or Kendrys Morales.

Athletics @ Mariners (W 4-0, L 0-4, L 3-5)

The A’s went up to Seattle for a three game series and came away losing two of three, getting shutout once and showing a general deficiency when it came to the offensive side of things, failing to get more than the nine hits they got in the series opening win. Bartolo Colon started the series with a strong performance, alternating good and bad starts against the M’s (Japan start good, Oakland start very bad). The hefty righty went seven innings of shutout ball, giving up just three hits, striking out five while walking just one. The next night saw the A’s get shut down by Mariners youngster Hector Noesi while Tommy Milone gave up four runs on four hits, striking out five and walking two over 6.0 innings. For the series finale, the A’s rallied momentarily from a 3-0 deficit to tie the Mariners 3-3 in the fifth before giving up an additional two runs to Seattle in the bottom of the inning to lose the game and drop the series.

Pitching Matchup:

April 16: Jered Weaver (1-0, 3.21 ERA) vs. Brandon McCarthy(0-1, 2.50 ERA)

Weaver returns to the mound for this third start of the season, looking to bounce back from a rough outing against Minnesota which he came away from with a no-decision. The Angels ace lasted 6.0 innings, striking out seven, walking just one, but giving up five runs on seven hits. The Twins were expected to be an easy win for Weaver, who looked dominant in his season opening 10 strikeout shutout of the Royals, but Weaver got himself into trouble in the seventh putting two men on before handing the ball over to the bullpen, who gave up the inherited runners and another of their own, resulting in a loss for the team and a no-decision for Weaver. The Angels hope a return home will help keep Weaver focused throughout his entire start and another favorable matchup against an Athletics squad who has shown some offensive limitations so far this season should lead to strong showing from the Halos number one.

McCarthy will take the mound for his fourth start of the year, earning a loss and two no-decisions in his previous three starts. In his last start, McCarthy worked his way through 6.0 innings, giving up two runs on six hits, striking out four and walking two. The A’s ace has been strong in two of his three starts, but did have one rough outing in Oakland’s home opener against the Mariners where he labored through 5.0 innings, giving up five runs on seven hits in a 7-3 loss to Seattle. In order for McCarthy to be successful against the Angels, he’ll need to maintain some control and consistency to avoid getting into trouble. He’ll need to be extra sharp as the A’s probably can’t count on tallying too many runs against Weaver in the pitcher-friendly confines of Angels Stadium.

April 17: Dan Haren (0-1, 6.97 ERA) vs. Tyson Ross (0-0)

Haren has yet to pitch to the expectations placed on the Halos number two during the offseason. He’s yet to pitch past the sixth inning, needing 94 pitches to get through 5.0 innings in his last start against Minnesota, giving up three runs on nine hits, striking out seven and walking just one. He showed flashes of the pitcher the Angels hoped he would be early in Minnesota, cruising until Joe Mauer hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the fifth. The Angels need Haren to find his groove in order to turn around the early struggles of the Angels. Haren returned from the road trip early back to Orange County in order to get some extra preparation for this start. Home cooking and a struggling A’s team could be just what the doctor ordered to get Haren out of his early slump.

Tyson Ross is set to make his first start of the season as he comes up to the big leagues after a pair of minor league starts at triple-A Sacramento. He looks poised to move into the Athletics fifth starter role after making spot starts for the A’s over the last couple of seasons. In 2011, Ross made six starts, posting a 3-3 record with a 2.75 ERA. The lanky 6’6″ 24-year old has 56 career strike outs in the majors, walking 33 in 75.1 innings. He pitches to contact, inducing groundballs to get outs, posting a career 1.65 ground out to air out ratio, so his pitching style should translate well to the big leagues. He will have a tough first start this season, coming up against an Angels team that you have to figure will work out their offensive woes at some point. He’ll have the benefit of youth to allow him to pitch without fear on the road, but will that be enough for him to contain the Halos’ sluggers?

April 18: Ervin Santana (0-2, 7.71 ERA) vs. Bartolo Colon (2-1, 3.72 ERA)

Probably the most disappointing of the Angels’ starters, Santana has looked pretty terrible in back to back starts to begin the season. He opened the year as the number three pitcher in the rotation and got to start in the opening series against Kansas City, where he gave up six runs on seven hits in 5.2 innings. Manager Mike Scioscia called Santana’s ball-to-strike ratio “terrible” and Santana couldn’t get any consistency in his delivery from pitch to pitch. He followed up that lackluster performance with another one in the Yankees’ home opener, going 6.0 innings, surrendering five runs on six hits, striking out five and walking three. Santana has given up four home runs in his two starts, falling to the same shortcomings that undercut him against KC. Scioscia gave Santana a vote of confidence this offseason, installing him as the third starter over new arrival C.J. Wilson, rewarding Santana for his consistent performance for the Angels over the last several seasons. Santana hasn’t looked like that same person at all so far, though, and will need to return to his former self if he wants to help turn this early slide around for the Angels and prove to Halos fans that the team’s faith wasn’t misplaced.

Bartolo Colon has been on a Jekyll-and-Hyde like run so far this season. In his first start in Japan against Seattle, he looked strong, going 8.0 innings, giving up just one run on three hits, striking out six and walking one. Then, when the A’s returned home, Colon looked awful against the same Mariners team that he had dominated in Japan. In his Oakland debut, Colon lasted just 4.1 innings, surrendering seven runs on 10 hits, striking out three and walking none. In his third start, this time in Seattle against the Mariners (again), and he looked stronger than his Japan start, giving up no runs on three hits, striking out seven while walking one over 7.0 innings of work. Now, Colon will make his first start against a team other than the Mariners. The Angels lineup, at least on paper, should be a stiffer test for Colon. Which Colon will show up (the Jekyll is due up if the pattern holds) will go a long way in determining how the A’s do in this game. If Colon struggles and Santana continues his putrid trend, this one could be a football score of a baseball game.

April 19: C.J. Wilson (2-0, 1.38 ERA) vs. Tommy Milone (1-1, 2.57 ERA)

Wilson has been the Angels lone consistent pitching option over the first two trips through the rotation. He’s given up a total of two runs in two starts on just nine hits. In his last start, Wilson controlled the Yankees, giving up one run on six hits through 6.0 innings, earning his first win at Yankee Stadium. Wilson’s control looked to be a minor issue after his first outing in Minnesota where he walked four, but he followed it up by walking just a pair of Yanks in the Big Apple. He’s looked in control of games, consistently working out of jams with a cool confidence that has come to define the lefty throughout his career. He will look to keep his hot start rolling as he goes up against the light-hitting A’s in his first start in his new home park. The So-Cal native will be looking to shine in his homecoming debut and wrap up a hopefully successful return to Anaheim.

Milone will make his third start of the season, looking to continue a pretty solid start to his 2012. Milone opened the season by pitching 8.0 strong shutout innings against Kansas City, scattering three hits with no runs, no strikeouts, and three walks. He followed up that winning performance with a decent showing against Seattle, going 6.0 innings and running into trouble just twice; first in the second with a solo shot by Jesus Montero and an extended rally in the sixth inning for three more runs. In Seattle, Milone struck out five, a career high, and walked five, surrendering seven hits. The young lefty is not going to be blowing any batters out of the box with his stuff, but he has been effective getting hitters to slap it towards his defense, something he’ll need to continue to do if he hopes to keep his successful start going.

Storylines to watch:

Pujols' power has yet to strike in 2012 (Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-US PRESSWIRE)

The Angels need to win some games in a row. Losing three straight series wasn’t in anybody’s predictions for this Angels team. And being last in the division after nine games? That was what Oakland was supposed to be for…no offense. The starting pitching needs to find some consistency and the offense needs to provide some pop like everyone expected from them. There may also need to be some consistency in the starting lineup as Scioscia has used seven different lineups through the first eight games. Coming home against a division opponent will give the Halos a chance to get out of the cellar in the West and try and build some momentum to get back on track. When will Pujols or Morales hit their first home run? Will Scioscia find a lineup card that he likes? Can this pitching staff live up to the hype they got during the spring? Hopefully, some of these questions will get some answers (in the positive) with the Angels returning home.

The A’s have shown flashes of pretty decent baseball early this season. Not enough to still be over .500 after 10 games, and playing seven games against a Seattle team that isn’t expected to be much of a factor come August and September may have bloated the accomplishments of this team, but there’s definitely something there. Yoenis Cespedes may knock a ball off the planet this year with the power he’s shown early, for example, and is going to be one of the fun talents to watch develop this season. But can the A’s find some other offense to go with him? A lineup cannot live on one masher alone, and if the rest of the squad doesn’t pick it up, Cespedes is going to have a lonely time seeing garbage pitches the rest of the season.

Season implications:

The Angels should not be a team in fourth place of the AL West with the amount of talent and money invested in this lineup. Facing off against Oakland will give Los Angeles a chance to fix that and climb out of the cellar back towards competing for the West. The Angels, currently sitting three games under .500, can also take advantage of a favorable matchup against Oakland to get back onto the right side of the win-loss ratio. For the A’s, they’ll get a much truer test than their mini-marathon session against Seattle, and should get a better sense of who they are as a team and what they can really expect in 2012.

The Hangout View:

Things have to turn around at some point…right? Oakland coming to Angels Stadium seems to be the most favorable matchup for the Halos to turn things around, but the question will be if Los Angeles can take advantage. There was a thought that the Angels would breeze through a light-hitting Minnesota club, and we all saw how that turned out. The starting pitching will finally come around as a whole in this series and put together some quality starts back-to-back in this four game series. Angels win three of four and climb out of the cellar of the West, moving ahead of the A’s and getting within striking distance of .500.