Angel Droppings: Scioscia, Scioscia, Scioscia

April 9, 2013; Anaheim, CA, USA; Los Angeles Angels manager Mike Scioscia (14) speaks to media before the Angels play against the Oakland Athletics at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Panicking to small sample sizes is a pandemic this time of the year. After another disappointing loss to the division rival Oakland A’s, the Angels own a 2-6 record and sit last in not only the American League West, but are last in the entire American league. There is no reason to panic truthfully as the season is only one twentieth complete and despite injuries to Weaver and Aybar, there is plenty of season left. Panicking from a 2-6 start is akin to panicking to a 1-3 start in Hockey or Basketball, and not even a full game in Football terms.

It is highly unlikely that Josh Hamilton finishes the season with a .156/.237/.219/.456 slash line good enough for a 27 wRC+. Along a similar line, it’s incredibly doubtful that the Angels continue to get on base at only a .217 clip with runners in scoring position. Despite all that is made about clutch hitting, it’s not really a skill, at least not in the grand scheme of things. A player over a career may show an ability to deal with pressure better, but in a small sample like what we have seen to date it just isn’t a concern.

As Mike DiGiovanna writes, Mike Scioscia called a brief team meeting after the Angels 11-5 loss to the Angels. As always, a baseball manager was happy to spout off clichés following the meeting.

From DiGiovanna’s article:

"“The talent is in that room, and once we start to get productive, get rolling and see that confidence level where it needs to be, we’re going to get into our game more often,” Scioscia said. “We have nobody to think about but our own club. These guys know we’re going to play at a higher level.”"

DiGiovanna points out the Angels 0.72 bullpen ERA over the first three starts compared to the 8.22 mark over the last five starts. This is something massively effected by small sample size though coming into this season, the bullpen was one of the bigger question marks and hasn’t eliminated those concerns yet.

Another note in the article is that Albert Pujols accumulated his 1,000^th extra base hit against Oakland last night. Congratulations Albert! Pujols also provided a quote about the slow start.

"“You’re talking about eight games, we have 154 left, so it’s not like it’s the last week of the season,” Pujols said. “We have plenty of time, but we need to start getting it going. We don’t want to wait until we’re 25 or 30 games into the season and 12 or 13 games back and have to make up a lot of ground.”"

And the rest:

Aybar will likely avoid a trip to the Disabled List afterX-Rays on his sore left heal came back negative, Brad Hawpe’s minor league deal and Jered Weaver’s plan to stay on top of pitching. [Alden Gonzalez, MLB.com]

Albert Puols and 1000 extra base hits, and he didn’t even know it had happened. Pujols the best. [Alden Gonzalez, mlb blogs]

Every time a Bell rings, a former Angel tweets out something interesting, over at Halos Heaven Rev Halofan breaks it down. [Rev Halofan, Halos Heaven]

Lastly, over at Monkey with a Halo,Joseph Franzi looks at the evolution of Mike Scioscia as a manager. [Joseph Franzi, Monkey With a Halo]