Angels look to extend winning ways versus Texas

The Angels are having a great July coming off a three-game sweep of the Chicago White Sox. Now, the Texas Rangers come to the Big A looking to rebound following a sluggish stretch of games prior to the All-Star break.

This series is vital for the Angels. The Angels are riding high following a three-game sweep of the Chicago White Sox. Now, the division leading Texas Rangers come to town and the Angels need to win at least two of three games in this series.

Why is this series so important? The Angels currently trail the Rangers by 14.5 games in the AL West. A win tonight (with an Oakland loss) would move them in front of Oakland from fifth to fourth place in the division. Not only that, the Rangers lead in games won this season 6-4.

The potential to catch the Texas Rangers is minimal at best; however, the Rangers showed the are human losing five of their last seven games. The Rangers will look to rebound against the Angels and keep the Angels playoff hopes at bay. In game one will see the match-up of A.J. Griffin versus Nick Tropeano.

Griffin has struggled since he went to the DL in early May. In fact, most of the Texas starters haven’t pitched past the fourth inning (mostly) in the month of June. Injuries to key pitchers such as Derek Holland and Colby Lewis have hindered the Rangers from their early season dominance.

More from Halo Hangout

• LA Angels: 3 offseason moves the Halos desperately need to make
• LA Angels: AL West rival Astros proving that they’re not giving up yet
• 6 important offseason award dates and times for LA Angels fans
• This LA Angels move proves the Halos are trying to spend big on pitching
• No, the LA Angels should not blow their payroll on Freddie Freeman

The Angels have had a similar situation for a longer stretch this season. However, with Tropeano back, and Tyler Skaggs soon returning, the pitching staff is starting to show sings of life.

The second game of the series will display pitchers Tim Lincecum versus Kyle Lohse. Both of whom have struggled mightily this season. Lincecum has a 1-3 record with a 6.85 ERA, while Lohse is 0-1 with a 10.80 ERA. This game is a must win for Lincecum. Not only for his confidence and the Angels confidence in him, but for Lincecum to avoid the bullpen once Skaggs returns from his Triple-A stint.

The third and final game of this series has Martin Perez going against an Angel to be determined. Angel fans can only assume that either Hector Santiago or Matt Shoemaker will get the start. Perez has a record of 7-6 with a 4.05 ERA.

This lineup of the Rangers is favorable to the Angels in the same way the White Sox lineup was. The Angels wont see the dominant pitching of Cole Hamels, Yu Darvish, or the two Rangers that have recent hit the DL.

As I’ve stated before, the Angels need to win games now. The Rangers rotation isn’t at full strength and the AL West is becoming a closer race by the game. At one point, the Rangers had a 10 game lead over the second place Houston Astros, now that lead has shrunk to a 4.5 game lead.

Next: Prospect Round-Up

The potential to surpass Oakland and make a strong push to catch Seattle is at hand. I said last week that this month is favorable to the Angels. They now have a Texas Rangers team on deck with suspect pitchers. The Angels must take advantage and extend their three-game winning streak against this team.