Los Angeles Angels vs. Tampa Bay Rays Series Preview

The Los Angeles Angels are continuing their road trip Monday Evening. It will be a four game series against the Tampa Bay Rays. The Angels sit at .500 once again, and are 7 games behind the AL West leading Astros.

Both the Los Angeles Angels and the Rays will be entering their series at 23-23 on the season. With that being said, this series can be a pretty big one for both teams. If the Angels can do everything they can to capitalize on this series they could end it at 27-23. The Angels are also a single game behind the Texas Rangers for second in the Al West. If they can come out on top during this series then there is a chance the Angels could take that spot away from the Rangers.

Angels Three Keys to Success

1. Hopefully Albert Pujols can return into the DH slot on Monday. He had missed the last three games to do some hamstring soreness. The Angels offense hasn’t been great this season. The Angels currently have the fifth lowest OPS in the league at .683, the league average is .736. When Pujols is out a decent chunk of the offense is taken away. The Angels need Pujols back and healthy as soon as possible.

2. Kole Calhoun needs to wake his bat up. In the series against the Mets he went 2-12. He had been moved to sixth in the lineup on Sunday, and for good reason. At this point in the season Calhoun is only batting .219, and has an on base percentage of .286. Calhoun was an important piece in the Angels lineup the past two years. The Angels need him to get out of his slump and start performing.

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3.  Matt Shoemaker needs to having a good outing when he starts on Tuesday. Shoemaker came into the season looking like he may be one of the better pieces of the Angels rotation. So far he has the worst ERA out of the everyday starters at 4.47. If Shoemaker’s play is anything like seasons past, then there is a chance he will turn it around and have a great second half. Let us hope that starts sooner than later, if at all.

The Match-ups

Monday, May 22nd – 6:10 PM PST

Radio: KLAA 830 AM    TV: Fox Sports West

JC Ramirez (3-3) vs Jake Odorizzi (3-2)

Of the players that have faced Odorizzi before, they are collectively hitting .375. The two players that have faced him the most though, have not fared very well. Kole Calhoun has gone 2-10 with 3 strike outs. Then Albert Pujols is 0-7 against Odorizzi. Trout, Maybin, Simmons, Revere, Cron, and Pennington have all had great success against Odorizzi in the past. Hopefully the offense can hit fast and hard and set the tone for the whole series.

Tuesday, May 23rd – 6:10 PM PST

Radio: KLAA 830 AM       TV: Fox Sports West

Matt Shoemaker (3-2) vs Alex Cobb (4-3)

A total of three Angels have ever faced Alex Cobb. Lucky for us though two of them are Mike Trout and Albert Pujols. Also lucky for us, Trout and Pujols have clobbered Cobb. Trout is 4-6 with 1 home run and 3 RBIs against Cobb. Pujols on the other hand is 5-5 with 1 home run and 4 RBIs against him. If those two can keep that up against Cobb then there is a chance for an offensive explosion Tuesday night.

Wednesday, May 24th – 6:10 PM PST

Radio: KLAA 830 AM       TV: Fox Sports West

Ricky Nolasco (2-3) vs Erasmo Ramirez (2-0)

The majority of the Angels lineup has faced Ramirez. Two of the most notable are Trout and Maybin. Mike Trout has gone 6-17 with 1 home run and 3 RBIs. Cameron Maybin is 4-7 with 4 RBIs against Ramirez.

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Thursday, May 25th – 12:10 PM PST

Radio: KLAA 830 AM       TV: Fox Sports West

TBD vs Matt Andriese (4-1)

The Angels lineup hasn’t seen too much of Andriese in the past. At most half of them have 4 plate appearances against him. Maybin and Valbuena are the two players that have more than one hit against Andriese, but that is about it for any highlights.

Next: Who is doing well down on the farm?

The Angels haven’t given a starting pitcher for this game yet. I would say that the most probable starter would be Alex Meyer. Meyer’s last start was on the 20th against the Mets. The Angels did just sign Doug Fister, but I don’t see him being ready for the majors anytime soon and especially not this week.