The Los Angeles Angels are who we thought they were

 With a record of 78-79, the LA Angels are exactly who we thought they would be, a “maybe” playoff team.

At the beginning of the 2017 season, many experts including myself speculated that the LA Angels could possibly be a playoff team if their starting pitching remained healthy and intact. Give the Angels some credit, they fulfilled the role of being that “maybe” playoff team.

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However, with “maybe” comes a hesitant answer of yes or no, given the certain circumstances. But in this case, when the Angels needed to win the most, they flopped losing six straight, essentially eliminating them from playoff contention.

But it’s not a total lost season for the Halos. In fact, they should be somewhat proud of how they finished given the amount of injuries they sustained at the beginning of the season.

If I were to tell you that they would be without their starting ace pitcher, Garret Richards, and two of their mid-rotational pieces in Tyler Skaggs and Andrew Heaney , you would summarize to say they were screwed a month into the season. I mean, just look at what happened to the Mets this season.

Besides starting pitching, they also lost the best player in baseball, Mike Trout, to an injury that would cost him 50 games. Along with inconsistent play from left field and first base, the Angels seemed to yet again to spiral out of control, similar to last season when they finished with a record of 74-88.

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Instead of being the Angels from 2016, they surprisingly improved upon that record and were actually inches away from securing a wildcard playoff birth. Angels’ Manager Mike Scioscia deserves some recognition here. They went back to the roots of playing small ball and lead the league in steals at one point in the season. They also developed the nickname of being the “comeback kids” due to their ability to always be in games.

Along the way, they found essential pieces to their 40-man roster finding pitchers Parker Bridwell, Blake Parker and  Yusemeiro Petit, all of whom were not on the team last year. Also, the additions of Justin Upton and Brandon Phillips can solidify the Angels to being more than just a “maybe” playoff team.

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Sure the Angels will be missing the playoffs again this year. Sure it’s going to be hard to compete with the Astros for AL West crown. But, if you’ve learned anything from this season, the Los Angeles Angels are going to be more than just a “maybe” playoff team next year.