LA Angels Series Preview: Team Has Chance to Prove Their Strength Against the Cubs

Trevor Cahill is a winner

Trevor Cahill is up for the last game of the series, and he’s looked like one of the better pitchers in the Angels rotation. His last outing against a dominant Brewers squad saw him pitch 6 innings of 8 K baseball, while allowing 2 runs on 5 hits.

That’s as solid as it gets, on the verge of being great, and if he can continue that pace into the Cubs series the Angels may be in line for another sweep. The Stratton start is the key piece to success in this series, but if the Angels can win that game they should be able to knock out the last one with Cahill.

Cahill is going to be facing another real test as the Cubs pose a serious threat with their hitting talents. This is a great opportunity for the Angels to show the world that they are indeed the real thing, with or without Mike Trout.

If the Angels can shut down the Cubs’ big hitters like they shut down Christian Yelich, there will be no shortage of success in this series. This is a big test for the pitching staff, bullpen and starters alike. If they can limit the power of the Cubs, it will be hard for anyone to say this Angels team has no pitching.

It’s already become apparent this is a real ball club despite the terrible start to the season in Oakland. The starting pitching is good enough to hand the offense opportunities for success, the bullpen is good enough to keep the Angels in games, while also holding down leads with an iron hand.

The only question is the hitting and how/when it will level out. I don’t expect to see La Stella provide as much value as he did against the Brewers, but on the other hand I do expect Simmons to continue trending up, and swing his bat even hotter against the Cubs.