LA Angels: Five Players Who Need to Step Up This Week vs. TEX/SEA

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ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 04: Justin Bour #41 of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim looks on as he returns to the dugout at the end of the first inning in the home opener against the Texas Rangers at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on April 04, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /

After their first 15 games, it’s still up for debate whether these LA Angels are good enough to be competitive this season.

However, this week gives them a great stage to show us they are. They’ll travel to Texas for a three game series before hosting the Seattle Mariners in Anaheim for four games. Two division rivals, one rebuilding in Texas and one of the best offenses in baseball this season with the Mariners. The Angels will be tested, and if they want to pass and show they are a legitimate postseason contender, these five players are going to have to step up for the team over the next seven days.

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Justin Bour

So far this season, the results have been inconsistent for Justin Bour. He has shown in small stretches that he can be dominant, especially against right-handed pitchers, but the overall production hasn’t been there.

Against the Rangers, only one of their probable pitchers is a lefty, Mike Minor, so that should bode well for Bour considering he almost has to be in the lineup at this point. Against the Mariners, while their probables aren’t released for the Angels’ series yet, Japanese sensation Yusei Kikuchi will likely take the mound in Anaheim. The southpaw has started his major league career well, and could pose problems for the Angels, especially Bour.

One thing Justin Bour has done well this year despite slumping for most of it is draw walks. He has been able to keep the inning going for the hitters behind him, which is valuable. However, the Angels will need him to do more than draw walks this weekend, especially if Mike Trout is inactive for part of it.

Matt Harvey

Nobody, not even the LA Angels, needs a better start from Matt Harvey than himself. After two awful outings from The Dark Knight, he needs to get himself back on track before this season becomes an all-out mess.

I’ve noted before that Harvey doesn’t look as far off from being dominant that the stat line would have you think. He still has a very high whiff rate this year, but is just struggling to finish batters off.

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Against Texas, despite getting absolutely rocked by them last time, Harvey will have a good opportunity to get back on track, for two reasons. The first being that it’ll be his second time around facing them, which has obvious benefits. Pitchers can watch as much film as they want about hitters, but nothing helps more than actually facing them in the box.

Second, this Rangers lineup just isn’t that good. Despite Harvey’s first start against them, there is very little talent throughout this lineup, and while they still present problems, Harvey has the talent to go out and have a solid outing.

Given he pitches Monday, Harvey will also see the Mariners this weekend. If he can’t get back on track against the Rangers, his matchup against the Mariners could be really, really hard to watch.

Mike Trout

This one is actually pretty obvious so I’ll keep it short. Without Trout in the lineup, this Angels squad is a .500 baseball team. When he does play, however, he gives the team the upside that makes them a threat for an AL Wild Card spot.

So when I say Mike Trout needs to step up, I mean he literally just needs to step up to the plate so pitchers can walk him.

Obviously it’d be nice for his to continue his early campaign for MVP by dominating his division rivals and helping the Angels win both series, but just having Trout in the lineup will be a huge addition.

Ty Buttrey

Against the Cubs, Ty Buttrey only pitched 0.1 innings despite having adequate rest and being the LA Angels’ go-to pitcher in high-leverage situations. With so little work over the past half week, it wouldn’t surprise me if we saw 3-4 outings from Buttrey this week.

Buttrey is the best reliever in the Angels’ bullpen, and it isn’t necessarily close. His stats speak for themselves, and he passes the eye test with flying colors. With a solid fastball and devastating movement on his pitches, he has been fooling hitters consistently this season.

This week, especially against Seattle, I expect there to be a lot of late-inning, close games. Those two factors are exactly the types of situations Buttrey is used in and has excelled in. He’ll face a huge test this week in terms of usage and talent he’s facing, and if he passes he could enter that upper-tier of MLB relievers.

Trevor Cahill

Slated to start on Monday (which also puts him in line for Saturday), Trevor Cahill is obviously going to be huge this week. He has been the best starter for the Angels all season, and needs to come away with two exceptional outings this week if the Angels hope to leave their mark.

On Monday he’ll face Shelby Miller, which isn’t the most exciting matchup. Miller’s ERA is north of nine, and his career has continued the downward trend in 2019. However, on Saturday against the Mariners, it looks like he’ll be going up against the aforementioned Yusei Kikuchi, who is the Mariners’ ace as it sits right now. It’ll be an exciting matchup for both fan bases.

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Cahill has already started against Mariners once this season, throwing six innings and allowing one run. The Seattle offense has slowed some, so Cahill should have a chance for another exceptional outing and be able to put the Angels is position for a series win.

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