When the Angels (50-42) open the second half of their season tonight in Oakland, they'll be doing so as the hottest team in baseball. One of the reasons for the Halos season success has been their devastating one-two rotational punch of Jered Weaver and Dan Haren.
Haren (10-5, 2.61 ERA) pitched the last Angel game before the All-Star break and will get the call for the opener of the second half. Haren's goal will be to keep him and the Halos on the same pre-break hot streak that saw the team win 19 of 25 and his own 4-game win streak. In his last start, the right-hander went 8.2 innings against the Seattle Mariners, allowing 2 runs on 5 hits, while striking out 8 and walking two.
The Angels finished up the first half of the season with an 11-2 home stand that saw them hit 16 home runs, including 5 from rookie Mark Trumbo. The Halo club has also won its last 8 series dating back to June 13th. After a slow start by Torii Hunter and Vernon Wells, the Angel corner outfielders have bounced back by hitting a combined .295 with 7 home runs and 16 RBI during the just completed home stand.
Oakland will counter with Brandon McCarthy (1-5, 3.66 ERA) as they look to end their 4-game losing streak. The right-hander is 0-5 over his past 9 starts, and got the loss in his April 26th start against the Angels.
Who's Hot - Last 14 Days:
Howie Kendrick - 8 for his last 24 (.333)
Mark Trumbo - 9 for his last 32 (.281), 4 HR, 6 RBI
Torii Hunter - 10 for his last 27 (.370), 3 HR, 6 RBI
Scott Sizemore - 10 for his last 36 (.278), 3 HR, 7 RBI
Josh Willingham - 6 for his last 16 (.375)
Who's Cold - Last 14 Days:
Bobby Abreu - 5 for his last 31 (.161)
Maicer Izturis - 3 for his last 28 (.107)
David DeJesus - 5 for his last 29 (.172), 10K
Hideki Matsui - 4 for his last 26 (.154)
Conor Jackson - 4 for his last 27 (.148)
Chris Carter - 3 for his last 25 (.120), 13K
Game time is 7:05 (PDT) and will be show in Fox Sports West. For more Angels' news, be sure to check out Halos Heaven.