[Chief Rum]

A Look At The Team

Here's a quick look at the 25-man roster.

ROTATION

Bartolo Colon (18-12, 5.01) remains the horse of the squad, although he has a lot to prove after a poor first half in 2004.

Kelvim Escobar (11-12, 3.93) might actually be the ace of the team now, and could have won a lot more games in 2004 with better support.

Longtime inconsistent starters Jarrod Washburn (11-8, 4.64) and John Lackey (14-13, 4.67) need to show they can bring the same stuff game in, game out.

Former Brave Paul Byrd (8-7, 3.94) is a steady and effective #5 for a mostly unspectacular rotation.

BULLPEN

The story here is "K-Rod" Francisco Rodriguez (4-1, 12 sv, 1.82), one of the top young dominant arms in the game. He takes over for the departed Troy Percival, now with Detroit.

Rodriguez is backed by one of the better setup combos in the bigs, including power pitcher Brendan Donnelly (5-2, 3.00) and the rubber-armed Scot Shields (8-2, 4 sv, 3.33).

The pen is rounded out by former starter Kevin Gregg (5-2, 1 sv, 4.21), former Tampa Bay closer Esteban Yan (3-6, 7 sv, 3.81) and former minor leaguer Matt Hensley.

This should be one of the better pens in the league.

CATCHER

Two-time Gold Glover Bengie Molina (.276, 10, 54) returns to handle the backstop duties. His defense wins him a spot on the field, and he's decent enough at the plate to not be a zero there. His brother Jose Molina (.261, 3, 25) is an effective backup.

INFIELD

Gritty field general Darin Erstad (.295, 7, 69) brings a ton of heart and a Gold Glove to first base, but he doesn't hit as well as most teams need their corner infielders to hit.

Across the field, rookie phenom Dallas McPherson (40 HR in AA & AAA, #25 overall prospect) will attempt to use his impressive minor league power to fill the sizable shoes of Troy Glaus, away to Arizona.

One of the Angels' big splashes in the offseason was the signing of defensive wiz shortstop Orlando Cabrera (.223, 5, 66), but Cabrera is going to have to return to the higher .200s, 15 HR guy he was before 2004 to make him worth the cash.

Adam Kennedy (.278, 10, 48) returns to second base and remains a steady if unspectacular presence at the position.

Supersub Chone Figgins (.296, 5, 60) will get his share of at bats filling in all over the field. His speed--which was featured by 17 triples and 34 stolen bases--is invaluable.

Maicer Izturis (.206, 1, 4) is young and could devleop into an exceleltn middle infielder. For now, he will help Figgins back up the infield.

OUTFIELD

One of the most consistent hitters of the past ten seasons, LF Garrett Anderson (.301, 14, 75), returns with the goal of putting behind an injury-plagued 2004 and pairing with 2004 American League MVP Vladimir Guerrero (.337, 39, 126) to form a formidable middle of the lineup.

Power should also come from smooth-fielding vet Steve Finley (.271, 36, 94) and stodgy longtime Angel Tim Salmon (.253, 2, 23). Salmon, however, will have to prove he can still bang the ball, or he could lose his spot in the lineup to Figgins or the up-and-coming Juan Rivera (.307, 12, 49).

Jeff Davanon (.144, 7, 38) provides speed and defense, but must rebound from an awful year at the plate in 2004.

THEY COULD HELP IN 2005

The following players, currently biding their time with the AAA Salt Lake Stingrays, could eventually help the big squad.

SP Jered Weaver (#14 overall prospect) needs only to prove his stuff for a while in the minors before becoming one of the next young star pitchers in the bigs. He is coming off of a year-long holdout that almost saw him return to the draft.

Ervin Santana (#16 overall prospect) was the Angels' star arm before Weaver signed, and he's still on the verge of hitting the bigs. With the Angels' starting pitching not looking too overwhelming, it might not be long before Weaver and Santana get the call.

There are a number of potential sources for relief at Salt Lake, but the best option appears to be closer Joel Peralta, a former shortstop who has worked hard to become the top prospect relief pitcher he now is. Lefty Jake Woods (Angels' #7 prospect) is another likely candidate for the call up, and he can both relieve and start.

The stars at the plate are 1B Casey Kotchman (#87 prospect) and the multi-positioned Cuban star Kendry Morales (Angels' #6 prospect). Kotchman has long been one of the best hitters in the Angels' organization and has just been waiting for a spot to clear up in the major league lineup. Many think Morales is ready for the bigs now, but, like Weaver, they will first test him at Salt Lake to be sure.

2B Howie Kendrick is a sweet-stroking middle infielder on the rise, and SS Erick Aybar (Angels' #10 prospect) is a defensive wizard who can also do some damage at the plate.