With back-to-back AL West titles in their pocket and a solid core of returning players, it would be no stretch to pencil the Angels into the playoffs for a third straight season. While owner Arte Moreno may have difficulty deciding where the team actually plays (Los Angeles? Anaheim? Agoura Hills? Malibu?), one thing he does know is how to put a quality ballclub on the field.

    At the heart of the Angels success is their pitching staff. Led by reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Bartolo Colon, the Halos will undoubtedly butter their bread with this year’s staff. While there is some doubt whether or not Colon has ever eaten anywhere but McDonald’s over the last three seasons, there is no denying that his 54 total wins over that span are a mark of consistent excellence. That figure includes a league-leading 21 victories in 2005. Joining Colon on the staff will be impressive youngster Ervin Santana, hard-throwing John Lackey, newcomer Jeff Weaver, and sometime reliever Kelvim Escobar. Santana showed flashes of his electric stuff last season and Lackey has consistently put up good numbers for the club, but the Weaver and Escobar are question marks. Weaver is coming off of a career-high 14 win season with the Dodgers, but he has been notoriously erratic throughout is career, looking like one of the best pitchers in the league in one game, and resembling someone who should be demoted to rookie ball the next. Escobar is making the move from the bullpen back to the rotation. While he certainly has the tools to make the move, it is certainly a risk on such a veteran team not to have a solid number five starter in the rotation.

    One of the most impressive components of the 2006 Angels will be their bullpen. A team strength dating back to their 2002 World Series run, the Angels will rely on one of the best, if not most flamboyantly annoying, closers in the game in Francisco Rodriguez, and a slew of near unhittable set-up men. K-Rod has taken full advantage of being given the full time closer position once Troy Percival left for Detroit, notching a career high 45 saves last season. Scot Shields and Brendan Donnelly will shoulder most of the responsibility of getting the ball into Rodriguez’s hands with a lead in the ninth. Shields and Donnelly combined for 19 wins of their own last season and both are seasoned veterans who have been through the fall battles that will surely decide the competitive AL West. The main drawback of the Angels pitching staff is the fact that they have zero left-handed pitchers in their top eight, both starters and relievers. While this might not affect them a great deal early in the season, when the crucial matchups of the late season occur, lacking a shutdown lefty may prove crippling.

    While they are not a team boasting a great deal of power, the Angels possess one of the balanced lineups in the league. Led by last season’s breakout sparkplug Chone Figgins, the Halos and their NL-bred manager Mike Scioscia have mastered the art of small ball, rarely seen in the American League. The compact Figgins was the toast of the league last year, as his everyman-hustle and his amazing flexibility in the field allowed him to be perhaps the most important factor in the Angels playoff run. Figgins, the 2005 league leader in steals with 62, will predominately play third base this season. He will be joined in the infield by shortstop Orlando Cabrera, second baseman Adam Kennedy, and first baseman Casey Kotchman. Both Cabrera and Kennedy are fairly light hitting, but together they are one of the more impressive double play combinations in the American League. Kotchman struggled early last season, his first in the bigs, but responded by hitting .302 after his early August recall from the minor leagues. He will be responsible for nearly all of the power in the infield, as Figgins, Cabrera, and Kennedy combined for a meager 18 home runs last season.

    The Angels’ outfield is one of the most impressive and seasoned trios in the game today. Garret Anderson and Darin Erstad were both on the 2002 championship team and continue to produce, and Vladimir Guerrero is easily one of the three most dangerous hitters in the game. If Anderson can overcome his seemingly endless injury problems, he will continue to be a run-producing mainstay in the middle of the Angels’ lineup. Erstad will bring his world-class hustle and “dirt bag” mentality to the top of the top of the order and centerfield. The gem of the threesome however, is Guerrero. The Dominican right fielder has a cannon for a right arm and one of the most devastatingly violent swings in the history of the game. While characterized as a free swinger, Guerrero has such impressive plate coverage that he struck out a career low 48 times last season. The 2004 MVP will look to post his third consecutive 30 HR/100 RBI year this season.

    The catching duties will be handled once again by a Molina, just not the one who has been the team leader for the past few seasons. Bengie Molina, the clutch mainstay behind the dish for the Halo’s since their championship season headed north of the border to Toronto this offseason, leaving the field general duties to his older brother Jose. While there should be no drop off in the legendary Molina defense, Jose is considerably less talented offensively. Unfortunately for the Angels, he’s just as inept as Bengie in the speed department. Both Molinas bring less speed to the table as a three-toed sloth.

    Juan Rivera and Dallas McPherson will look to bring some pop to the lineup at the designated hitter spot. Both are capable of 20 home runs, but McPherson is still looking to showcase the power that has been predicted since his minor-league breakout in the 2003 season. Free agent pickup Edgardo Alfonzo will also add some depth to the lineup with his consistently high batting average and decent power numbers.

    With both the A’s and the Rangers improved by free agency, the Angels will again have a difficult battle to win the West. That being said, with the same stars from last season’s squad back and one of the best pitching staffs in the league, the Angels should expect nothing less than a packed Angel Stadium and brutally annoying rally monkey references come October.

Phil Mattingly can be reached at phil.mattingly@atomicsportsmedia.com