In addition to a potentially outstanding rotation, the Angels bullpen is superb. At the back end, it is remiscient of the Yankee pen of 1996 with Mariano Rivera setting up John Wetteland. Like Rivera, who everyone knew would be a successful closer in his own right, Scot Shields has had tremendous success providing a bridge from the Angels starters and middle relief to closer Francisco ‘K-Rod’ Rodriguez. K-Rod himself burst onto the scene in very much the same way Rivera did, setting up for Troy Percival in the 2002 postseason and dominating all that he faced. Since finally assuming the closer’s mantle from Percival in 2004, all K-Rod has done is roll off seasons of 45 and 47 saves with an ERA of 2.57 and 1.73 respectively. In 2006, he struck out 98 batters in 73 innings while walking only 28, and giving up just 52 hits, outstanding numbers even for a closer expected to dominate hitters.

In addition to the two-headed monster of Shields and K-Rod at the end of games, the rest of the Angels bullpen should be solid, if unheralded. The biggest name is probably Justin Speier, who came over as a free agent from the Blue Jays to the tune of a 4-year $18 million deal. As big as that deal sounds, it’s the going rate for a guy who can lock up the 6th and 7th inning. With Speier in front of Shields and Rodriguez, the Angels can shorten games, reducing the strain on their starters. Other notables in the pen include elder statesmen from the left and right side in Darren Oliver and Hector Carrasco.

Offensively, the aforementioned Matthews was the biggest acquisition this offseason, and I’m not the only one with doubts about his ability to live up to the 5-year $50 million deal he signed. Regardless, Stoneman’s repeated refusals to trade Ervin Santana and other young talents for a power bat to hit behind Vladimir Guerrero will not be assuaged by his signing of Matthews. I thought this was a bad deal from the beginning, and it’s not getting any better with the news that Matthews’ name has been linked to the latest steroid bust. The book on Matthews is that he covers a ton of ground in center and finally came into his own as an offensive player last season. Even so, it’s hard not to be skeptical about a guy who’s 32 and playing for his 8th different team. There’s a reason why 7 others have let him go, and it was never just because they couldn’t afford him.

Even without a big bat behind him, Guerrero is still a force. He’s got the most expansive plate coverage in the game, with the ability to hit a ball from his shoetops to his eyeballs…with power. Of course this hurts him at times, especially when he chases breaking balls he couldn’t hit with a palm tree. Regardless, Guerrero has been remarkably consistent in his three years with the Angels (2004: 39/126/.337, 2005: 32/108/.317, 2006: 33/116/.329), managing to play in 156, 141, and 156 games despite several nagging injuries.

Joining Matthews and Vlad in the outfield is the longest tenured Angel, Garrett Anderson, whose 14-year career dates back to the days of the ‘California’ Angels. His numbers have dropped since his peak from 2000-2003 when he averaged 30 homers and 120 RBI, but he’s still a nice bat to have in the lineup every day, albeit not as feared as he once was. The Angels need something like 20 homers and 90 RBI from Anderson this eason, not too much to ask considering he posted 17 and 85 last season. In what could be his final year with the Angels, Anderson could be a key veteran presence in the lineup.

Around the infield the Angels are strong and getting stronger. Chone Figgins seems to have finally found a position at third, and he does a little bit of everything at the plate. He’s got enough power to keep the outfield honest, and the speed to turn any sloppy play into extra bases, exactly what you look for in a leadoff hitter. At short, Orlando Cabrera had an uncharacteristically poor defensive season with 16 errors, and could be pushed by shortstop prospects Erick Aybar and Brandon Wood, both highly touted and moving quickly through LA’s system. Howie Kendrick finally gets his chance to be the full-time second baseman after the club opted not to bring back Adam Kennedy. Kendrick looked pretty good in 72 games (mostly playing first base) last season, but that wasn’t nearly enough time to see what he can do. If he can become a decent defensive second baseman and exhibit the pop he showed in the minor leagues the Angels will be very content.

First base is a crapshoot as Casey Kotchman has yet to grab the reins at the position despite several opportunities over the past three seasons. He has yet to play more than 50 games in the bigs, and without Kendrick blocking him this year, 2007 may be his best shot yet. He’ll split time with Robb Quinlan  who is in the same boat, never topping 86 games or hitting more than 9 home runs for the Angels.  

Newly signed Shea ‘Sinking Ship’ Hillenbrand will be the primary DH, but when (if) Juan Rivera returns from the broken left leg he suffered playing winter ball in Venezuela Hillenbrand will probably see a lot of time at first base, supplanting Kotchman and/or Quinlan. Rivera, a young talent traded away by the Yankees, came into his own last season, batting .310 with 23 HR in only 124 games. The club was looking forward to a big year from the 28-year-old, but may have to wait until 2008 for his breakout.

Behind the plate the Angels still have a Molina (Jose), but second-year man Mike Napoli will be the starter. Napoli smacked 16 homers in just 268 at-bats last season, his first, but the .228 average he had to go with them is cause for concern. If he can hit the 25-30 dingers that his rookie numbers project to and boost his average up over .250, he should firmly establish himself as a solid everyday catcher.

The team is thin on the bench, so a serious injury to any of the key bats could be devastating. The forecast for LA depends on health, and there are question marks. Still, if Colon can regain any semblance of his Cy Young form, Matthews can get past this latest steroid cloud to approach last season’s numbers, and the rest of the team avoid any long DL stints, this team could make a run to the World Series. It would also be a big help if the GM would saddle up and deal the future for the present at the trade deadline to make this the year the Angels finally get someone to support Guerrero in the lineup.

Even absent a big-time deal, injuries are the only thing that can keep the Angels from winning a competitive, but weakened AL West. If the big guns l stay healthy, LA looks like a World Series team, but one or two big injuries and they’ll be lucky to make the playoffs.