31-year old righty Jerome Williams moved into the starting rotation in May and he has really helped them.  He has started 4 games so far this month for the Angels and he is 2-1 with a 3.24 ERA and a 1.12 WHIP.  Williams has now pitched in 12 games (4 starts) overall this year for the Angels and he is 3-1 with a 2.53 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP.  Williams has only given up 38 hits and 12 walks while whiffing 29 batters in his first 46 1/3 innings this year, which is pretty impressive.  The Angels need Williams to keep up the good work.

The Angels have claimed 27-year old righty swinging 3B Chris Nelson off waivers from the Rockies.  Nelson has played in 31 games for the Rockies and Yankees so far this year and he is 24 of 102 (.235 avg, .572 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 0 homers and 6 RBIs.  Nelson has played in 222 games in his first four years in the majors and he is 180 of 652 (.276 avg, .726 OPS) with 81 runs scored, 13 homers, 75 RBIs and 6 stolen bases.  Nelson might eat into Alberto Callaspo’s P.T. a little bit at 3B.  This was a good pickup for the Angels.

The Angels have designated 28-year old lefty swinging outfielder Scott Cousins for assignment.  Cousins played in 7 games for the Angels this year and he was 0 for 4 (.000 avg, .200 OPS) with 1 run scored.  He has now played in 135 games in his first four years in the majors and he is 32 for 179 (.179 avg, .515 OPS) with 15 runs scored, 2 homers, 9 RBIs and 2 stolen bases.  If Cousins gets claimed on waivers or leaves as a free agent, it won’t be much of a loss for the Angels.

UPDATE:  (5/22/2013) - Scott Cousins cleared waivers and he has been outrighted to AAA-ball by the Angels.

Lefty starting pitcher Jim Abbott was born without a right hand, but that didn’t stop him from getting to the major leagues and pitching well when he got there.  He would have his mitt on his stump when throwing the ball and he would flip it only his left hand to field the ball.  He burst onto the scene in 1990 with the Angels and he finished 5th in the voting for the A.L. Rookie of the Year Award.  Abbott pitched in 29 games (all starts) for the Angels in 1990 and he was 12-12 with a 3.92 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP.  But, his best season in the majors came in 1991 with the Angels, when he finished 3rd in the voting for the A.L. Cy Young Award.  Abbott pitched in 34 games (all starts) for the Angels in 1991 and he was 18-11 with a 2.89 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP.  Abbott pitched in 165 games (161 starts) in his six years with the Angels and he was 54-74 with a 4.07 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP.  Abbott might not have had the best record in his major league career, but he did throw a no-hitter with the Yankees and he proved that you can literally do anything when you put your mind to it.

The Angels have designated 27-year old righty starter/reliever Barry Enright for assignment.  He pitched in 4 games (2 starts) for the Angels this year and he was 0-2 with a 12.96 ERA and a 2.28 WHIP.  Enright has now pitched in 31 games (26 starts) in his first four years in the majors and he is 7-13 with a 5.57 ERA and a 1.47 WHIP.  This isn’t much of a loss for the Angels moving forward as Enright was horrible for them this year.

UPDATE:  (5/18/2013) - Barry Enright has cleared waivers and he has been outrighted to AAA ball by the Angels.

21-year old righty swinging LF Mike Trout is having a solid year for the Angels in 2013.  He has played in 38 games for the Angels so far this year and he is 45 of 159 (.283 avg, .851 OPS) with 24 runs scored, 6 homers, 25 RBIs and 6 stolen bases.  A lot of people are likely a little down on Trout, as he is coming nowhere near his production level of 2012.  He played in 139 games for the Angels last year and he was 182 of 559 (.326 avg, .963 OPS) with 129 runs scored, 30 homers, 83 RBIs and 49 stolen bases.  Still, Trout has been one of the most productive hitters on the Angels so far this year and he could go on a tear at any time with the bat.

23-year old righty swinging 1B C.J. Cron is off to a good start in the minors for the Angels.  He has played in 31 games in AA-ball so far this year and he is 36 for 119 (.303 avg, .772 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 1 homer, 17 RBIs and 4 stolen bases.  Cron has now played in 194 games in his first three years in the minors and he is 234 of 787 (.297 avg, .861 OPS) with 112 runs scored, 41 homers, 181 RBIs and 7 stolen bases.  Cron is the Angels’ #3 prospect according to Baseball America.

Mike Trout, Albert Pujols and Josh Hamilton get all of the headlines, but 27-year old righty swinging 1B/DH Mark Trumbo has been the best hitter on the Angels so far this year.  He has played in 33 games for the Angels so far this year and he is 39 for 134 (.291 avg, .910 OPS) with 17 runs scored, 9 homers, 23 RBIs and 1 stolen base.  He has whiffed 39 times so far this year, but the Angels will accept the whiffs for the power that Trumbo provides them.  Trumbo has now played in 334 games in his first four years with the Angels and he is 323 of 1,232 (.262 avg, .795 OPS) with 150 runs scored, 70 homers, 207 RBIs and 14 stolen bases.

31-year old lefty swinging outfielder Josh Hamilton played in 148 games for the Rangers last year and he was 160 for 562 (.285 avg, .930 OPS) with 103 runs scored, 43 homers, 128 RBIs and 7 stolen bases.  The Angels then gave him a 5-year, $133 million deal over the winter.  He has been a utter bust so far this year.  Hamilton has played in 29 games for the Angels so far this year and he is 25 for 120 (.208 avg, .544 OPS) with 11 runs scored, 2 homers, 9 RBIs and 1 stolen base.  Hamilton has only walked 6 times while whiffing 37 times so far this year, which is pretty pathetic.  The Angels need Hamilton to start swinging the bat like he can.

31-year old righty Jerome Williams is going to move into the starting rotation to replace 24-year old righty Garrett Richards.  Williams has pitched in 8 games (0 starts) for the Angels so far this year and he is 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP.  Richards was only 1-2 with a 5.54 ERA and a 1.12 WHIP in his first four starts of the 2013 season.  Richards has pitched in 8 games (4 starts) overall this year and he is 1-2 with a 5.04 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP.  The Angels hope that Richards turns things around in the pen, as they have high hopes for him.