27-year old righty starting pitcher Jered Weaver has really been outstanding for the Angels this year. He has started 29 games for the Angels this year and he is 11-11 with a 3.14 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP. Weaver has whiffed 205 batters (a new career high) in 189 innings this season while allowing only 158 hits showing just how nasty he has been this year. Weaver has also had pinpoint control this year as he has only walked 51 batters this year. He has now pitched in 139 games (all starts) in his five years with the Angels and he is 62-38 with a 3.60 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP. He is now the unquestioned ace of the Los Angeles Angels.

34-year old outfielder will be the only player on the Angels that won’t get the All-Star Break off as he has made the team. Hunter has played in 79 games for the Angels this season and he is 85 of 289 (.294 avg, .899 OPS) with 49 runs scored, 14 homers, 60 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. This will be Hunter’s 4th All-Star Game appearance and he certainly deserves it as his bat has been carrying the Angels’ offense. Don’t forget his outstanding glove work which could help the A.L. win the game next week.

UPDATE: (7/6/2010) - Jered Weaver has been selected to the American League All-Star team to replace C.C. Sabathia who won’t be able to pitch in the game. Weaver has started 17 games for the Angels this year and he is 8-3 with a 2.82 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP. He has only given up 89 hits in 108 2/3 innings while whiffing a league leading 124 batters. Weaver finally gets his due as he deserved to be picked to the All-Star team initially as he has pitched better than Sabathia this year.

31-year old righty starting pitcher Joel Pineiro is off to a good start for the Angels this season. He has started 2 games for the Angels and he is 1-1 with a 2.77 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP so far this year. He has only given up 10 hits while whiffing 9 batters in 13 innings so far this season. Pineiro has only walked 3 batters this season and his control was his strength last year so I have little doubt that he can keep up the good work.

Jered Weaver was really outstanding in his start over the weekend against the A’s as he looked like a real stopper. Weaver has started 2 games for the Angels so far this season and he is 1-0 with a 3.00 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP. He has only given up 9 hits in 12 innings this season while whiffing 13 batters. I look for him to keep up the good work as his fastball has a lot of gettyup so far this season.

The Red Sox were supposed to have a huge edge in the bullpen but the Angels are proving that wrong. Brian Fuentes, Darren Oliver and Kevin Jepsen have combined to work 3 1/3 scoreless innings allowing only 2 hits and 1 walk while whiffing 2 batters. With the starters working deep into the game is has masked what had been a problem earlier this season for the Angels. But, the bullpen is looking sharp so far for the Angels in the playoffs and they have their fingers crossed hoping it will continue.

John Lackey and Jered Weaver have been outstanding for the Angels in this series as they have outpitched John Lester and Josh Beckett in this series. They have combined to work 14 2/3 innings in which they have allowed only 6 hits, 1 earned run and they have whiffed 11 batters. Lackey and Weaver are 2-0 in this series with a 0.61 ERA and a 0.61 WHIP! The Angels hope they get a good start out of Scott Kazmir tomorrow so that they can put the final nail in the Red Sox’ coffin.

30-year old righty reliever Jason Bulger has always had good stuff but he didn’t put everything together until this year. Bulger has pitched in 62 games out of the pen for the Angels this season and he is 6-1 with 1 save, a 3.38 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP. He has whiffed 64 batters in 64 innings this season for the Angels while only allowing 45 hits showing how nasty his stuff has been. The Angels hope that he keeps up the good work in the playoffs. Previously to this season, Bulger pitched in 31 games (0 starts) in the majors and he was 1-0 with a 6.35 ERA and a 1.62 WHIP.

Matt Palmer has done whatever the Angels needed this season. He has pitched in 36 games (12 starts) for the Angels this season and he is 10-1 with a 4.02 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. The Angels signed him as a free agent for depth at AAA not really expecting him to help them this season but they struck gold with him. Palmer will likely stay in the bullpen for the Angels for the playoffs unless they incur some injuries in the rotation.

Scott Kazmir has been electric since coming over from the Rays last month. He has started 3 games for the Angels and he is 0-1 with a 1.86 ERA and a 0.98 WHIP. Kazmir’s velocity appears back as well as his sharp breaking slider. But he hasn’t won a game since coming over to the West Coast. That’s because the Angels have not hit the ball well when he has been pitching. Look for Kazmir to get some wins soon as the Angels’ offense is too good to not hit randomly when he pitches.

Right handed pitcher Matt Palmer has been a lifesaver for the Angels’ pitching staff filling in wherever they have needed him whether in the rotation or the bullpen. Palmer has pitched in 22 games (12 starts) for the Angels this season and he is 9-1 with a 4.52 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. Look for the Angels to continue moving Palmer around this season as he has given them a lot of solid innings.