The Angels were in contention for the postseason until the final week of the season, and they did so after being 11 games under the .500 mark as late as May 22.
Poor defense and lack of run production contributed to their rocky start, but the offense picked up and hit full stride in July, when the club posted a Major League best 19-6 record.
Unable to land a big bat at the trading deadline, the Angels filled the gaps with a platoon at first (Robb Quinlan and Howie Kendrick generated some offense), lineup switches (Maicer Izturis replaced Chone Figgins atop the order in September to fuel a late-season run) and, of course, pitching.
The cumulative result was a team that more closely resembled a two-time defending champion in the American League West than the one that spent long stretches in last place during the first half of the season.
Despite posting one of the best records in baseball from July 1 on, though, the Angels were unable to catch the A's, who set a torrid pace in August and held off the Angels in the last month to win their first division title since 2003.
Record: 89-73, second in AL West
Defining moment: True to their character, the Angels shrugged off their poor start and returned to the race to give the A's a run. Late in the season, the Angels were still eight games out with nine to play, but John Lackey took the hill with a not-on-my-watch attitude and limited the A's to a pair of runs, while the offense posted a four-run inning to erase a 2-1 deficit and come away with a victory. Ervin Santana followed up the next day with a one-run performance, and the Angels went home for the final week still alive in the hunt.
What went right: In a basic rerun of 2005, the Angels were paced by a solid pitching staff, both in the rotation and in the bullpen. Despite losing Bartolo Colon for most of the year, the starting pitching was brilliant with rookies such as Jered Weaver and Joe Saunders stepping into key roles, and Santana improving in his second year. Francisco Rodriguez became the league's dominant closer.
What went wrong: Unlike the pitching that followed suit from a year earlier, the defense could not make the same claim. The Angels were among baseball's best fielding teams in 2005, but fell to the bottom of that category in 2006. Part of the blame can be levied on the fact they were forced to use a revolving door at first base with the loss of Casey Kotchman, but the team made more mental errors than usual. Orlando Cabrera more than doubled his error total, going from seven in '05 to 16 in '06. The offense also struggled to score runs.
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Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim : News : Los Angeles Angels News
Angels season in review
Angels season in review
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