ANAHEIM -- As the Angels recline in their respective easy chairs and take in a playoff game or two, the underlying sentiment will be the feeling of missed opportunity.
To a man in the clubhouse -- as they dutifully packed their belongings for a long winter's nap that does not include the postseason for the first time in three years -- is the notion that they simply didn't get it done.
"I'm disappointed, because we aren't going to Minnesota," Scot Shields said following Sunday's regular-season finale. "We're a little jealous. It's a bitter taste right now, and, hopefully, we'll be able to change that next year."
The Angels had made a habit of reaching the playoffs after winning two straight American League West titles leading into the 2006 season. Those expectations existed throughout, and while they put together a solid record of 89-73 that included a strong second-half push, it was not enough to ease their pain.
"Every time you don't go to the playoffs, for me, the season is a failure," said Orlando Cabrera, who won a ring with the Red Sox in 2004 and reached the American League Championship Series last season with the Angels. "That's my personal feeling."
It was the fourth year in Mike Scioscia's seven seasons as manager that the Angels were unable to reach the postseason, but the club is taking a forward view.
"You're disappointed any time you don't make the playoffs, and, naturally, we're disappointed. When we were eliminated last week, it was a tough night for all of us, but moving forward there were a lot of good things that happened on the field this year," Scioscia said. "I think we want to make sure to evaluate the good things and make sure they continue. And things where you need more depth and need to adjust, you'll make adjustments in the offseason.
"I think we're all proud of the way the guys kept going from 11 games under .500 to finishing up almost touching 20 games over .500. That's a great accomplishment. These guys played hard all year. There is nothing to hang their heads about."
Rising stars: Making a significant contribution for much of the year was an unlikely group.
Without the play of a solid crop of rookies and players like Juan Rivera and Maicer Izturis, who went from reserves to starters, the Angels would not have been near the top of the division. Many feel that is a positive indicator for the future.
"There were guys who stepped up: Rivera, Izturis, the guys that did things that nobody thought they could do by playing every day, showing up every night and playing hard and had a great season," Cabrera said. "You have [Jered] Weaver and [Joe] Saunders, [Mike] Napoli in that month when he was hitting, he was raking. All that stuff. When you see guys like that stepping up when guys are down and they elevate the way we played. That teaches us a lot and shows us that for next year it could be a different year for us."
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Notes: Angels have offseason to recover
Notes: Angels have offseason to recover
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