For a long time Vladimir Guerrero was a fan favorite of many Anaheim Angels supporters and when the Angels traded him away ths off-season the thought from most Angels fans was that Big Daddy Vladdy was done and that his best years were behind him...
Fast forward a few months and Vlad Guerrero is hitting well over .300 and has already belted 16 home runs and the guy the Angels picked up to replace him, Hideki Matsui, is struggling currently hitting .256 with only 10 home runs.
Personally I think it's great that Vladdy is having a resurgence in Texas but let's not forget that he's also hitting in one of the most hitter freindly parks in all of baseball. Before Colorado, Texas is where pitchers went to die...
And as much as I love Vladimir Guerrero, he was my favorite Angel for as long as he was here, I still believe that it's too early to pass any judgment on this trade.
The Anaheim Angels signed Hideki Matsui because he's a clutch hitter as evidenced by his winning the World Series MVP trophy last year with the New York Yankees.
With the game the season on the line I want a guy at the plate who has a discerning eye and who's done it before and that guy is Hideki Matsui. As much as I loved Vladdy it just didn't seem like he was capable of winning the big game anymore... pitchers were taking advantage of his pension for swinging at balls outside the strike zone and that was killing him.
But guys like Hideki Matsui and Bobby Abreu are patient, veteran hitters who only swing at strikes and wait for their pitch to drive into the gap. Those are the kind of guys you want at the plate for you at the end of the game...
Personally I'm ecstatic about the fact that Vlad Guerrero is experiencing a resurgence but the question I have to ask myself is will he hold up in the second half?
Matsui has been doing this for years now in the MLB. This is almost his MO now... He slumps during the middle of the season and then finishes strong when he needs to.
And that's a good thing because it looks like the Anaheim Angels will need him to finish strong this season...
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