Freeway Series, Part 1 Preview: A Tale of the Tape

To be brutally blunt, this would have seemed like a mismatch a month ago.

Now, not so much as part one of the annual Freeway Series between Los Angeles’ two Major League Baseball teams, the Dodgers and the Angels, commences tonight and the next two nights at Dodger Stadium, with part two being at Angels Stadium in Anaheim on June 22-24.

Here’s a Tale of the Tape-style preview of the two clubs:

In the red corner: THE LOS ANGELES ANGELS      

Record: 32-29, second place in the American League West, three games behind Texas

Albert Pujols has risen from the dead these last few weeks, raising his average to .256 after hitting below .200 at one point, with nine home runs and 36 RBIs. second on the Angels.

Mike Trout and Mark Trumbo, however, are the biggest reasons why the Angels have won 14 of their last 18 games and have climbed into contention as Trout, a 20-year old rookie whose tools are off the charts, is leading the team with a .350 average 13 stolen bases, as well as having five homers and 24 ribbies and making spectacular catches left and right since being called up from Triple-A.

Trumbo, after having pretty much failed at third base at the beginning of the season, has been a flat-out monster as he drove in a career-high six runs with two home runs in the Angels 10-8 win in Colorado yesterday. His 14 dingers and 39 RBIs lead the team and he’ll be a major concern for the Dodgers this week.

As for pitching, Jered Weaver is on the disabled list after throwing a no-hitter earlier in the year, but C.J. Wilson is doing well with a 7-4 record and a 2.39 earned run average.

In the blue corner: THE LOS ANGELES DODGERS

Record: 39-22 (best in MLB), first place in the National League West, five games in front of San Francisco

A prominent sign of a good team is when that team keeps on winning despite the loss of their superstar.

That has described the Dodgers these past few weeks as despite Matt Kemp being on the DL due to re-injuring his hamstring, they went 7-3 on their last road trip, sweeping Philadelphia in four straight – the first time that has happened since 1946 – in the process.

After being cast off by the Angels after the season’s first few weeks, Bobby Abreu has done more than an admirable job in filling in for Kemp, batting .326, while Andre Ethier’s 52 RBIs leads the National League; he hit a grand slam against Seattle yesterday to reach that total, to go along with his ten home runs, and Tony Gwynn Jr. has done brilliantly in center field with Kemp out.

36-year old veteran Jerry Hairston, Jr. and rookie Elian Herrera have likewise stepped up, Hairston leading the Dodgers with a .356 average while Herrera has played very well since his call up from the minors, where he spent several years waiting for his chance.

A.J. Ellis has had a surprisingly strong year behind the plate so far with his .306 average, six homers and 25 RBIs, and Dee Gordon’s 16 steals are among the league’s leaders.

As for the pitching, Clayton Kershaw has been good-but-not-great, while Chad Billingsley had perhaps his strongest outing in Seattle yesterday, striking out eight in a 8-2 win.

The Los Angeles Times has reported that “…the series is expected to draw nearly 150,000 fans.”

As far as who leads the series, the all-time record stands at 50-36 Angels, as the Dodgers try to win the Freeway Series for the first time since 2006.

The pitching match-ups:

Monday, June 11:  Garrett Richards (Angels) vs. Chris Capuano (Dodgers)

Tuesday, June 12:  Jerome Williams (Angels) vs. Aaron Harang (Dodgers)

Wednesday, June 13:  C.J. Wilson (Angels) vs. Nathan Eovaldi (Dodgers)