Los Angeles Angels: The next week will be very telling

The Los Angeles Angels have been floating around .500 all season long and the next calendar week will be telling of where the team truly stands.

The Los Angeles Angels certainly are talented. It is hard to deny the talent of Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani and several of the breakout offensive players from this season. Heck, the team even boasts some solid bullpen arms that have been good for the team thus far this year.

However, the good and the bad on the Angels roster has been weighed out evenly this year. For every good offensive standout, there is a struggling bat. For each good bullpen arm, there is a struggling starting pitcher, making up one of the worst rotations thus far this year.

What has happened as a result is a team that has floated around and slightly under .500 all season long. The Angels’ best record this year has been one game over .500, which last occurred in mid-April. However, the Angels still remain just four games out of the wild card.

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As long as the Angels can keep hanging in there they will be fine, there is always the threat of a hot streak that can propel them into the standings. And while that is certainly possible once Justin Upton and Andrelton Simmons return, we have not yet seen anything out of the Angels that indicates they are a playoff team.

That is why the next week will be so proving for the Halos.

This will upset some Angel fans but the fact of the matter is that the Angels have not yet proven this season that they can make a push for the playoffs. That does not mean it is not possible, but they need to piece together some big wins over some big opponents to get that point across.

The Angels have had 28 games against teams over .500 this season, in which they hold an 11-17 record. For comparison’s sake, every single team that is currently in playoff position has at least a .500 record against teams over .500. The Boston Red Sox are the only team worse than the Angels that are also within three games of the standings.

The Los Angeles Angels get a chance to prove themselves against winning teams over the next week. The Halos start a two-game series with the Los Angeles Dodgers at home on Monday before starting a four-game road series against the Tampa Bay Rays after an off-day on Wednesday.

Record-wise, the Dodgers have been the best team in baseball thus far this year and have a 20-8 record against teams under .500. Splitting the series would be great for the Angels, winning the series would be a huge statement that could build some momentum into the series in Tampa Bay.

The Rays are 39-24 this season with a 21-8 record against teams below .500. Winning a four-game series against them, especially on the road, can carry that momentum into a very winnable series against Toronto.

Winning four out of six would be huge for the Angels. It might not put them over .500 but it will at least prove that they can hang with playoff teams. Winning five or six (which is a big task) would put the team over .500 and officially enter them in the playoff discussion.

On the other hand, this tough string of games could also derail the Angels. These teams are good for a reason and if the Angels look like they do not belong then it will be obvious how they stack up against playoff-worthy opposition.

Of course, the season is not decided in June and either way, the Los Angeles Angels are going to have to continue to trend upwards to get into a wild card spot.

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But while the season might not be decided in June, the next week may give us a sneak peek on what the Angels are capable of the rest of the way.

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