Ken Griffey Jr. is undoubtedly one of the most exciting players to play the game of baseball and one of the game’s greatest. (Image Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports)

Twenty five players have hit 500+ home runs in their careers, a very unique group that share something special from their respective Major League careers. Only one of them is still considered active – Alex Rodriguez, who’s stuck at 647 career home runs considering he’s been injured and inactive all season long. Albert Pujols very well may the next to join the exclusive club, as he leads all other active players with 484.

Eight years ago today, baseball saw something even more unique, as three members of this exclusive club all played on the same field together – the largest collection of 500+ home run hitters to appear in one game together (non All Star games, of course).

On June 10, 2005 the Baltimore Orioles found themselves facing the Cincinnati Reds in an interleague matchup. Baltimore would end up winning the game by a score of 4-3, thanks largely to a three run outburst in the 3rd inning that put them ahead early. The Orioles lineup featured a pair of 500+ home run hitters in first baseman Rafael Palmeiro and right fielder Sammy Sosa – both on the tail ends of their respective careers. Across the diamond with the Reds was another member of the club, center fielder Ken Griffey Jr. – who actually homered in the game, the 511th of his career.

Expectations were high in Los Angeles heading into the season, both for the Dodgers and the Angels. Each team spent big, believing that they’d not only built a roster that could compete in 2013 but one that could be competitive for years to come. And yet, each team has been a disappointment.

While optimism may remain on some fronts, there are some segments of each team’s respective fanbases that have clearly come to accept the fact that the playoffs just simply in the cards this year. In the case of Saxon Baird at Halo Hangout, however, the playoffs aren’t in the picture for the Angels in the next four years. His realization is due to a combination of factors – long term contracts, increasing age, and a weak farm system. Baird ultimately thinks that it’s also a detriment that the team remains in what he calls “constant contender mode”. We’ll let him explain:

Even when the odds of making the playoffs have seemed slim at the trade deadline in past years, the Angels refuse to become sellers. Instead, the front office has remained in “constant contender mode.” regardless of their 2013 season results, this approach seems likely to continue. A terrible win-loss record is one thing but once you start trading big name players, you’ve raised the white flag and the fans stop coming to the ballpark. Even in a lousy season, there are reasons to come the games when big name players are on your roster. Weaver can still throw a gem, Trout can still make a spectacular catch and Pujols or Trumbo can still hit a monster home run. When those players are traded, then the reasons to attend a game become few and far between. Look at the Marlins and the Astros attendance as an example.

Interviews are usually left up to the national writers, particularly the in-person opportunities, but every once in awhile one of our gets a unique chance. Such an event took place just this past week, as Ehsan Kassim at Marlin Maniac was able to corner Logan Morrison for a few minutes following one of his latest rehab games with the Jacksonville Suns. The pair talked about returning from injury, Twitter, and the Marlins future pipeline of prospects.

Billy Buckner threw five shutout innings on Saturday for the Angels and wound up designated for assignment on Sunday. (Image Credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports)

Less than 24 hours after throwing five shutout innings against the Kansas City Royals, the Los Angeles Angels have designated Billy Buckner for assignment, according to a release by the team. The move was made in order to make room for Kevin Jepsen to be activated from the disabled list.

Buckner’s spent most of the season with the Angels’ Triple-A affiliate, going 4-2 with a 4.56 ERA in 8 starts (47.1 IP). The start Saturday was his first appearance of the season in the Major Leagues after failing to win a spot on the team’s roster out of Spring Training and his first in the Major Leagues since 2010. With that win he’s 7-11 with a 6.03 ERA over 143.1 IP for his career, making 37 appearances and 22 starts over parts of five seasons with the Royals and Arizona Diamondbacks. Buckner joined the Angels on a minor league deal this past November.

Jepsen had been sidelined with a strained lat muscle in his right side. He’s thrown just 3.2 IP for the Angels on the year in six appearances, with a 9.82 ERA and 1.636 WHIP.

May 21, 2013; Anaheim, CA, USA; Los Angeles Angels center fielder Mike Trout (27) reacts after being doused with water after the game against the Seattle Mariners at Angel Stadium. Trout hit for the cycle in the 12-0 victory. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

After a mortal performance in April, Mike Trout has been returning to the form that made him a popular choice as 2012′s American League MVP (but eventual runner up).

He punctuated a hot month of May on Tuesday night by hitting for the cycle in the Los Angeles Angels 12-0 win over the Seattle Mariners. He had five RBI in the win.

Here’s how it happened:

• First inning: Trout strikes out looking on three pitches from Mariners starter Aaron Harang.
• Third inning: Trout hits a one out single to first.
• Fourth inning: The second pitch of the at bat is ripped to right center and Trout gets a triple.
• Sixth inning: Trout doubles into the left field corner with the bases loaded.
• Eighth inning: With one out, Trout homers to center field off of Lucas Luetge.

It was Trout’s first three hit game of the year (and obviously his first four hit game as well). Trout scuffled a bit to start the year, carrying a mere .261/.333/.432 line with him into May. Entering Tuesday night’s game, though, Trout had a .308/.410/.662 line in May, and his outburst against the Mariners upped that line to .343/.434/.757 this month and he’s now sporting a .293/.373/.558 slash line this season.

Trout, at 21 years and 287 days old, is the fifth youngest player to hit for the cycle. Only Mel Ott (20 years, 75 days in 1929), Cliff Heathcote (20 years, 140 days in 1918), Arky Vaughan (21 years, 107 days in 1933), and Cesar Cedeno (21 years, 159 days in 1972) were younger.

Having been claimed off of waivers by the Los Angeles Angels, Chris Nelson finds himself on the move to his third organization this season. (Image Credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports)

Infielder Chris Nelson is on the move once again, having been claimed off of waivers by the Los Angeles Angels. The New York Yankees had designated Nelson for assignment just a few days ago after acquiring him earlier this month from the Colorado Rockies.

Nelson has hit just .235/.269/.304 in 108 PA on the year between the two teams, exclusively playing third base. He’s seen some time elsewhere in the infield during his brief MLB career, but has failed to produce enough offensively to justify receiving regular playing time. In 701 career plate appearances he’s mustered a .276/.318/.408 line, but has struck out nearly four times for every walk. Nelson was originally the 9th overall pick in the 2004 Draft by the Rockies

With the Angels, Nelson will likely work into the bench mix as an option behind both Alberto Callaspo and Erick Aybar. Much of the other infielders in the organization’s top levels fit a similar mold to that of Nelson – defensively versatile with little offensive punch and none of them have received any significant time at the Major League level at this point in their careers. Los Angeles has designated outfielder Scott Cousins for assignment in order to make room for Nelson on the active and 40-man rosters.

Roger Clemens is responsible for two of the four 20 strikeout performances in MLB history, but isn’t the record in all of baseball history. (Image Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports)

The modern MLB record for strikeouts in a nine inning game stands at twenty. Roger Clemens was the first to accomplish the achievement, striking out twenty Seattle Mariners in 1986 while with the Boston Red Sox. He’d match his own mark ten years later, versus the Detroit Tigers. Clemens is responsible for two of the four instances in which this record has happened.

Kerry Wood became the first to tie Clemens, mowing down 20 Houston Astros in 1998. Randy Johnson would also match the feat in 2001, though he doesn’t quite get the same attention for it considering the Arizona Diamondbacks and Cincinnati Reds went into extra innings that day. Johnson would only pitch the first nine innings of the game, before the bullpen took over for the final two.

Oddly the 20 strikeout game isn’t the record for all of professional baseball, as amazingly enough, Ron Necciai struck out 27 batters in a nine inning game on this day in 1952.

Necciai was pitching in the Appalachian League, for the Bristol Twins, when he accomplished the achievement. He’d throw a no-hitter that day against the Welch Miners, allowing just a handful of balls being put into play. Necciai had “just” 25 strikeouts heading into the 9th inning. With two outs in the inning his catcher, Harry Dunlop, dropped the third strike and allowed the runner to reach base. That brought one more batter to the plate, whom Necciai struck out for #27 on the day.

He’d strike out 24 in his next outting and would work his way up to join the Pittsburgh Pirates before the season ended. Necciai would go 1-6 with a 7.08 ERA over 54.2 IP with the Pirates, striking out 31 while walking 32. He’d tear his rotator cuff and be forced to retire less than a year after his historic performance.

And now, for some of the original work from around FSMLB this past week.

An offseason of spending prior to the 2012 season placed the Los Angeles Angels among the favorites to win the World Series. Things didn’t work out as planned last season, so the team spent big again this past winter. Yet, after a dreadful start to the 2013 season there’s a segment of the fanbase that sees the writing on the wall and is already looking to make some changes. It’s kind of the same thing that happened to the Los Angeles Lakers, as Mark Smith of Halo Hangout discussed. The organization spends big to bring in the big name veterans – the Angels signing Josh Hamilton this past winter, following the Lakers bringing aboard Steve Nash and Dwight Howard – but the results aren’t matching the expectations. More from Mark:

You would think that a lineup littered with offensive talent (i.e. Trout, Trumbo, Hamilton and Pujols) would be able to put up enough runs to offset the deficiencies of a thin pitching staff.  At least that’s what DiPoto thought – and I’d be lying if I told you that I didn’t think his strategy might actually work.  Granted, 34 games may not be a large enough sample size, but it’s safe to say that we don’t like what we’ve seen thus far.  The pitching has been mediocre at best and the offensive production has been incredibly anemic at times.

Meanwhile, the team most-notorious for their “big spending ways”, the New York Yankees, have managed to climb atop the AL East despite having a sizeable portion of their payroll on the disabled list for much of the season to date. There’s positive news coming, however, as the Yankees are close to getting Curtis Granderson back in the lineup. While the role players that the team brought in have filled in admirably, someone will still need to go in order to make room for the team’s starting center fielder to return and Hunter Farman at Yanks Go Yard went over some of the options.

Granderson’s return to the Yankees will certainly be a welcome one as he provides both offense and defense to the team. It is also reported that Grandy will even play the corner outfield positions when he comes back, and not just centerfield. This allows the Yankees to keep Brett Gardner, who is the much better fielder, in the position that requires a very speedy, defensive player. What the Yankees do when Granderson comes back will be interesting as they have a few options, but when he does return, it will ultimately be for the better.

Los Angeles Angels right fielder Josh Hamilton has got a big swing, but he hasn’t been connecting as often as usual for his new team in 2013. Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

How is it that owner Arte Moreno goes out and spends more money than anyone else in the baseball world two years running to pluck the best-hitting free agent on the market and his team gets worse?

Don’t you think he is sitting in the owner’s box quietly fuming, wondering just what the heck is going on with his sure-fire investments? Coup no. 1 was signing Albert Pujols for the 2012 season. Maybe he paid a little bit too much for too long, but did anyone believe that Albert wasn’t going to remain one of the premier hitters in the game for another four years or so? Well, it hasn’t worked that way, not yet at least.

Coup no. 2 was signing Josh Hamilton for the 2013 season. Once again it could be questioned whether Hamilton was paid too much for too long, but he was a stud hitter bound to produce big numbers for another three years, at least. Yet Hamilton has done nada.

And the scariest part of the whole shebang is that the Angels are fighting it out for the cellar of the American League West Division with the Houston Astros, not fighting it out for the division crown with the Texas Rangers. The Angels are two-and-a-half games ahead of the Astros and nine games behind the Rangers.

Now it is only mid-May, so all hope is not lost, especially given the way the Rangers forfeited its early-season lead last year. But after spending big and shaping what he thought might have been a World Series contender last year, Moreno couldn’t have been too happy to find himself as the boss of a team that missed the playoffs altogether. And the Angels are on the same grim path right now.

At the end of the baseball day Thursday Pujols was batting .238. He did have five home runs and 19 RBIs, which is OK, but his average is around his weight. Hamilton had four home runs and 11 runs batted in and was batting .213 and that’s primarily because he’s been on a hot streak lately. Each of these guys is earning around $25 million a year.

Now Pujols and Hamilton are perfectly capable of going on huge, month-long tears, where they do the Roy Hobbs-knock-the-cover-off-the-ball thing. Anyone who is a real baseball fan would like to see them break out of their slumps and get their numbers back into the stratosphere. This has nothing to do with being an Angels fan, though of course they are the most disappointed among the spectators.

From age 21 to 30, Pujols was being compared to the best players in the history of the game. Then, in 2011 he got stuck on 99 RBIs and a .299 batting average, the first time he missed out on 100 and .300 in his career. Last year he started very slowly, but ended up with 30 homers and 105 RBIs, but had the lowest average of his career at .285.

So what’s up with Pujols? There have been some injuries, but none that knocked him out for a season, or most of one. His on-base-percentage has sunk like the Titantic, over the last three seasons dropping from .366 in 2011 to .322 this season after a more normal .414 in 2010. Pujols is only 33, so he is not too old. But something is off, for sure.

As for Hamilton, for the last several years he has been the most feared slugger in the American League. He won a Most Valuable Player award. He won a batting title. Wherever he traveled he bashed dents into outfield walls with his line drives when his fly balls weren’t carrying over them.

Suddenly he can’t hit at all. Going into the weekend Hamilton had 41 strikeouts to eight walks. That’s the kind of flailing reserved for rookies who don’t recognize the curveball. Hamilton smacked 43 home runs with 128 RBIs last year and he is just 31.

It was considered very unlikely that the Angels would take a run at Hamilton after signing Pujols to a long-term deal the year before. It is almost impossble for the average fan to believe that both men lost their hitting stroke as soon as they moved to the West Coast.

And if baseball fans can’t fathom it, how do you think Arte Moreno feels? He thought he was hiring a modern-day Babe Ruth-Lou Gehrig combo. So far he probably feels he ended up with Abbott and Costello instead.

Rounding the bases for his 19th inning walk-off homer, Oakland Athletics first baseman Brandon Moss gave the A’s the victory early Tuesday morning after most fans left. Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Every once in a while it’s fun to have a baseball game that is long enough for you to watch the first pitch and the last pitch and get a good night’s sleep in-between. That’s what the Monday-Tuesday Oakland A’s-Los Angeles Angels game offered.

Oakland won, 10-8, on a walkoff homer by Brandon Moss in the 19th inning, ending the contest after 6 hours and 32 minutes at 1:41 a.m. Pacific time. There were only 11,668 fans in O.co Coliseum when the game began and there were many fewer around when it ended because they had left for breakfast. So the A’s and Angels played more than the equivalent of two games to get one result.

As Oakland manager Bob Melvin said, “Good game to win, bad game to lose.”

The funny thing was that on the other side of the country another game was going on and on trying to outlast the West Coast kids. The Miami Marlins beat the New York Mets, 4-3, in 15 innings in the fish bowl that only took 5 hours and 31 minutes to play. That game started with 15,605 in attendance and with only hundreds left in the stands upon conclusion.

Sports is like theatre in the sense that it is live entertainment. But unlike Broadway plays, the plot is not scripted. Those who showed up for baseball in Oakland on Monday night did not expect to have to stay into Tuesday to discover who won. Not knowing what is going to happen, regardless of who is favored, is what makes watching sports so enjoyable.

Games that run to 19 innings also inevitably become statisticians’ dreams. There are always funky numbers involved in the long ones, starting with 19 innings. That’s a long game by any measure. Just a wild guess says that 90 percent of baseball fans have never sat through a game that long. No one way to know for sure, but games of that length don’t break out very often and they take some endurance to stick with. All of the people who worry about traffic, getting up on time for work, or that took their kid to a ballgame on a school night are long gone before the end.

Several guys in the lineups batted nine times in the game. The player who did the best for the Angels was Albert Pujols. Pujols walked and in his eight official at-bats he smacked four hits. He also scored three times and drove in three runs. The player who did the best for Oakland was Moss, who walked once and in his eight official at-bats had three hits, scored three runs and drove in three. Two of his hits were home runs.

Some pretty good players did serious harm to their batting averages. LA’s Mike Trout went one-for-eight, as did Oakland’s Yeonis Cespedes.

Then there was the pitching. With overprotective managers worried about overworking players, you could bet that it would a take of arms to get through 19 innings. The Angels ran out eight pitchers and Oakland did likewise, so 16 in all for the game.

Oakland’s pitchers threw 300 pitches. The Angels’ pitchers threw 297–but one too many to Moss with two outs in the bottom of the 19th.

Now mannning the outfield for the Los Angeles Angels is Josh Hamilton, the former Texas Rangers slugger. His switching teams affects the balance of power in the American League West. Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

We’re going to see the Texas Rangers first this season since they open on March 31 against that new American League acquisition the Houston Astros. But unlike several recent years the Rangers won’t be the overwhelming favorite in the American League West Division. They won’t be the favorite at all.

The Rangers reached the World Series two years in a row in 2010 and 2011, and a lot of people, including many in Arlington, Texas, believe they should have last year, too. But after fielding the best team in the AL for a couple of years the Rangers went through some upheaval in the off-season. Josh Hamilton, the team’s A-1 slugger is gone. So is long-time regular Michael Young. It’s not certain that the Rangers did an adequate job of replacing them. Infielder Jurickson Profar, a man with a name hard to pronounce seeking to become a household name, is supposed to be a rising star.

Texas pitching has more questions than Alex Trebek. Reliver Alexi Ogando is supposed to become a starter. Matt Harrison won 18 games last year, but was that a fluke or a trend? The back end of the bullpen could be great, but that depends on the bionic arms of Joe Nathan and Joakim Soria, both of whom had surgical repairs.

I think the Rangers will still be pretty good. Yu Darvish will be better on the mound and they still can hit, but I don’t see them winning the division crown. However, if they make the playoffs, and they should, as we have all seen, the Wild Card does make for some wild post-season action.

The new king of the division should be the Los Angeles Angels. They were underachievers last year, but this is a team built to go all of the way, and there is a pretty good chance the Angels will be the AL rep in the Series. If not, something is wrong on the Left Coast.

Lots of money has been invested and big names have been recruited. As long as the warm bodies don’t go cold with injuries the Angels are the team to beat. They’ve got Albert Pujols, Josh Hamilton, Mark Trumbo and Mike Trout to swing bats and Jered Weaver, C.J. Wilson, and Tommy Hanson to throw strikes.  The Angels are also counting on Ryan Madson regaining top form in the bullpen after a wasted year in the Cincinnati Reds organization where he could never pitch because of injury.

This time around I don’t think the Angels have to worry about winning the regular-season title and gaining a first-round playoff bye under the new rules.

Last year we were all shocked at the run put together by the Oakland A’s, particularly at season’s end when they caught the Rangers from behind in the standings on the season’s last day. It seemed as if Billy Beane was bucking for a sequel to the “Moneyball” movie. The low-budget franchise does it again. I find it offensive that despite Bartolo Colon‘s drug sins when he left the A’s in the lurch during the pennant race that he was re-signed, so maybe that will spoil Oakland’s good karma. But there are young arms on the roster and some of those guys like Jarrod Parker, Sean Doolittle, and Ryan Cook figure to get better.

Another team in the division trying very hard to improve is Seattle. The Mariners have spent some money, invested in new faces, should improve their won-loss record, yet may not move up in the standings even one spot. There’s too much depth in the AL West. On the other hand the Mariners might not be last again, either. That’s because the Astros have been placed in the division. Houston is the one team that all of the others in the division will beat up on all season long. The Astros are doomed to last place.

Up until last year the American League was pretty much defined by what was going on in the East Division. Right now it seems the West is the best with much more competition likely than in the East or Central divisions.

This is how I am going to call the 2013 AL West division standings: 1) Angels; 2) Rangers; 3) Athletics; 4) Mariners; 5). Astros.

Vernon Wells has seen his role reduced in Los Angeles but would have to approve a possible trade to the Yankees. (Image Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports)

Yahoo! Sports’ Jeff Passan has reported that the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Angels are discussing a deal that will send Vernon Wells to New York. Wells has a no-trade clause that he’d have to approve, but sources suggest that the two sides are ironing out details and they expect to complete a deal.

Wells has two years remaining under contract, but is schedule to earn $42 Million over that time frame. Los Angeles is believed to be sending “lots of money” back to New York in a deal, according to Passan. There do not appear to be any other details available, but talks have been confirmed by multiple sources on Twitter. It’s been suggested that the Yankees will only be parting with a “low-level minor leaguer” in the deal.

Coming off an injury shortened season in which he hit just .230/.279/.403 with 20 extra base hits (11 HR, 9 2B) in 262 plate appearances, Wells could still offer some power that is lacking in the Yankees lineup. Wells hit 31 and 25 home runs in the 2010 and 2011 seasons and could be capable of posting similar numbers with his home games coming at Yankee Stadium. However, he’s ventured into a similar category to someone like Adam Dunn – power is the only thing he brings to the table.

Wells doesn’t walk much. He’s not a threat on the bases. He won’t strike out as frequently as Dunn, but the overall package that he brings to the table from an offensive standpoint doesn’t quite match the salary he’s slated to earn.

Fortunately for New York, he’s no longer “needed” in Los Angeles with the emergence of some of the team’s younger outfielders. Mike Trout, Peter Bourjos, and Mark Trumbo can more than adequately cover the outfield and that’s before working Josh Hamilton into the mix. Wells is nothing more than an expensive bat off the bench for the Angels at this point, so the opportunity to move him off the roster in order to allow another player to take his place would be appealing. The Angels knew they’d have to pickup a portion of Wells’ salary in order to facilitate a move and they appear willing to do so here, perhaps as much as $34 Million according to the NY Post’s Joel Sherman.

New York will start the season with Curtis Granderson, Mark Teixeira, Derek Jeter, and Alex Rodriguez on the DL. Wells will step in and play left field, hoping to offer up some offense while the team awaits the rest of the lineup (sans Rodriguez) to return.

Update, 4:50 PM – Wells has approved the trade, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.

Right-hander Chad Cordero retired from baseball in 2011, but after signing a minor league contract with the Angels will make a comeback attempt. (Image Credit: Creative Commons Search via Wikipedia)

Former All Star reliever Chad Cordero is attempting to make a comeback and has signed a minor league contract with the Los Angeles Angels, according to an announcement on his own Twitter page. The deal does not appear to include an invitation to Spring Training.

Cordero was originally a 1st Round pick in the 2003 Draft by the Montreal Expos and was the on the fast track to the Major Leagues, making his debut before the season concluded. He made 305 appearances over the next six seasons, posting a 20-14 record with 128 saves for the Expos and Washington Nationals franchise. He added a 2.78 ERA and 1.198 WHIP over 320.2 IP. By the end of the 2004 season Cordero had assumed the team’s closer’s role. He’d make the NL All Star squad in 2005 while on his way to a franchise-best 47 save season.

Cordero would undergo surgery to repair a torn labrum following the 2008 season and has seen his career derailed since. He last pitched in the Major Leagues with the Seattle Mariners in 2010.

Prior to the 2011 season Cordero had signed a minor league deal with the Toronto Blue Jays, would be released in May, and would end up pitching for the Independent League St. Paul Saints. Mid-June he somewhat surprisingly announced his retirement. Cordero’s family had dealt with a terrible tragedy that Spring, the sudden death of his infant daughter, and it’s believed that he needed some time to cope with the unfortunate events.

Late last Spring it first became known that Cordero, now 30, was interested in potentially pursuing a comeback. There was some initial early speculation that such an effort could take place with the Nationals, but the two sides never appeared to be close to any sort of deal last season. Cordero will need to prove himself in the minor leagues, but assuming he is able to return to his pre-surgery form the Angels may have just found one of the biggest steals of the minor league free agent market.