MLB los angeles Angels

During the postseason, Angels manager Mike Scioscia spoke out publicly about the nature of the playoff schedule. And on Wednesday, Scioscia said he expressed the same concerns to commissioner Bud Selig.

"I'm very hopeful and confident that they're going to tighten up that schedule a little bit," Scioscia said on a conference call after being named AL Manager of the Year by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. "I think there's things that the commissioner is going to take to heart and look at."

Selig was initially not available for comment on the matter, but has since said he will try to tighten up the postseason schedule.

As much for keeping the Angels together through the death of pitcher Nick Adenhart and a rash of early-season pitching injuries as for winning the AL West, Mike Scioscia was named American League Manager of the Year by the Baseball Writers' Association of America on Wednesday.

Scioscia earned 15 of 28 first-place votes. Runner-up Ron Gardenhire of the Twins got six first-place votes. Joe Girardi of the Yankees, Don Wakamatsu of the Mariners and Ron Washington of the Rangers all got at least one first-place vote, and no manager was named on all 28 ballots (first, second or third place).

This is Scioscia's second Manager of the Year award. He also won in 2002 as the Angels won the World Series.

This year was different. The Angels lost starters John Lackey, Kelvim Escobar and Ervin Santana in spring training, and then on April 9, Adenhart was killed in a car crash.

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Footprints in the Snow is FanHouse's look at the paths to be forged by MLB teams this winter as they look ahead to 2010.

Take your hat off to the Angels for the way they weathered the dual gut punches of Nick Adenhart's death and a raft of early-season injuries to advance all the way to the ALCS this year. The biggest reason why was an offense that defied its reputation for playing small ball all the way to a franchise-record 883 runs. That, in turn, led to a much better than expected record and helped hide the fact that their pitching staff was fairly average.

That makes two straight years where the Angels wildly outperformed expectations, and general manager Tony Reagins will be hard-pressed to put together a team that does it a third time. Chone Figgins, Vladimir Guerrero and John Lackey are all free agents who figure to have a lot of callers in a weak year for free talent, which means that the team will likely be dealing with at least one significant change to their core group.

With the Rangers on the rise, the AL West could be ripe for a changing of the guard in 2010.

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Editor's Note: FanHouse's Jeff Fletcher contributed to this report

CHICAGO -- The Reds' need to slash payroll, according to a major league source, could lead them to explore trading second baseman Brandon Phillips as well as right-handers Bronson Arroyo and Aaron Harang.

Cincinnati's 2009 payroll was about $71 million. General manager Walt Jocketty said during a break Tuesday at the GM Meetings that he "might" have to move some high-salaried players to meet the 2010 goal.

"We're going to probably have less to spend this year than we have in the past," Jocketty told FanHouse. "It just depends on how [ticket] sales go this offseason."

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In Advanced Scouting, MLB FanHouse's professional talent evaluator breaks down offseason moves from a scouting perspective.

It hasn't taken long for the Hot Stove to get heated up as we roll past the World Series. Some key players have already been locked up and some high upside trades have already gone down. What do these moves mean for each club involved and how will the players dealt respond to their new homes? Just as significant, how important will the prospects dealt turn out to be?

From Mark Teahen headed to Chicago, to the Carlos Gomez for J.J. Hardy swap, to Bobby Abreu's new deal with the Angels, each move had a distinct impact. Perhaps the most interesting of these, however, was Jeremy Hermida being shipped to Boston. For the price of a pair of young lefties, the Red Sox took a gamble that may prove very worthy.

After a few efforts over the second half of the season, the Angels were able to re-sign outfielder Bobby Abreu on Thursday, locking up the first of many potential free agents on thier roster.

According to a major league source, Abreu will get $9 million in 2010 and 2011. There is a $1 million buyout on a $9 million option for 2012, but Abreu can guarantee the third year with a certain number of plate appearances.

"We are excited to have Bobby and the presence he brings to our organization," said general manager Tony Reagins in a prepared statement. "He was an integral part of what we accomplished in 2009 and we look forward to his contributions both on and off the field."

Playoff Pulse is our morning rundown of the night that was and the night that will be during the MLB postseason.

Looking Forward ...

The rain made it feel like eons between Game 5 and 6 in the American League Championship Series, but in terms of setting up the World Series it worked out pretty well.

Let's try this again. The World Series is just three days away, but there is still a little business to take care of in the American League.

After rain got in the way of Game 6 on Saturday, the Yankees and Angels will go at it Sunday night, with New York looking to book its first World Series trip since 2003 and Los Angeles looking to force an all-or-nothing Game 7 Monday night in the Bronx.

In a series that has seemingly had it all, it's a pair of left-handers in the most vital game yet. Andy Pettitte, with all of his postseason experience, takes the hill for the Yankees against the Angels' Joe Saunders. Join the MLB FanHouse crew for a live chat from first pitch to final out starting at 8 PM ET.

Maybe the folks at MLB.com never found out that Game 6 of the ALCS was postponed on Saturday night, or maybe they're just playing the odds, but for some reason you can already buy your Yankees 2009 AL Champion swag in the MLB Shop. That's right, the AL Champions t-shirt that the Yankees will be wearing in the clubhouse as they douse themselves in champagne after knocking off the Los Angeles Angels.

It can be yours for only $24.99 plus shipping and handling! Who cares if they haven't actually eliminated the Angels yet?

NEW YORK -- The same nasty East Coast weather that seemed to throw the Angels off their game at the beginning of the American League Championship Series now may have worked in their favor.

The reason: John Lackey.

The Yankees already had their ace, CC Sabathia, lined up to pitch Game 7. But because Saturday's rain in New York pushed Game 6 to Sunday and Game 7 to Monday, Lackey could now pitch Game 7 on three days' rest.

"If we get Lackey going in Game 7," Scott Kazmir said, "we have a lot of confidence in that game, that's for sure."

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