Houston, We Have a Problem; Mike Scioscia on The Hot Seat.

The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim opened their 2013 season in a fairly unfamiliar place this year – the National League’s Great American Ballpark. Although a trip to Cincinnati wouldn’t be anyone’s first choice for a spring road trip, the Halos showed genuine excitement opening up their season against a talented Red’s roster led by Joey Votto.

And why wouldn’t they? According to MLB.com, in 284 inter-league games, the Angels posted a respectable 164 wins and 120 losses for a .557 winning percentage in inter-league play. It would be an understatement to say that the Angels perform relatively well in National League ballparks. This trend continued as the Angels started strong winning opening day after 13 long, hard fought innings. Unfortunately, they would drop the remaining two games against Cincinnati, albeit by the slimmest of one run margins – losing games two and three 5-4.

Don’t Mess with Texas

After an uneventful start against the Reds, the Halos made their way to Arlington for a showdown against their division rivals, the Texas Rangers. All three games had a pseudo ALDS playoff feel to them, with former Ranger Josh Hamilton (and his Wife) receiving a less than a warm reception from the 42,000+ Ranger fans in attendance. Hamilton was greeted with a standing ovation of boos at every at bat. By game three the newly minted Angels slugger would find his groove, going 3-5 with a run. Ranger fans appeared bitter over Hamilton’s exit from the Ranger’s roster. That’s probably an understatement but can you blame them? When Hamilton is dialed in he is arguably the best hitter in the game. Texas may not acknowledge it, but after losing Michael Young and Mike Napoli, Hamilton was an offensive stick they desperately needed to retain in order to make another run into the post season.

Mike Scioscia On The “Hot Seat”

Heading home usually provides a remedy for most slumping teams. Unfortunately, not even a return flight back to the Big A would change this club’s luck. The Angels are currently dead last in the AL West (6.5 games back) after getting swept by the Oakland A’s and blanked by the Houston Astros 5-0 tonight. With a dismal 2-8 record, it’s not surprising that fans are beginning to question Scioscia’s decisions as a manager.

The media was notorious for doing this last season and it sounds equally as ridiculous this season. As Angel fans will recall, the 2012 season started with hitting coach Mikey Hatcher on the “Hot Seat” after the club started poorly. Hatcher was eventually shown the door due largely to the media’s focus on the Angel’s lack of offensive production in April and May. Once Hatcher was dispatched the media and fans immediately turned their ire towards Mike Butcher. Butcher weathered the storm as the Halos starting rotation began to heat up during the summer months. Unfortunately, this season is no different with various media outlets and impatient fans threatening to show Scioscia the door.

This begs the question: If Jerry Dipoto were to release Scioscia mid-season, who would he hire to replace him? Scioscia is still one of the best managers in baseball with few options on the market to replace him. There are 152 games left in the 2013 season and it’s entirely too early to panic. This team is far too talented for this slump to continue in perpetuity.