Los Angeles @ Oakland preview
Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum
Last Meeting ( Jul 10, 2010 ) LA Angels 1, Oakland 15
Oakland Athletics right-hander Trevor Cahill is headed to Anaheim for the All-Star Game following his start against the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday.
Hometown hero Jered Weaver, meanwhile, has an unexpected mini-vacation after being inexplicably left off the American League roster for a second straight year.
Weaver looks to close out a strong first half on a high note today as the Angels wrap up a three-game series with Cahill and the A's.
Every year, fans and media complain about All-Star snubs. It is a rite of summer, much like a trip to the disabled list for Rich Harden or Brett Favre throwing passes to high school receivers in Mississippi.
And Weaver (8-4, 2.97 ERA) is one of the biggest omissions on the AL squad. He has the eighth-best ERA in the AL and is second in all of baseball with 130 strikeouts.
Despite his strong numbers, Weaver wasn’t even listed on the final Internet balloting for the final roster spot. Naturally, many people are befuddled by his absence.
Teammate Joe Saunders told the Angels’ official website Sunday that Weaver's omission from the team is “the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”
Weaver had been 3-0 with a 1.67 ERA in his previous four starts before losing to the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday. He allowed four runs and six hits in 6 1/3 innings.
Weaver didn’t look All-Star worthy in his last start against Oakland, either. The A’s roughed him up for six runs and a season-high 12 hits in six innings of a 10-1 win on June 8. Overall, he’s 3-4 with a 3.10 ERA in 13 starts against the A’s.
Meanwhile, Weaver’s teammates surely know that Cahill (8-3, 3.17) is more than deserving of his first All-Star appearance. The 22-year-old handcuffed them on June 10, allowing just one run and six hits in eight innings of a 6-1 win.
Cahill is 1-1 against the Angels this season, having allowed four runs over 14 innings.
He would be happy with half as many runs as Ben Sheets received Saturday night. Rajai Davis hit a grand slam and drove in a career-high five runs in Oakland’s 15-1 rout. The light-hitting A's had scored just seven runs in their last 19 games prior to the outburst.
The All-Star break couldn't come at a better time for the Angels, who have lost eight of 10 and fallen 4 1/2 games back of the Texas Rangers in the AL West.