The Los Angeles Angels will probably be a lock for the American League West in the 2006 baseball season. Uh oh, as soon as I said that the gambling gods were planning on ways to make them lose.

We say lock because we do not expect much out of the Mariners, Athletics, or Rangers. Even though we feel the Angels are not all that great themselves, they are still in the upper echelon of American League teams or so they should be.

In the 2005 baseball season, they had a 3 game improvement from the previous year. With 95 wins, they won their backers +8.5 units. Just like the Whitesox and Redsox, these Angels feasted on right handed pitching all year. Their 69-42 [+18 units] record against right handed pitching was one of the best money line records in baseball.

We do not expect this to necessarily be a trend though. The two years prior to their 2005 season, they were a dismal -28 units versus right handed pitching. They have been inconsistent because in those years, they were a combined +10 units against left handed pitching.

A lot of it had to do with their constant lineup changes during the 2005 season. I am not saying their lineup in the 2005 season was born and bred to hit right handed pitching but there could have been some type of chemistry existing last year that propelled them that season. In the 2006 season, I do not expect too much value out of the Angels odds. Their division is weak but when faced head-to-head, I expect great competition. I say this despite the fact that the Angels have feasted on their divisional opponents the past couple of years.