The Los Angeles Angels open a three-game series against the Minnesota Twins tonight. The Angels dropped their series finale last night against the Seattle Mariners after winning the first two games.
Looking to build off the series win, the Angels will send out standout rookie Walbert Ureña to face Twins' power right hander Taj Bradley. Ureña has a 2.88 ERA through 137.1 innings this season. Ureña struggled in his last outing, giving up four runs in six innings against the Washington Nationals. Since the start of August, he's given up at-least three runs in four of his eight starts.
Bradley is coming off his best outing of the season, in which he gave up one hit through six scoreless innings. Bradley is susceptible to giving up a few walks per game, but he's been solid since the beginning of August.
Angels' youngster Denzer Guzman delivered a four-hit game in yesterday's loss. Guzman is hitting .297 in the month of September. He also scored six runs and drove in four. Zach Neto, the Angels' core shortstop, has been the hottest hitter in the lineup. Neto is hitting .309 in September, including two hits and a run last night.
First Pick: Mike Trout over 0.5 hits
Rundown: Trout went cold in his last series against the Mariners. He went 1-for-9 with a single in the series opener. However, in the month of September he's hit .245 with four doubles and a home run. Against Bradley, Trout is 3-for-5 in his career with an RBI and a walk. Trout having career success against Bradley and also having a solid month at the plate makes this a favorable choice.
Second Pick: Luke Keaschall over 0.5 hits
Rundown: Keaschall hasn't faced Ureña yet, but he has better splits against right handed hitters this season. Keaschall hit .281 against right handed pitchers and has an OPS of .790, which hovers around above-average in the league. Keaschall has also been on a heater recently, with six hits in his last two games and eight in his last four. In September, Keaschall is hitting a tick about .300 with hits in nine of 14 games.