NEWS » ry over Leicester Tigers.Sarries have be

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Albert Pujols and Mike Trout just completed their fifth season together in the heart of the Los Angeles Angels lineup. They still havent won a playoff game, and postseason success has never seemed farther away after the Angels worst season since 1999.Trout insisted the distance isnt as great as it appears after Los Angeles needed a September surge just to finish 74-88.Theres a lot of positive things we can take away from this year, said Trout, who got engaged and acquired a puppy during the season. It seemed like every other week, our lineup or our pitching staff took a big hit, but we played good for the last few weeks.Indeed, several key starting pitchers and three top relievers all missed large chunks of the Angels season with major injuries. Not many teams would have the depth to overcome so many losses, but in Orange County, they only highlighted the Angels painfully top-heavy payroll and alarmingly shallow development system.C.J. Wilson made $20 million without throwing a pitch due to shoulder problems, while opening day starter Garrett Richards missed the final five months with an injured elbow ligament. No. 2 starter Andrew Heaney and right-hander Andrew Tropeano probably wont return from Tommy John surgery until 2018. Matt Shoemakers recovery is likely but uncertain after a line drive to the head gave him a brain injury late in the season.Not even another MVP-caliber season from Trout prevented the Angels from sliding 11 games behind last seasons record and a whopping 24 games behind the 2014 team, which had the best record in baseball. Los Angeles had the worst season in manager Mike Scioscias 17 years.We know we need to get better, Scioscia said. Were really confident we will get better. There needs to be some talent added. We all recognize that, but I think the core in there is championship-caliber.Scioscia is expected to return for his 18th season as the longest-tenured manager in baseball, and he plans to keep his coaching staff intact. Owner Arte Moreno also remains publicly confident in first-year general manager Billy Epplers ability to rebuild the Angels foundation after departed GM Jerry Dipotos stormy tenure.Many of the Angels problems going forward are of Morenos making: They already have more than $100 million committed to just eight players next season -- and one of those is Josh Hamilton, the long-departed outfielder still being paid by Moreno for the final year of his embarrassing contract.Here are more things to watch in the offseason:FREE MONEY: The Angels spent to the luxury tax limit this season with the majors seventh-largest payroll, but the huge salaries of pitchers Jered Weaver and Wilson come off the books this winter. Eppler and Moreno likely must spend at least part of that money on new starting pitching, but the Angels finally have options after essentially sitting out of the free-agent market last year.RICHARDS RECOVERY: The Angels rotation plans hinge on the health of Richards, who decided to rest his arm while receiving stem cell therapy in an attempt to avoid Tommy John surgery. He is headed to instructional league play this week, and if he beats the odds and comes back strong, the Angels will have one fewer question mark. If not, Los Angeles has trouble before 2017 even begins.DREAM WEAVER: The Angels havent announced whether they will re-sign Weaver, the second-winningest pitcher in franchise history with 150 wins over the last 11 years. Weaver, who learned to eat innings with control and guile after his velocity declined in recent years, hopes to stay with his only big-league club -- and hey, the Angels clearly need starting pitching.MAYBE MVP: Trout has a strong case for his second AL MVP award after another superlative statistical season, but the Angels ineptitude could cost him the crown. The center fielder led the majors with 123 runs and 116 walks while batting .315 with a .991 OPS, 29 homers, 100 RBI and 30 stolen bases.EX MACHINA: The 36-year-old Pujols has hit the halfway point of his lavish free-agent contract, but still has five years and $140 million remaining. He made big contributions for his money this season: His 119 RBI were fourth-most in the majors and his best since 2009, while he climbed to ninth on baseballs career list with 591 homers. Pujols pursuit of homer milestones should provide entertainment in 2017, but the Angels must pray his production numbers at least remain stable. Authentic NFL Jerseys China . Isner, ranked No. 14, won his eighth career singles title and took the title in New Zealand for the second time after his victory in 2010. The match was similar to Isners quarterfinal victory over fifth-seeded Philipp Kohlschreiber which went to three sets, all tiebreaks and contained no breaks of serve. Cheap Football Jerseys . Wilson hit Schenn from behind during Tuesday nights game in Philadelphia, earning a five-minute major for charging and a game misconduct. He has a phone hearing with the department of player safety, which limits any potential suspension to five or fewer games. https://www.nflcheapjerseysfreeshipping.com/ . Its sharpness matched my mind. This was no night to go to sleep. Wholesale NFL Jerseys . -- Devin Hester is done returning kicks in Chicago. Cheap NFL Jerseys . The Nashville Predators were glad their captain was still on their side. Weber had a goal and two assists, and Roman Josi scored the shootout winner to lift the Predators to a 4-3 win over the Flyers on Thursday night. Saracens head coach Mark McCall revealed he has looked to Australian international Will Skelton to bolster his injury-ravaged squad after their 24-10 victory over Leicester Tigers.Sarries have been devastated by injuries in recent weeks and flanker Michael Rhodes started in the second row in the victory and put in a man of the match performance.England pair Maro Itoje and George Kruis have been ruled out for at least four weeks through injury, while Alistair Hargreaves has been forced to retire due to concussion.A move for Eben Etzebeth came to nothing, but Saracens are in talks with giant Australia lock Will Skelton.Michael RRhodes did a great job for us at the scrum and was effective around the park, said McCall.dddddddddddd He was happy to help the team by playing in the second row, he understands the situation were in.Will Skelton is one of the few people weve looked at. He was named in the Wallabies touring party last week. Were still looking.Weve got some young fellas here, so I dont want to bring somebody ordinary in. We want someone who will add some value over three months and if they cant we wont bring them in. ' ' '