Last season, they traded All Star first baseman Mark Teixeira to New York. This season they have lost third baseman Chone Figgins to the Seattle Mariners, right fielder Vladimir Guerrero to their rivals the Texas Rangers, and starting pitcher John Lackey to the Boston Red Sox. In spite of these losses, the Angels keep finding their way to the top.

When a well-oiled team is as reliable as the Angels are, they need very little tweaking during the off-season. Their most significant acquisition was the signing of designated hitter and 2009 World Series MVP Hideki “Godzilla” Matsui. The veteran slugger could be the last piece of the puzzle that the Angels have needed to get them back to the World Series.

With the absence of Chone Figgins, the leadoff role will fall to shortstop Erick Aybar. If he can get comfortable early then the Angels batters should be off to the start of a huge season. The Angels were the only team in Major League baseball to hit no Grand Slams last season. With the powerful lineup that they have this season, that should change.

Look for big things from the Angels this year. Once again, the AL West is theirs for the taking. Bodog.com is currently placing the baseball betting odds at 15/1 on the Angels winning the World Series this year.

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