The Post Mortem

Angels manager Mike Scioscia seems to have a quick hook with pitchers, always pulling them out one inning too early. So it should come as no shock that he pulled interim manager Ron Roenicke after a glorious three-game winning streak, not giving his old friend a chance to extend his streak on Sunday.

And it almost cost the Angels, too, had they not been playing the Seattle Mariners�a team the Rally Monkey could have managed to sweep. The Angels actually rallied from a two-run deficit to win on Sunday. Good thing, too.

How bad are the Mariners? They have lost 20 consecutive games against division opponents and, you know what, it�s kind of nice. The Yankees and Red Sox have feasted for years on some of the bottom feeders in the AL East. It�s nice for Seattle to be so considerate of its AL West compatriots.

• Had a chance to see Jered Weaver live for the first time since he struck out the first 10 USC batters during his junior season at Long Beach State. (Yeah, seriously, what too so long, right?) In that game against the Trojans, the leadoff hitter fouled off Weaver�s first pitch. USC did not so much as touch the ball until the fourth inning after that. Blair Field was sold out that night, with about 500 extra people (including a Long Beach fire truck) on a hill outside of the park. Angels Stadium is starting to build that sort of must-see atmosphere when Weaver pitches. A kind of excitement that hasn�t been seen for a rookie since Wally World erupted in the 1980s. It will be a circus on Weaver's next start on Thursday against the Red Sox.

• Great game by the Red Sox on Sunday night. Sure, the team might have lost, but at least they held the Yankees to single digits. Progress, right?

• The Yankees have won the first four games of the series. And they couldn�t do that in the 2004 playoffs? It�s not hard to imagine that many Red Sox fans would trade in that World Series title in exchange for the Sports Dork never writing his, �So I Can Die in Peace,� book.

• How bad are the 49ers right now, looking that awful against the juggernaut Raiders?

• Reggie Bush looked awesome for the Texans this weekend. Oh wait, it wasn�t Bush, but sixth-round pick Wali Lundy. The former Virginia star dominated the St. Louis defense on Saturday night and looked pretty good, rushing for nearly 100 yards. The Texans had better hope that Lundy emerges as the second coming of Terrell Davis. The AP reported that Texans defensive end Mario Williams, the guy they drafted instead of Bush, had a great game by knocking down one pass against St. Louis. Hey, that�s great. Why Bush turns into the next Gayle Sayers, the Texans can celebrated a batted ball.

AND FINALLY
Heard on the radio this morning that Lions receiver Mike Williams is fined $400 for every pound he is over the Lions prescribed weight. Williams is believed to be about 10 pounds over his target goal, costing him $4,000. Could you imagine if the PGA had something similar? Maybe that could keep Phil Mickelson from going Mama Cass every time Tiger is leading a major.