Scioscia hasn't lost sight of Angels' goals

ANAHEIM -- The Angels successfully busted out of their April skid, posting the best record in all of baseball from May to the All-Star break, and they have now wasted a lot of that effort by going 12-18 to start the second half.

But on Tuesday -- with his team eight games out of first place after dropping three of its first four to the Mariners and Indians -- manager Mike Scioscia vowed that his team would get right again.

"There are some games in some stretches where you don't think you're ever going to win another game the rest of the season; there are some stretches where you don't think you're ever going to lose again," Scioscia said. "I wholeheartedly believe ... that this team is going to turn it around and reach our goal."

Over the last two games, Jered Weaver and C.J. Wilson have produced solid starts while the offense combined to score just one run while they were on the mound, leading to back-to-back losses. But Scioscia continued to stress that his offense -- one that ranks second in the Majors in runs per game since the start of June -- has been nothing short of a bright spot.

What has to get right is the pitching staff. In August, which the Angels have begun 3-9, the pitching staff sports the highest ERA in baseball, at 6.30. Largely responsible for that is the bullpen, which has collected an 8.37 ERA that's by far the highest in the Majors (the second-place Rockies have a 7.64 mark).

Still, Scioscia continues to pin most of the blame on his starting rotation, which boasts five All-Stars but has somehow compiled a 5.35 ERA this month.

"That," he said, "is what's holding us down right now."

That's the department that was supposed to be the Angels' greatest strength, with the five current starters combining to make more than $60 million this season. And that's the department that has underachieved most profoundly lately (with Weaver being the exception).

"Our rotation is very important to us, and they haven't pitched to their capabilities," Scioscia said. "That's one area. Obviously the bullpen getting stretched because of that, because they're connected, has forced us to stretch some roles, which have started to push some things the wrong way down there. On the offensive side, you can't ask much more than what the team has done since the first weeks of the season. We've been terrific. But it takes more than one area to win a championship."