Break through

The Angels are capable of playing good baseball for long stretches. They’re the only team in the American League with two win streaks of at least seven games, and their 17-8 record from June 12-July 10 was the best in the major leagues.

They’re also capable of some horrid baseball, losing eight of nine in early April, 11 of 14 from June 24-May 8 and being swept in a four-game series -- at home -- by lowly Houston from May 31-June 3, struggles that have led to a 44-49 record and an 11-game deficit in the American League West.

They’ll have one last chance to salvage their season, a make-or-break stretch that will determine whether they go down as a scrappy bunch that clawed its way into playoff contention or one of baseball’s costliest flops. But it won’t come in September.

It’s right now.

Of the Angels’ first 20 games after the All-Star break, 13 are against first-place Oakland and second-place Texas, beginning with a three-game series against the Athletics on Friday night in Anaheim.

Win 10 or 11 of those games, and the Angels trim a nice chunk off that deficit and position themselves for a playoff push by early August.

Lose 10 or 11, and they probably drop 15 or 16 games back, they look to sell pieces to contenders -- pitcher Jason Vargas and reliever Scott Downs would be most likely to go -- and they consider shutting down Albert Pujols so he can have surgery to address the painful plantar fasciitis in his left foot.

“It’s frustrating because we feel like it should be a three-team race,” Angels ace Jered Weaver said. “That’s why these games against Oakland and Texas will play such an important role in where we finish.

“Hopefully, we don’t come out flat-footed after the break. Hopefully, guys who are a little banged up get rejuvenated and we start out on the right foot. We just have to see if we can make something magical happen.”

Keys to the offense

Josh Hamilton seemed to emerge from his season-long funk when he hit .365 (19 for 52) with four home runs and 14 runs batted in in 14 games from June 25-July 10, but he slipped last weekend in Seattle, going one for 12 with five strikeouts.

The Angels don’t need Hamilton to reprise his 2010 most-valuable-player season, but they need him to drive the ball consistently in the cleanup spot. A .224 average, 14 home runs, 39 RBIs and 95 strikeouts through 93 games isn’t cutting it.

Keys to the defense

The return of Gold Glove-caliber center fielder Peter Bourjos from a broken bone in his right wrist -- he won’t be back until next month after suffering a setback -- would help. That would push Mike Trout from center to left and J.B. Shuck, who has misplayed far too many balls in left, to the bench.

Catcher Chris Iannetta, who has thrown out only six of 60 base-stealers (10%), needs to do a better job of controlling the running game.

Must improve

The Angels have to hit left-handed pitchers, who have held them to a .239 average, .304 on-base percentage and .390 slugging percentage.

That’s surprising considering two top sluggers -- Pujols and Mark Trumbo -- bat right-handed.

Tommy Hanson and Joe Blanton, who are a combined 6-14 with a 5.40 earned-run average, need to pitch a lot better.

Who could help

Right-hander Garrett Richards is no longer needed in a bullpen that, with Ernesto Frieri, Scott Downs, Kevin Jepsen, Dane De La Rosa and Michael Kohn, has combined to go 8-4 with a 3.50 ERA and convert 17 of 18 save opportunities in 52 games since mid-May.

The Angels would be wise to send Richards to triple A now and stretch him out as a starter. That would give them a more attractive rotation option in August should Blanton continue to struggle.

On the farm

There are no potential impact players at triple A, but outfielder Kole Calhoun, who is batting .333 with eight home runs and 41 RBIs in 51 games, could bolster the Angels’ bench, and right-hander Chad Cordero, the former Washington closer who is 1-2 with a 4.01 ERA at Salt Lake, could provide bullpen depth.

Last chance

Blanton, signed for two years and $15 million, is 2-12 with a 5.53 ERA. He has given up a major league-high 23 home runs and .884 on-base-plus-slugging percentage (OPS) and did not endear himself to teammates and coaches with his blowup in the dugout in Seattle on Sunday.

Blanton has nine quality starts, but he has given up four earned runs or more and gone five innings or less in eight other starts, giving the team little chance to win. He could be demoted to the bullpen or released.

Best-case scenario

A Weaver-led rotation provides quality starts on a consistent basis. The bullpen, perhaps with a boost from left-hander Sean Burnett, continues to pitch as effectively as it has for two months. Hamilton gets hot, and an offense led by Trout and Howie Kendrick applies constant pressure to opponents.

Worst-case scenario

The Angels continue their one-step-forward, two-steps-back dance of the first half, offsetting their occasional hot streaks with the team-wide slumps that keep their record around .500.

What’s realistic

The Angels should have one more run in them, but there are too many holes in the rotation and lineup to go 46-23 the rest of the way -- the record required to reach the 90 wins it probably will take to reach the playoffs.

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mike.digiovanna@latimes.com

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