After years of looking, the Angels may have found the guy to help the Angels–and Trout–get to the playoffs.
Ever since Mike Trout came into the majors (2011), the Angels’ front office has never provided him with the talent to make a serious postseason run.
It’s not that the Angels didn’t try. They signed Josh Hamilton to a 5-year, $125 deal, but that signing turned out to be a disaster. The Angels ended up trading him to the Texas Rangers for salary relief and also paid a portion of his contract.
The team also swung and missed on future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols. In 2011, the Angels signed Pujols to a gargantuan 10-year, $254 million dollar contract. While Pujols’ play has been notable (on average, 27 home runs and 93 RBI per season), he hasn’t lived up to expectations.
There were other deals–Brandon Phillips and Andrelton Simmons, to name two–but none of those players has become “that” player for the Halos.
So with only a one-man wrecking crew (Mike Trout, that is), the Angels have made the playoffs only once. It was shortlived, though. They were swept by the Royals in the 2014 Divisional Round.
You can see, then, why there was so much hype this year when the Angels lured multi-position phenom Shohei Otani to Anaheim. At some point, Otani could become Trouts “sidekick” to propel the Angels. But there are question marks, too. Will he continue to be both DH and pitch? And what about those Tommy John surgery rumors?
But there is a potential superstar on the horizon, and his name is Jo Adell–the 10th selection in last year’s MLB Draft.
And the good news is that Adell’s productivity has continued in the minor leagues at both the A and AA levels. As of September 9, Adell had put up a combined twenty home runs and 77 RBI with a .290 average and .897 OPS.
Here’s proof of what Adell can do.
The Angels believe he’s a Byron Buxton-type player. And there’s a good chance Adell will be in the Angels starting lineup next year, either as DH or in left field.
With a two-headed monster of Trout-Adell (perhaps three if Otani contributes as many hope he will), the Angels might finally reach the potential their fans have been thirsting for.
