Angels Breakout Player of 2022

[Angel Oracle]

14 minutes ago, Taylor said:

If I'm looking at Baseball Reference correctly, he's also the only pitcher in baseball this season to throw a CG shutout.

Can’t forget Detmers’ no-no.

[Jason]

3 minutes ago, Swordsman78 said:

Having 4 Breakout players to choose from is pretty exciting.   Adding in Trout, Ohtani, Rendon, provides a pretty good nucleus for 2023.  
 

 

There’s definitely a lot of upside on this team but they have to clean up a few other spots in the pen and infield 

[Angel Oracle]

Just now, Jason said:

There’s definitely a lot of upside on this team but they have to clean up a few other spots in the pen and infield 

And have solid enough team health amongst the key players.

The bright side to that is having 3 pitchers end up with at least 130 innings (if Detmers has 11 in 2 remaining starts), been a while since they had that.

No reason those three shouldn’t be able to all pitch at least 162 innings next season, if healthy.

[Taylor]

18 minutes ago, Angel Oracle said:

Can’t forget Detmers’ no-no.

Oh right. For some reason I thought when BR has a statistic in bold and italics, that means the player leads both leagues in that stat.

I looked and Detmers has the same thing. I'm guessing that's because there is a multi-way tie across MLB with 1 shutout. 

[AngelStew43]

I agree with Swordsman.  I expected a good season from Ward, and some improvement next season.  

But, I voted for Rengifo.  I'm glad he finally showed us some of his potential.  

With some health next season, the Angels could put up 25 more wins, maybe more if we can add to the offense.  

[arch stanton]

31 minutes ago, Taylor said:

Oh right. For some reason I thought when BR has a statistic in bold and italics, that means the player leads both leagues in that stat.

I looked and Detmers has the same thing. I'm guessing that's because there is a multi-way tie across MLB with 1 shutout. 

Check the fine print. Bold led the league. Italic Bold led both leagues 

[Blarg]

I am not as impressed with Ward as many of you are. Yes, his offense when healthy has been very good but his defense... Everyone has jumped on Adell for his mistakes on running down balls but Ward simply doesn't get to them. He is slow for an outfielder. His glove is good, his arm is below average (-1.7 UZR) but too many balls hit dirt near the foul lines this year and he was always two to three steps late (RngR -0.7,) Overall as a right fielder he has a UZR 150 of -3.9. So it's not really a breakout as much as he is hitting well when he is well. 

 

Sandoval was expected to improve on last season, not as much as breakout as maturity. Detmers is interesting in that he really wasn't expected to make the rotation before Spring Training began and almost felt like the short straw guy edging out Barria. But his year has been remarkable. Is it a breakout or a solid debut? I think next year is the real litmus test.

Herget is the best example of reliever volatility. He has bounced around the league and minors leagues you fell like with his odd delivery and every pitch has some bend to it that he'd either succeed or fall off the face of the earth. Gravity seems to be keeping him stuck in our bullpen but past performance may say this is another reliever outlier and he may not being breaking out as much as having that one and only year.

That leaves us with Rengifo. The only player in the Angels lineup less likely to take a walk than David Fletcher. Not one single base on balls for the entire month of August. The only Angels position player with the same number was Rendon. That needs to be addressed but there is no doubt he has been a sparkplug once he settled into a permanent role in the infield. Squid is a great defender, Rengifo is a far better all around player and his performance this year both offense and defense should insure him a roster spot in Anaheim with no shuttle pass to Salt Lake. He is the guy that I think really broke through the boundary of 4A to MLB status as a player and won't be looking back.

If there was an award for his year it would probably be the Chone Figgins Award for most player per square inch. 

[Taylor]

36 minutes ago, arch stanton said:

Check the fine print. Bold led the league. Italic Bold led both leagues 

That's what I thought. Both Sandoval and Detmers have 1 in the shutout column. I'm guessing if there's a tie then every player who is tied gets the bold italic treatment.

[Stradling]

I went with Detmers because I think the need for legit cost controlled starting pitching is much more valuable than what Rengifo or Ward can provide.  I agree with @Blarg about Ward’s defense.  His arm is simply bad, and at first I blamed it on the collision he had at the wall and it impacted his throwing arm, and that may be the case.  But he is also just slow, as blarg point out.  I’d trust Adell more to get to a ball than Ward.  With Rengifo, it really does come down to taking a pitch, working a count.  If he could do that, and he has in the past, then he would be a plus offensive player.  I assume he will settle in at league average during his peak, but only because of limited on base skills.

[Jason]

4 minutes ago, Stradling said:

I went with Detmers because I think the need for legit cost controlled starting pitching is much more valuable than what Rengifo or Ward can provide.  I agree with @Blarg about Ward’s defense.  His arm is simply bad, and at first I blamed it on the collision he had at the wall and it impacted his throwing arm, and that may be the case.  But he is also just slow, as blarg point out.  I’d trust Adell more to get to a ball than Ward.  With Rengifo, it really does come down to taking a pitch, working a count.  If he could do that, and he has in the past, then he would be a plus offensive player.  I assume he will settle in at league average during his peak, but only because of limited on base skills.

Sounds like Ward should be a trade candidate if we can get some good value in return. His offense is solid but it isn’t to the point where it’s too tough to replace. 

[Stradling]

1 minute ago, Jason said:

Sounds like Ward should be a trade candidate if we can get some good value in return. His offense is solid but it isn’t to the point where it’s too tough to replace. 

In another thread I just mentioned trading for Jazz Chisholm, and if Ward was in that trade I wouldn’t be upset.  

[tdawg87]

I don't like the idea of trading from an area of need. I'm not at all saying Ward is untouchable, but he may be more valuable to the Angels than anyone else. I mean we already need an outfielder. 

[AngelsLakersFan]

1 minute ago, tdawg87 said:

I don't like the idea of trading from an area of need. I'm not at all saying Ward is untouchable, but he may be more valuable to the Angels than anyone else. I mean we already need an outfielder. 

They should probably be looking for an outfielder this offseason. They should consider experimenting with Walsh in the outfield and Ward at 1B/3B. It's hard to see how this team ultimately shakes out next year but there is a good chance they are hurting in the corner infield or corner outfield (or both), so bringing in some redundancy is a key, IMO. If we end up with a guy like Ford playing everyday, or a guy like Sierra getting in almost every game the team has probably already failed.

[Jason]

2 minutes ago, AngelsLakersFan said:

They should probably be looking for an outfielder this offseason. They should consider experimenting with Walsh in the outfield and Ward at 1B/3B. It's hard to see how this team ultimately shakes out next year but there is a good chance they are hurting in the corner infield or corner outfield (or both), so bringing in some redundancy is a key, IMO. If we end up with a guy like Ford playing everyday, or a guy like Sierra getting in almost every game the team has probably already failed.

Ward at 1B isn’t a terrible idea 

[tdawg87]

I'd love Brandon Nimmo but he's gonna cost too much, I think.

Wil Myers is interesting.

[AngelsLakersFan]

2 minutes ago, Jason said:

Ward at 1B isn’t a terrible idea 

I really wish Nevin would stop managing this team like it's in a pennant race, and start managing with an eye toward 2023. I mean I get it, I actually kinda like Nevin as a manager, but his decisions are giving me big Art Howe vibes. Giving Ward a look in the infield and playing Adell every day, is something they should be doing, rather than running Ford out there every day.

[AngelsLakersFan]

1 minute ago, tdawg87 said:

I'd love Brandon Nimmo but he's gonna cost too much, I think.

Wil Myers is interesting.

Hopefully even if Brandon Nimmo isn't available Minasian is still able to find a Nimmo.

[jsnpritchett]

27 minutes ago, Stradling said:

In another thread I just mentioned trading for Jazz Chisholm, and if Ward was in that trade I wouldn’t be upset.  

I think the Marlins would probably want a lot more than Ward for Chisholm.  They're both controllable through 2026, but Chisholm is the more exciting, younger player who's exactly the type of guy the Marlins should probably be building around, rather than trading away.

Edited September 24, 2022 by jsnpritchett

[Blarg]

4 minutes ago, AngelsLakersFan said:

I really wish Nevin would stop managing this team like it's in a pennant race, and start managing with an eye toward 2023. I mean I get it, I actually kinda like Nevin as a manager, but his decisions are giving me big Art Howe vibes. Giving Ward a look in the infield and playing Adell every day, is something they should be doing, rather than running Ford out there every day.

Platooning Adell and pulling him after every 3rd at bat, even doing something as stupid as pinch running for him, that's what makes me want to kick Nevin in the nuts. There is no good reason to put in a "defensive replacement" in the 6th inning. 

Ford is a complete roster space waste. Yes, put Ward at first. He reminds a bit of Steve Garvey, that all of his movement looks a little robotic and yet it can still work at a position that doesn't require a lot of range. 

[Inside Pitch]

Not a break out but still nice to see is Suarez continue to look like a MLB SP.

Anyway, the nice thing about Ward breaking out is that while everyone was hoping one of Adell or Marsh would do it, Ward did thus making the continued struggles of Jo Adell and the trading of Marsh bearable.

The two big hopes for next season are health from Canning and Rodriguez.  Those two could go a long ways towards helping the team take that next step.

They need to sign an OFer this winter.

[Inside Pitch]

1 minute ago, jsnpritchett said:

I think the Marlins would probably want a lot more than Ward for Chisholm.  They're both controllable through 2026, but Chisholm is the more exciting, younger player who's exactly the type of guy the Marlins should probably building around, rather than trading away.

They absolutely love Chisholm -- I can't see them moving him unless they are totally blown away and the Angels aren't a position to blow anyone away.

Also -- Chisholm is about as entertaining a player as youll find.   

[AngelStew43]

Trading Ward would be a bad idea.  This team needs offense.  We got virtually nothing in offense from 1B and 3B this season, and very little from LF and C.  

If Ward is traded, one of the holes is filled, but then another one is opened.  

Ownership, whoever it is, needs to go shopping.  The pitching has been good, and job well done by Nevin, allowing the starters to pitch deeper into games, when practical. 

[AngelsLakersFan]

2 minutes ago, Blarg said:

Platooning Adell and pulling him after every 3rd at bat, even doing something as stupid as pinch running for him, that's what makes me want to kick Nevin in the nuts. There is no good reason to put in a "defensive replacement" in the 6th inning. 

Ford is a complete roster space waste. Yes, put Ward at first. He reminds a bit of Steve Garvey, that all of his movement looks a little robotic and yet it can still work at a position that doesn't require a lot of range. 

I think Ward is passable in the outfield but with his history in the infield it seems sub-optimal to play him out there exclusively. This is particularly true with the team's question marks at third and first as well as Walsh's ability to look decent in the outfield. I think it's possible that Walsh in the OF and Ward at first is a better defensive combination.

Hard to say now what the best available move will be in the off season but if it's to grab an outfielder I really want to know now that Ward can cover a corner infield spot.

[AngelsLakersFan]

5 minutes ago, Inside Pitch said:

the Angels aren't a position to blow anyone

Gross, but the Angels have been blowing for years.

[Inside Pitch]

Just now, AngelsLakersFan said:

Gross, but the Angels have been blowing for years.

I believe liberties were taken with what I said...    Shenanigans!   BTW...  Ring of Power this week.. LOL..