NFL
By George Lopez
The Los Angeles Angels entered the all-star break in 4th place in the A.L. West with a 45-46 record after closing the first half of the season losing 9 of their last 10 games. Currently, the Angels sit 5 games out of the wild card spot. As of now, the Angels have 16 players who see significant playing time on the injured list, most notably Mike Trout who is expected to miss 6-8 weeks after suffering a broken bone in his wrist and undergoing surgery. On top of the injuries, the Angels have played inconsistently on the field. Manager Phil Nevin looked to the all-star break as an opportunity for the Angels to regroup and make a push for a playoff spot in the 2nd half of the season.
Offensively, the Angels are 11th in MLB with a team batting of .256. Shohei Ohtani is leading the way for the Angels, and is having an MVP-caliber season. At the break, Ohtani leads the Angels, hitting .302 with 32 home runs and 71 RBIs. Prior to his injury, Mike Trout’s production was not what Angels fans have come to expect. Trout is hitting .263 with 18 home runs and 44 RBIs. Early in his career, Trout was always a threat on the bases. In the past few seasons, Trout’s stolen base production has gone downward, with only 2 stolen bases in the 1st half of the season. Since going to the Angels, 3rd baseman Anthony Rendon has played less than 60 games each season. Rendon has seen his production drop off significantly, hitting .240 or lower and less than 10 home runs in each of the past 3 seasons. Rendon ended the first half of the season with a lower leg injury and is considered day-to-day. The Angels will need the production Rendon had while playing for the Washington Nationals in the 2nd half of the season.
With the injuries in the first half, the Angels have been able to insert younger players in the lineup. Outfielder Mikey Moniak has given the Angels a spark with his play, hitting .308 with 10 home runs and 28 RBIs in 38 games. Moniak has also played exceptional defense while playing all 3 outfield positions for the Angels. Zach Neto has played solid defense at shortstop for the Angels. Moniak and Neto will be looked to in the 2nd half of the season to continue with their solid play.
The Angels ended the 1st half of the season ranked 21st in pitching with a team E.R.A. of 4.42. Shohei Ohtani leads the way with a 7-4 record with 132 strikeouts and an E.R.A of 3.32. Ohtani possesses one of the nastiest sweepers and split-finger fastball in the MLB. Tyler Anderson enters the 2nd half of the season at 4-2 with a high E.R.A. of 5.25. Anderson has not been the same pitcher he was last season when pitching for the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Angels will need Anderson to be the pitcher he was with the Dodgers when he finished with a 15-5 record last season. Patrick Sandoval has shown a glimpse of being a dominant starting pitcher. Inconsistency has been his issue. At the break, Sandoval has a 4-7 record with 4.41 E.R.A. When Sandoval keeps his pitch count down, he is a dominant pitcher. When his pitch count is up early in the game, Sandoval struggles to keep runs off the board. Reid Detmers sits with a 2-6 record and 4.31 E.R.A. Griffin Canning ended the first half at 6-4 with a 4.62 E.R.A. The Angels will need Sandoval, Detmers, and Canning to bring down the runs allowed as well as pitch deeper into games for the Angels to be successful in the 2nd half of the season.
In the bullpen, closer Carlos Estevez has exceeded expectations. At the break, Estevez is 21-21 in save opportunities with an E.R.A of 1.80 while striking out 43 batters in 35 innings. Matt Moore, who was on the 15-day IL with an oblique injury, is expected to rejoin the Angels to begin the 2nd half of the season. In 22 appearances, Moore had a 1.44 E.R.A. and held opponents to a .155 batting average against. Moore and Estevez give the Angels a formidable duo in the back of their bullpen. Manager Phil Nevin will look to shorten the game in the 2nd half of the season and get the ball to Moore and Estevez to close out games as much as possible.
For the Angels in the 2nd half of the season, the elephant in the room will be the status of Shohei Ohtani as the trading deadline of August 1st approaches. Ohtani will be a free agent at the end of this season and has stated multiple times that his desire to compete for championships will be a factor in determining where he signs his next contract. Ohtani is expected to receive a contract north of $500 million this offseason. If the Angels get off to a slow start to begin the 2nd half of the season and fall further out of the playoff race, will they look to trade Ohtani? Angels owner Arte Moreno has stated that he does not want to trade Ohtani. If their playoff chances are bleak, will Moreno change courses and look to move Ohtani? In any trade scenario, the Angels should be able to replenish their farm system, acquiring top prospects as well as players ready to be called up to the majors. The question of will the Angels trade Ohtani or not will linger until the trading deadline.
As the Angels enter the 2nd half of the season, they have many questions that will need to be answered. Will the club be able to stay healthy? Will the starting pitching get to the level of consistency the Angels will need to compete for a playoff spot? The Angels have the talent on the roster to make a playoff push in the 2nd half of the season. Manager Phil Nevin will look to put the pieces together to make that happen. If it does not, will Angel fans have seen the last of Ohtani in an Angels uniform come August 1st?
