The Los Angeles Angels and outfielder Adam Eaton seem to be a perfect match for the remainder of the 2021 season. Eaton struggled mightily at the plate with the Chicago White Sox, ultimately leading to his release, and simply needed a fresh start somewhere else.
Meanwhile, the Angels had a huge problem in their outfield. Injuries to all of their original starters left them with Triple-A infielders coming in to play right field, leading to offensive and defensive miscues. Eaton may be having some problems at the plate, but he remains a quality fielder. The Angels brought him in knowing this, now finally having a reliable player to put in their outfield.
Eaton spoke about getting the opportunity with the Angels, saying he’s excited for that fresh start after a difficult first half of the season, according to Mike DiGiovanna of The L.A. Times:
“I don’t think anybody would say it’s not [a blow to the ego],” said Eaton, who signed with the Angels on Wednesday. “You sign with a team, you didn’t really expect this, but you can’t blame them. I didn’t play very well, and it’s a business. I’m excited for a fresh start here.”
Eaton also gave credit to the Angels for providing him with insight about the way he plays at the plate that could help him get out of his offensive slump.
“You want to try to help the team right away,” Eaton said. “Ever since I had a couple of injuries on my left side, some things have been lacking. [The Angels] brought some things to my attention that I hadn’t heard before. I have 2½ months to hopefully make an impact here.”
Eaton has played in just one game thus far — the Angels 6-5 loss to the Seattle Mariners on Friday — but went 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored. Hopefully, the Angels’ elite offense can help lift him up and put him back in a place where he can make an impact.
If that can happen, then this has the potential to be a slam dunk midseason signing from the Halos, as they’ll have temporarily solved their outfield problem without having to sacrifice offense.
David Fletcher scorching hot
David Fletcher’s hit streak reached 26 games on Saturday with a five-RBI performance. Joe Maddon and Alex Cobb both had remarkable things to say about the Angels second baseman, with the former comparing him to Joe Namath and the latter endorsing him in the MVP race.
