Jared Walsh flashed incredible potential in the prior two seasons with the Los Angeles Angels, but his fourth season in MLB has been marred by struggles at the plate and now a season-ending injury.
Posting a wRC+ of 150 and 126 in both 2020 and 2021, Walsh became a name to watch out for from the left-hand side and at age 28, a likely mainstay in the Angels lineup.
But a hot start following the 2022 All-Star break proved to be a mirage, giving more validation to the issues that prompted manager Phil Nevin to lower him in the batting order over the course of this season.
After recently being diagnosed with a shoulder injury, the root of Walsh’s down year will keep him on the shelf until the start of 2023.
On Thursday morning, Walsh was transferred to the 10-day IL with thoracic outlet syndrome. Just hours later, he was moved to the 60-day IL, a signal that his unfortunate 2022 season has mercifully come to an end.
A direct cause for Walsh’s step back could actually be a positive, though, purely for the fact he and the Angels have something to pinpoint, via Jeff Fletcher of the O.C. Register:
“I haven’t been on time with the bat this year,” Walsh said, “and I think the results show that.”
“It’s been a struggle for me all year, but I feel like I’m putting in the work and hoping I’ll see a benefit,” Walsh said.
Walsh has been taking extra time in hopes he can work through his timing issues through side sessions. On the season, he’s posted a .644 on-base plus slugging with 15 home runs.
Mike Trout ties franchise record for runs scored in loss
One night after securing his 1,500th career hit, Mike Trout placed himself in the Los Angeles Angels record books once again on Wednesday. In a back-and-forth extra innings battle between the Angels and the Tampa Bay Rays, Trout’s eighth-inning solo home run not only broke a scoreless tie, but gave him career run No. 1,024.
That figure is significant because it puts Trout in a deadlock with Garret Anderson for the most runs scored in Angels franchise history. It took Anderson 2,013 games to reach that figure, yet it only took Trout 1,373. With Trout under contract until 2030, it’s likely he’ll have an unreachable advantage by the time his career is done.
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