Now in his sixth big league Spring Training, Los Angeles Angels outfielder Jo Adell has fallen out of the top prospect conversation and is squarely in recovery mode as he tries to find the footing to have long-term success.
Entering play on March 25, Adell has posted a .775 on-base plus slugging with four home runs and six RBI this spring. However, the same strikeout woes that plagued him in Major League Baseball the past few seasons are back as he’s punched out 22 times in 48 at-bats.
But when Adell puts bat to ball, good things happen, and his plus speed and power have a lot to do with the extra-base potential that lies underneath the mountain of strikeouts he’s racked up, via Jeff Fletcher of the O.C. Register:
“I need to get the ball in the air,” he said. “I think that was the biggest thing. I’m not going to try to force it to happen, but I’m going to put myself in a position where it does happen… I think with my bat speed and my ability and my power, good things are going to happen when the ball is elevated.”
With hitting coach Marcus Thames entering his first season with the Angels, his new take on philosophy could be what helps Adell unlock something else in his approach:
“Me and Marcus have talked a good bit about approach, about things that we want to work on when it comes to what I’m seeing in the box,” Adell said. “I’m not ever getting in to hit worried about swinging and missing. That’s not who I am. That’s not my DNA. I’m going to go up and hopefully be able to elevate the baseball, get something I can drive. That’s who I am. And so as long as I stick to that, I feel good about what I’ll produce.”
Adell still has a few years left in arbitration given his status as a Super Two player, and the hope for another season is can return to even a fraction of what he flashed as a top prospect.
Angels catcher Max Stassi has high praise for Logan O’Hoppe
At least years trade deadline, the Angels sent Brandon Marsh to the Philadelphia Phillies for catching prospect Logan O’Hoppe, who immediately became their top farmhand.
After putting up big numbers with Double-A Rocket City, was called up to the big leagues during the penultimate week of the regular season.
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