The Los Angeles Angels operated their winter spending and trade market with the intention of adding to an already talented roster, but more so to strengthen the spots which general manager Perry Minasian felt were glaring deficiencies.
Those moves could have an adverse effect on Jo Adell and his importance to the roster, but the 23-year-old put in a strong offseason to hopefully stave off relegation to Triple-A.
The one-time top prospect has underwhelmed since debuting with the Angels during the 2020 season, posting wRC+ numbers of 26, 89, and 77 the past three years, with a 37.5% strikeout rate in 2022. With newly acquired outfielder, Hunter Renfroe now a part of the mix that includes Mike Trout and Taylor Ward, manager Phil Nevin has alternative options.
Adell is still young on his path in Major league Baseball, Adell put in a lot of work this offseason, and that caught the attention of his manager, via Jeff Fletcher of the O.C. Register:
Adell said Friday that he worked out at the complex in Arizona “close to” every single day of the winter.
“What this guy has done in the last four or five months for me is as impressive as anything he could have done during the season last year,” Nevin said. “No vacations. Nothing. This guy didn’t miss a day. I’m really proud of the work he’s doing.”
The days of him being a pure prospect are years gone, but the tools which made him a former first-round pick are still there. Grading out in the 98th percentile in sprint speed and 83rd in max exit velocity are areas the Angels and Adell would like to build on.
Adell is now weighing in at 225 pounds, adding roughly 15 pounds from the 210 he weighed last season.:
Adell said his goal wasn’t to get bigger, but it just happened from the work he put in over the winter. He combined it with staying on the field, so he believes the extra muscle hasn’t detracted from his mobility.
“You can put the weight on and not be moving with it,” Adell said, “so it was good that I was able to kind of stay moving, stay fluid with that weight … I feel good where I’m at.”
Adell has taken the approach of a player that has nothing to lose and is still fighting for a spot on a big league team, and a hungry approach could strongly benefit him ahead of the 2023 season:
“Right now my goal is to come out, be ready every day at 7:30 in the morning and try to make the team and show that I’ve got what it takes to be a part of this squad,” Adell said. “It’s going to be a good team. This team is going to play well this year. I want to be a part of that. I want to get to the postseason and I want to win. These are my goals. We’ll continue to work through spring training and see what happens.”
Adell will most likely star the year at Triple-A Salt Lake with the Bees, and seeing as he’s still in the pre-arbitration stage of his rookie deal, he still has a lot of time to make an impact with the Angels.
Angels prospect Edgar Quero excited about being included in big league camp
Catching prospect Edgar Quero has quickly ascended the Angels’ prospect rankings since signing with the organization as an amateur free agent out of Cuba in early 2021.
The 19-year-old was recently ranked the No. 10 catching prospect in all of baseball by MLB Pipeline after a stellar 2022 season with Single-A Inland Empire that saw him bat .312/.435/.530 with 35 doubles and 85 runs scored in 111 games.
Quero is entering his third professional season with the Angels organization and was invited to big Spring Training camp as a non-roster invitee.
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