As per usual, we spend December on the blog knocking out customs of every memorable, or notable, season that didn't get one during regulation. We go in alphabetical order, which means once again, we start with the Los Angeles Angels.
At this point, the Angels have to be aware that the usual tactic isn't going to work. The past several seasons have consisted of Mike Trout having an amazing start, getting injured after a month and the season effectively ending for them. The issue is that they're spending so much time focusing on Trout that they can't build an effective team, and are baffled when this doesn't work. So this season, not only did they build a much better team with multiple a new WAR leader and two 35+ home run guys, they actually had 130 games of Mike Trout, his most since his last MVP season in 2019. And STILL, despite all that, the Angels finished in last place, behind the A's, with 90 losses. Wash didn't work, Maddon didn't work, Ausmus didn't work, here they are.
This was a season of baseball from Mike Trout that, while healthier, was not exactly elite. Trout hit .232 with 106 hits, 64 RBIs and 26 homers, and a 1.5 WAR. Exceedingly average. He's 34 years old, he's been injured every year for the past several years, and now he's past his prime and just trying to perform at all. The Ken Griffey comparisons are real, man. A decade of dominance and a lot of empty space afterwards. And you can tell he hates letting people down, too. But yeah, Trout was at least somewhat reliable this year, at least from a power standpoint, but it was his most mediocre season yet.
2026 Prediction: An improvement statistically, though perhaps not appearance-wise.
Luis Rengifo is another one of those guys who seems to jump into the action with the Angels and perform great as a backup, then immediately gets injured and halts the momentum. Last season he hit .300 but in only 78 games. So here he got to start from the getgo, and like Trout, was healthy for most of the year, and played in 147 games. Unfortunately they were not his best work. Despite 119 hits and 43 RBIs, Rengifo's OPS went below 7 for the first time since 2021, and had a blistering -17 bWAR figure. Defensively he was average. Perhaps he's just not a great choice to start.
2026 Prediction: He's a free agent, and I don't think the Angels need to re-sign him considering that they have Christian Moore. Makes camp as a utility guy with a contact team, think the Brewers or Guardians.
After splitting 2024 between San Francisco and Atlanta, the Angels brought on Jorge Soler, thinking he'd boost their power game. Unfortunately, for the first time since his first year in Miami, Soler had some injury troubles, and only made 82 games this year, and not some of his best ones, with a .215 average, 34 RBIs and 12 homers.
2026 Prediction: Crosses 30 longballs again.
For most of this season, the Angels settled on a compact rotation of Tyler Anderson, Yusei Kikuchi, Kyle Hendricks, Jose Soriano and Jack Kochanowicz, eventually bringing in Mitch Farris and Caden Dana down the stretch. All of this to say that the Angels did not have room for Reid Detmers in their rotation, making 2025 a year without Detmers, Sandoval or Canning, the once promising young core. Detmers moved to the bullpen, and in 63 innings had a 3.96 ERA with 80 Ks. This might be the way going forward.
2026 Prediction: Leads team in appearances, perhaps notches the odd save.
The Angels actually brought on two staples of the Renteria/LaRussa White Sox teams this year, though Tim Anderson didn't go especially well for them. Yoan Moncada, yet another guy who makes waves then immediately misses 5 months, fit right in with this team. As the primary third baseman [in Rendon's absence], Moncada made only 84 games, and hit .234 with 12 homers and 35 RBIs. It's upsetting to realize just how much time Moncada lost after being set up for success in the Boston farm system.
2026 Prediction: Oh how the hell am I supposed to know? Hits .300 for the Twins, then gets clotheslined by the groundskeepers and tears his aorta. I cannot predict this man.
People are already calling Kyle Hendricks's 2025 season, his final one and his only one in a uniform not belonging to the Chicago Cubs, an oddity. I wouldn't go so far. Tim Lincecum on the Angels was an oddity. Jered Weaver on the Padres was an oddity. Brandon Crawford on the Cardinals was an oddity. Kyle Hendricks actually had some nice material in a full season in Anaheim. In 31 starts, he went 8-10 with a 4.76 ERA, 114 Ks and a 1.7 WAR. Considering how unreliable Hendricks had been in the last few seasons for the Cubs, the fact that he was consistent, healthy and had some nice moments is admirable. Dude pitched 11 years strong, did his job and hung it up when it didn't spark joy. Gotta respect it.
Coming Tomorrow- A lot of people who were promised October in Houston and couldn't get past September.
No comments:
Post a Comment