NBC Sports summarizes what the Angels did and didn’t do well
Pitcher Shohei Ohtani of the Angels showed historic success with 15 wins and 34 home runs this season in his fifth year in the majors. On the other hand, the team is third in the district and has not advanced to the playoffs for eight consecutive years. How will the US media evaluate the Angels in 2022? US broadcaster NBC Sports published a feature on what went well and what didn’t go well.
Ohtani was the first to be raised as a “successful point.” As a pitcher, he played in 28 games with 15 wins and 9 losses and an ERA of 2.33. 273 batting average with 34 homers and 95 RBI. Regarding the MVP battle with the Yankees critics, the article said, “Probably the only reason you can’t win the MVP two years in a row is because there’s a guy who hits 62 with the Yankees. ” “We should be grateful. A player like him will probably never be seen again,” he wrote.
Trout hit 40 home runs on the season. Ward, who joined the Angels in the first round of the 2015 draft, has emerged. “Trout continue to prove they are elite. Ward had an .833 OPS and 23 strikeouts. Sandoval threw 148 2/3 innings and posted an impressive 2.91 ERA.” evaluation. The return of four pitchers, including Otani, Sandoval, Suarez, and Detmers, was also an evaluation point for the starting rotation.
On the other hand, the batsmen rose apart from the three players to the point “it didn’t go well”. Rendon has been out 47 games due to surgery on his right wrist. Walsh languished with a .215 batting average and a .642 OPS. Fletcher also suffered injuries. Additionally, the relievers’ ERA is 3.95, which ranks 18th in the majors. “Despite having two of the best players in the game, the Angels struggled with some of the game’s poorest hitting. Pitchers were far from perfect, especially the bullpen. Iglesias defended after being traded to ‘the Braves at the deadline. with a disappointing result of 4.06,” he criticized.
“We have to bring Trout and Ohtani to the postseason.” This is the team’s top priority. “The Angels need a couple of hitters in the line-up to do that, and hopefully Walsh and Rendon will come back. They need at least one more start and a bullpen. The roster is solid, but the holes are obvious.” However, the team is in the middle of a sales problem. The article concludes, “As we are in the midst of selling the team, it will be interesting to see how aggressive they will be in the off-season to consolidate.”
(Full Account editorial section)
