LA Angels Series Preview (5/9/19): Taking Flight with the Orioles

Boom Boys

The Angels are racking the power numbers up right now, if they can continue the groove that they’re in there will be no shortage of wins in the future. Especially in this series against the Orioles. Kole Calhoun has been crushing the ball as of late, in his last seven days he’s slashed .353/.429/.588 and is proving serious value in the lineup.

The thing with Calhoun is that he always has value in the lineup with big boom-or-bust potential. Despite his season long batting average of .225 he is still crushing the ball every time he touches it to a .485 slugging percentage. Calhoun is a critical piece of this lineup as he provides some serious pop that isn’t had much of anywhere else.

Los Angeles Angels

Even Mike Trout is struggling to put some pop on the ball every time he makes contact while Shohei Ohtani is also looking for his groove. However, Calhoun is a

piece of the lineup that we all know will boom the ball if he can wrap his bat around it. It’s all about how often he can wrap his bat around the ball.

While Calhoun provides expected power we’re also getting it from many unexpected places. Tommy La Stella is powering the ball harder than anyone else in this lineup with his .567 slugging percentage across the season.

This is starting to look like less of an anomaly and more of what could be the new norm for La Stella. His swing is as sharp as can be, he’s making quick contact and on that contact he is blowing up the ball.

It seems as if he’s unlocked the deepest potentials of his swing, no matter what he is always putting great wood on the ball. He is just coming off a two home run game, which has pumped the season totals up to 9 HR’s with 23 RBI’s.

It’s still early in the season, but if La Stella continues to show the same skill that he has so far he may end up being one of the more valuable members of the LA Angels squad in 2019.