LA Angels: 3 Potential options in place of Mike Trout

Taylor Ward needs to return to 2020 form.

Taylor Ward was far from bad in 2020. He’s been far from good in 2021. He’s most likely going to have to play some more center with Trout out of the picture.

In 2020, Ward hit .277/.333/.383. While nobody wants just that in return for what Trout brought to the table, that’s at least serviceable production that a major league roster can use.

This year, Ward has disappointed, with a .188 batting average and .259 on-base percentage leading into Game 2 of Thursday’s double-header. However, Ward has hit for more power this year than one might think.

He’s played in 15 games this year (entering Game 2 of the double-header), and hit three home runs in those games. That’s pretty good, and would be good for 32 home runs over the course of a full season. Obviously it’s pretty hard to just decide that Ward’s a 30+ home run guy, but he’s objectively hit for power in the opportunities he’s had.

He’s done something right, and that gives me hope for him potentially turning his bat around this year.

He had two hits in Game 1 on Wednesday, good for 2 RBI and one of those hits was a homer. If there’s any time for him to get hot, it’s now.