Angels Injury Update: Zach Neto progressing, Robert Stephenson on track

Angels fans are really, really, really hoping their favorite team's recent history of frequent and devastating injury luck will be cast away for one season. Positive injury news is as soothing a thing an Angels fan can hear in 2025, especially when they concern their highest priced free agent acquisition entering the 2024 season and the future face of their franchise.

Zach Neto is throwing and hitting more. He is progressing from his offseason shoulder surgery normally and at an acceptably cautious pace. According to MLB.com's Andrés Soto's reporting, Neto said he threw over from shortstop to first base five times. Only five of those throws seems a tad dramatic, as the 24-year-old is throwing from 120ft (per Franco). He had been throwing to second base from shortstop, and he is heading the right away in his throwing progression.

At the plate, Neto is facing pitches from...the machine. It's unclear what velocity the machine is pumping in balls to Neto, but all the reporting is promising surrounding his ability to manage his workload in the cages. By all accounts, Neto will still return to games in April. Kevin Newman: please just have a hot start to the season.

Robert Stephenson is hitting 92mph on his fastball, gearing up for offspeed

When the Angels inked Stephenson to his three-year deal, he was coming off a season where he averaged 96.8mph on his fastball. As Stephenson is still in the early phases of his mound work, it's great to hear he is in the low-90s in his bullpens (per Jeff Fletcher of The OC Register). Fletcher also reported that the reliever lost weight following an illness, perhaps the same one that spread throughout the locker room.

His offspeeds: well, his most used pitch from '23 was a cutter, he threw a slider as often as his four-seam, and he peppered in some splitters as well. Essentially, his offspeed offerings are just as important and their developments are crucial for his effectiveness once he returns.

Given the current state of the bullpen alone, the Angels will be overjoyed to see their right-handed reliever who is getting paid a lot of money make his return to the mound. The Angels might be rolling out five left-handed pitchers out of their bullpen, many of them with consistent arm slots. Stephenson's debut with the Angels will be a sight for sore eyes.

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