How deep are the 2025 Los Angeles Angels -- at shortstop?

In this ongoing review of positional depth for the Angels, it was tempting to roll shortstop up with second and third base and be done with it. After all, the same guys who are covering that infield mess are in play here...with the exception that, as soon as he’s healthy, there’s a budding superstar coming in to take the reins.

Zach Neto had himself a year in 2024. Over 155 games he slashed .249/.318/.433, and that was after a slow start. He adjusted, toned down his divisive leg kick, hit 23 home runs, stole 30 bases, drove in 77, and scored 70 runs. Defensively he was, if anything, underrated – he led all American League shortstops in assists, double plays and range factor per game. Neto was 5th among all AL players in Defensive bWAR (he was also in the top ten for errors and hit-by-pitches, but we’ll get to that later).

Importantly, he learned how to play the game and stayed the course over a long year. He made adjustments, was arguably the biggest beneficiary of Ron Washington’s influence, and played through the grind of his first full major league season with seemingly boundless energy. Alongside Logan O’Hoppe and Nolan Schanuel, Neto made the Angels' pattern of fast-tracking their recent draftees to the big leagues seem as if it was born out of inspiration...rather than desperation.

He's young, and he’s fun to watch. He plays hard, he hustles…but he’s hurt. After undergoing shoulder surgery at the end of 2024 (perhaps belatedly) it seems likely that Neto will miss, at a minimum, the first month of the 2025 season. Kevin Newman is in line to cover his absence. Luis Rengifo could slot in as well, but he also has a significant role to play elsewhere in the infield. After that, the drop-off is significant.

Scott Kingery had a good season in 2024…at AAA. He hasn’t played a full season in the majors since 2019, and even then he was a league-average bat. The Angels reportedly just took a punt on Tim Anderson bouncing back to even a shadow of his former self -- a no-harm, no-foul minor league deal that still gave some of us a small shiver of “what do they know about Neto’s injury that they still aren’t telling us?”.

Kyren Paris has struggled mightily in his brief trips to the top level. Even the current top 30 prospects list doesn’t offer much short-term shortstop hope. Only Denzer Guzman is anywhere near to stepping up to the majors, and he’s still only 20 years old.

This all may be pessimistic. Neto could well be back early in the season, stay healthy and continue rising to every challenge that gets placed on his youthful shoulders. His enthusiasm is infectious, but it also contributed to those errors and maybe even his propensity to regularly get in the way of pitches. A small amount of maturation could yield major results.

Optimistically, there is no reason he shouldn’t continue to both grow and produce, and have his face hanging behind the big hats at the Big A for years to come. And optimism is something Halo fans have had a hard time holding onto over the last decade.

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