3 Angels infielders the team desperately needs to step up with the injuries

The Los Angeles Angels have been hit hard by the injury bug over the last couple of days. Zach Neto was the first to go down as he suffered an oblique strain that will sideline him for a while. Gio Urshela suffered a left pelvis fracture which will likely leave him out even longer. Lastly, Anthony Rendon was hit by a pitch in his wrist and was unable to play the series opener in Kansas City.

Rendon is not on the IL, but it's not a sure thing that he'll remain off of it. Rendon was unable to swing the bat after getting hit in Texas and obviously did not play last night.

With all of these injuries happening to this team at once, the Angels need some of the infielders who are currently healthy to step up their play.

1) LA Angels infielder Luis Rengifo must step up with the injuries

With all of these injuries, it's pretty easy to expect Luis Rengifo to play virtually every day for a little while. He can play second base, third base, and shortstop, while also being a switch-hitter who has been here all season.

Rengifo is in the midst of a down year following his 2022 breakout. He's slashing .205/.284/.295 with four home runs and 20 RBI. Not great at all.

Rengifo really struggled in the first two months of the season but looked like he was finally figuring things out. He played really well for a week before falling back into another deep slump.

Rengifo has one hit in his last 22 at-bats after going hitless in four trips to the plate last night. He's drawn just one walk in that stretch and has done virtually nothing productive.

We know Brandon Drury will play every day, but he should be the only lock. Rengifo has to earn his at-bats. If he can't hit, just play Michael Stefanic or Andrew Velazquez over him. Since Rengifo provides no value defensively, he has to hit to be a productive player. For most of the season, this has not happened.

2) LA Angels first baseman Jared Walsh must step up with the injuries

If you thought the Rengifo struggles have been bad, Jared Walsh has looked even worse at the plate. Since returning from the Injured List in late-May, the 2021 all-star has looked like a shell of himself.

Walsh has just seven hits in 63 at-bats this season. He does not have a home run, and is striking out at a 32.4% clip. If the Angels hadn't been hit by this barrage of injuries I might be advocating for a demotion to AAA to figure it out, but the Halos can't really afford that right now.

Walsh has looked awful at the plate and has shown no real signs of breaking out. He has one hit in his last 30 at-bats with 12 strikeouts in that span. That hit did break a long hitless stretch, but he's without a hit in his last six at-bats since.

If Walsh can't hit, the Angels do have other solutions. Drury can play first, but then you're forcing yourself to play all three of Rengifo, Velazquez, and Stefanic.

An out of the box way of approaching this would be to put an outfielder like Hunter Renfroe or Taylor Ward at first base to try and get the best offensive production you can. Walsh has a solid glove, but he's been such a negative at the plate.