3 Angels players who should be on a short leash in 2024

2) Jo Adell

Assuming he isn't traded, Jo Adell is almost certainly going to make the Angels Opening Day roster. Situations can change if he looks really bad in Spring Training, but Adell seems like the very clear frontrunner to be the Angels fourth outfielder.

The reason for this is quite simple. Adell is out of options. If he isn't traded, the team can either keep him on the 26-man roster, or they can attempt to send him down to the minors. The only problem is, he'd have to clear waivers for them to do so. Even with Adell proving nothing at the MLB level, there is at the very least one team out there that would claim Adell for his talent alone. The Angels won't want to risk losing him for nothing, making him either a virtual lock for the Opening Day roster or a very realistic trade candidate.

Assuming Adell is not traded and makes the team, his leash should not be long. He's proven he has the tools to be a star one day in the majors, but has not shown that his skills can translate to the big leagues whatsoever.

Adell has a whopping .625 OPS in 619 MLB plate appearances across four seasons. Yes, he crushed minor league pitching this past season and did a better job at putting the ball in play, but that remained a huge issue in the majors. Adell fanned 40.3% of the time this past season in the majors and has a 35.4% K-rate in his career. Not great.

If the Angels are trying to win games, keeping a player who has proven time and time again that he cannot hit MLB pitching is not the way. He should get a chance, but if he fails to take advantage of that, the team must cut bait sooner than later.