3 Angels players who will have to earn our trust in 2024
These players have work to do to gain the trust of Angels fans in 2024
The offseason is approaching its ending, with February just days away and Los Angeles Angels pitchers and catchers reporting to Tempe, Arizona in a matter of weeks. It's been a long offseason for Angels fans who have seen their team lose Shohei Ohtani and despite an improved bullpen, look worse on paper than the 73-win team they trotted out last season.
The Angels are looking to be competitive in 2024 under Ron Washington, but in such a difficult division and league with a roster that does not include the reigning AL MVP, how feasible is that?
For the Angels to be the competitive team they hope, these three players will have to step up and earn the trust of the fanbase.
1) Patrick Sandoval
Patrick Sandoval broke out in a big way in the 2022 season, posting a sub-3.00 ERA and looking like a future all-star. It looked like he had shown improvements over the offseason, pitching extremely well on the big stage in the WBC, but his performance there just did not translate over to the regular season.
Sandoval didn't have a bad season by any means, posting a 4.11 ERA in 28 starts and 144.2 innings pitched, but it sure was an uneven and inconsistent one to say the least.
The southpaw would have outings where he'd be on the top of his game and look like an ace, and he'd have outings that would feel like a slog to get through and he'd be pulled before the fifth inning due to high pitch counts.
Angels fans know Sandoval has talent. When he's able to locate his pitches and stay under control he can be very good. However, it's hard to trust him when every other starts he lets one bad play snowball an entire game. Angels fans need to see more consistency from a guy who could easily be taking the ball on Opening Day.
2) Carlos Estevez
Carlos Estevez went through a roller coaster of a first season with the Angels, looking unhittable in the first half only to then lose all of the trust he had built up and collapse down the stretch.
Estevez had a 1.80 first-half ERA, making the all-star team and not blowing a single save in 21 tries. He had one of, if not the best half an Angels closer has ever had. He then followed that up by putting up an ERA of 6.59 in the second-half, blowing four saves in 14 tries and looking unusable for many of his appearances.
Angels fans are not expecting Estevez to be perfect, but if he's going to be pitching in big spots for the team they're going to need a whole lot better than what they got down the stretch. Perhaps the additions of Matt Moore and Robert Stephenson to go along with Ben Joyce and Jose Soriano will help Estevez not get overused like he did this past season, but the Angels need him to be a reliable late-game arm.
The way things are constructed now, Estevez likely projects as the team's closer. It's crucial that he's at the top of his game when the regular season begins.
3) Luis Rengifo
Like Estevez, Luis Rengifo had a season full of the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. The lows were so bad to the point where Angels fans, including myself, were calling for him to get DFA'd. Rengifo struggled mightily in the first half yet was still seeing an inconceivable amount of playing time.
Fortunately, the Angels kept Rengifo around, and he showed why in the second half, slashing .318/.374/.587 with 11 home runs and 29 RBI in 50 games. He was one of very few Angels players who stepped up down the stretch as the team collapsed before he suffered his season-ending injury.
Hopefully the Angels go out and sign a bat that would force Rengifo into more of a utility role, but as of now, he projects to be an everyday starter in Shohei Ohtani's place. He deserves it based on how he finished out the year, but Rengifo starting from the jump comes with a ton of questions.
He's done exceptionally well in each of the last two second halves, but Rengifo's struggles early in seasons are well-documented at this point. Can playing everyday change that? Angels fans are not asking him to be the .960 OPS guy he was in the second half of this past season, but the Angels will go nowhere if he's the .637 OPS hitter he was in the first half.