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3 players the Angels could promote when Hunter Renfroe goes on the Paternity List

By Zachary Rotman |
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Los Angeles Angels outfielder Hunter Renfroe has been a player the Angels could rely on to play just about every day. The veteran has appeared in all but four games for the Halos this season and has been pretty much as advertised.

The Angels will have to prepare for a short time without their bopper as Renfroe is expected to head to the paternity list sometime in the very near future.

The Angels have three players I believe they should consider promoting to take Renfroe's spot.

1) LA Angels outfielder Jo Adell could take Hunter Renfroe's spot

This is pretty simple. Renfroe, an outfielder, is going to be heading to the Paternity List. A very logical solution would be replacing him with Adell, the only outfielder on the Angels 40-man roster who isn't currently in the majors.

Adell was once a prized player in the Angels organization, taken in the first round and deemed a blue chip prospect. Just about everything has gone wrong for Adell as the Major League level, but he's enjoying a really solid year for AAA Salt Lake.

Adell is slashing .278/.365/.593 with 18 home runs and 43 RBI. Adell's 18 home runs lead the PCL, and his 43 RBI rank sixth. He's been one of, if not the best power hitter in all of AAA.

A major improvement Adell has made is his ability to draw walks. Adell has drawn 26 walks this season which is already approaching his career high of 32 set back in 2018. His OBP is much higher than it usually is because he's finally drawing walks, but there's still one glaring concern.

Adell has struck out 71 times this season which also leads the PCL. When playing out of the thin air and against MLB pitching, it's easy to expect Adell to fall back into old habits and simply fail at hitting the ball.

The tools have always been there, but the strikeouts are a massive concern. I have no idea whether Adell will ever be successful or not at the MLB level, but eventually he's going to have to get a shot, whether it's with the Angels or another team. Giving him a couple of games to see what he can do while Renfroe is out might not be the worst idea.

2) LA Angels infielder David Fletcher could take Hunter Renfroe's spot

The Angels made the surprising decision to not only demote David Fletcher, but completely outright him off of the 40-man roster. He looked beyond lost at the plate, and the Angels showed him what they thought of his ability to contribute for this team by completely removing him off of the 40-man.

Fletcher got off to an extremely slow start in the minors slashing .231/.315/.282 in his first 20 games and 89 plate appearances, but a switch flipped since then and Fletcher has looked a whole lot more like the Fletcher we all loved.

In his last 16 games, Fletcher is slashing .478/.520/.565 with one home run and 11 RBI. He's back to hitting line drives and has been doing it as consistently as ever. Fletcher has hits in 14 of his last 16 games including 11 multi-hit games. Yeah, he's in a zone.

There're two potential downsides with promoting Fletcher. No, one of them is not his 40-man roster status because the Angels can easily create a spot by moving Max Stassi or Andrew Velazquez to the 60-day IL.

One issue is Fletcher is an infielder. Sure, he's capable to play the outfield, but he really is an infielder. By not replacing Renfroe with a primary outfielder, the Angels backup outfielder will probably be Luis Rengifo which isn't exactly ideal.

The other is he was just removed from yesterday's game with hamstring tightness. If Fletcher is hurt, obviously he won't be coming up.

3) LA Angels outfielder Brett Phillips could take Hunter Renfroe's spot

The Angels made the decision to keep Mickey Moniak around while Designating Brett Phillips for Assignment. Since going down to AAA, Phillips has just two hits in 23 at-bats. He's not a hitter and never will be. That's not why the Angels signed him.

The Angels can simply promote Phillips while Renfroe is out and commit to starting Taylor Ward in left, Mike Trout in center, and Mickey Moniak in right whether it's a righty or a lefty on the mound with a capable backup there in Brett Phillips.

If Jo Adell comes up, I'm not even sure they'd play him over any of the other three outfielders. Phillips isn't a guy who'd have to play. He can be avaiable for defense and to run if need be.

I'd be surprised if Phillips came back up since he's done nothing in AAA and the Angels don't feel comfortable starting Moniak against lefties, but I wouldn't rule it out. He's been here before and was fine in the role they carved out for him. It's not what I'd do, but the Angels liked him for a reason.

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