3 reasons why the LA Angels ended the first half under .500

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Los Angeles Angels fans have to feel somewhat relieved that the first half of the season is officially over. The Angels have now lost five in a row and nine of their last ten to end the first half with a 45-46 record. Yes, this team that was as many as eight games over .500 as recently as June 18th, is now under .500 and in free-fall mode.

The Angels were swept in their short two-game series against the Dodgers. They've now lost against the Dodgers in each of their last ten meetings and got outscored 25-9 in the four games played this season. They are just 2-11 against the NL West this season with a series coming in the second half against the Giants.

The Angels are now 7.5 games back of the first-place Rangers in the AL West, and are 4.5 games back of the third Wild Card spot in the AL. They're not officially out of it, but their lives just became a lot harder in the last week and a half.

Virtually everyone is to blame from Arte Moreno all the way down to the worst player on the roster. It's easy to pinpoint some reasons why this team that looked competitive in June now looks like selling is the only real option.

1) Injuries have decimated the LA Angels

It's not fair to use injuries as the lone excuse, but to say injuries haven't played a role would be ignorant. This team might not have made the playoffs if they were fully healthy, but they hadn't showed any signs of a collapse like this.

The Angels hadn't been under .500 since April 24th. They had been under .500 a grand total of five times prior to their loss last night. They've lost nine of ten and 13 of their last 18. These losses have come following injuries to some key players.

The Injured List includes Mike Trout, Logan O'Hoppe, Zach Neto, Brandon Drury, Gio Urshela, and Max Stassi. The Angels have been without Stassi all season and without O'Hoppe for most of it, but the others were key contributors. Anthony Rendon has missed each of the last three games and could easily join them. Jo Adell left with an oblique injury and can also potentially be IL-bound.

Jo Adell was removed from tonight's game with left oblique discomfort
— Angels PR (@LAAngelsPR) July 9, 2023

Since their 25-run outburst in Colorado, the Angels have scored more than five runs just once. Having lineups that aren't close to normal can be cited as a reason why.

Even looking at the pitchers, Matt Moore was a key contributor in the bullpen before landing on the IL. Ben Joyce looked dominant in most of his appearances before going on the IL. Even Jose Quijada had some good moments before undergoing Tommy John Surgery.

Some of these guys have been out for a while, but Urshela, Neto, Trout, and Drury all landed on the IL within the last month. That's four major contributors gone from a lineup that clearly needs them. And that's not even including Rendon and Trout's replacement Adell. If Rendon does go onto the IL, it'll be his fourth stint already.

Injuries aren't the only excuse, but they're impossible to ignore.

2) The LA Angels are under .500 at the all-star break because of the winnable games they've blown

Even when the Angels had pockets of games in which they played some good baseball, there were always the games that they should've had but didn't. They were overshadowed because the team was over .500, but now that they're not, it's easier to see how crucial those games were now.

On April 9, the Angels had a 6-0 lead against the Blue Jays through five before allowing ten runs combined in the sixth and seventh. They came back with one in the eighth and three in the ninth only to allow two in the top of the tenth and lose in extras.

Less than a week later in Boston, the Angels had a 7-6 lead before falling 9-7. Two runs scored thanks in large part to two catchers interferences committed by Matt Thaiss. Mental mistakes cost the Angels that win.

On May 13, the Angels had a 6-2 lead in Cleveland before allowing a six-run eighth and falling 8-6. This was the loss that finally got Ryan Tepera DFA'd.

Who can forget the 8-2 lead the Angels had in Kansas City in the seventh inning with the Royals in the midst of a long losing streak before blowing that lead and falling in extra innings?

These are just four examples of ugly losses the Angels have endured. There are many more examples of winnable games they've let get away. Their record would look a whole lot better had these inexcusable losses not taken place. Each team has some, but the Angels have had far too many.

3) The LA Angels are under .500 at the all-star break because key players have underperformed

This Angels team has a lot of talent. Even the most pessimistic Angels fan would agree with that assessment. Unfortunately, the talent on this team has not lived up to expectations.

While Mike Trout has still had a good statistical season, he hasn't been Mike Trout. Hie .862 OPS is a career-low by over 70 points. His 135 OPS+ is a career-low by over 30 points for a full season. Trout has still been a worthy all-star, but he hasn't been the first ballot Hall of Famer we've all known and come accustomed to watching every day.

After an all-star caliber season from Taylor Ward in 2022 he's fallen off drastically. Ward had an .833 OPS last season and he's down to .695 this season. His OPS+ went from 134 to 91. Major dropoffs.

Hunter Renfroe had an .807 OPS and a 125 OPS+ last season. He's at a .741 OPS and a 104 OPS+ this season. Luis Rengifo hit 17 home runs and had a .724 OPS last season with a 102 OPS+. He's at a .638 OPS and a 76 OPS+ this season.

On the pitching side, we've seen similar outcomes. Tyler Anderson was an all-star last season for the Dodgers and has a 5.25 ERA as an Angel. Patrick Sandoval went from a sub-3.00 ERA guy to a 4.41 ERA pitcher. Shohei Ohtani hasn't quite been the Cy Young pitcher he was last season even with his bat being absurdly good. Even Jimmy Herget went from the Angels' best reliever to a minor leaguer.

Players the team counted on to be key contributors haven't lived up to expectations. There're some who have like Shohei Ohtani offensively, Brandon Drury, Zach Neto, Mickey Moniak, Carlos Estevez, but there're way more guys who have regressed rather than progressed.

This team is better than the 2022 version, but these roadblocks have caused their season to collapse in early-July, and barring a turnaround immediately after the all-star break, it'll likely look a lot different next month.

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