Angels depth chart: 2 players moving down, 2 moving up this week

LA Angels depth chart: Luis Rengifo has become a staple in the lineup

Luis Rengifo is a player many Angels fans, including myself, wanted gone by the trade deadline at one point. He had struggled for three months and outside of a hot second half last season, hadn't done much of anything at the MLB level.

Thankfully, Perry Minasian did not listen to me or the other fans who felt this way, and the Angels stuck with Rengifo who has been outstanding. Since July 1, he's slashing .294/.381/.609 with seven home runs and 13 RBI.

Rengifo's 168 WRC+ in that span is third on the Angels, only behind Shohei Ohtani and Taylor Ward. Among hitters with at least 100 plate appearances in that span, Rengifo is tied for 15th in the majors with his WRC+ figure. That's not a small sample of Rengifo being a top-15 hitter in the majors among those who play every day.

His hot streak has kept him in the lineup with regularity, and he's even been hitting leadoff of late having the big responsibility of being the guy to bat in front of Shohei Ohtani. The Angels offense has been inconsistent of late, but Rengifo is one of the few pieces keeping things afloat. He's gone from a guy who you felt was on the chopping block, to a player you can't take out of the lineup.