Angels' surrender begs question of whether Washington's message is getting through

The 2024 LA Angels are on track to going out in brutal style. Just ahead of their series against the Chicago White Sox, the Halos have lost five straight games. As part of a forgettable effort in September, the Halos have gone 4-9 to fall far behind the Oakland A's for last place in the AL West standings.

The Angels have struck out 51 times during the five-game losing streak, hinting at this squad essentially just giving up. With the exception of Nolan Schanuel (who is on a six-game hitting streak) and Taylor Ward, Los Angeles is limping to the finish line. The club's manager, Ron Washington, is particularly known for being a motivator and managing personalities well. However, given how horribly his team has performed it begs the question: is Washington's messaging getting through to his players?

Who is more to blame? Ron Washington or the players for this historically poor season?

Washington, who is signed through next season, believes the Angels can compete in 2025. This current roster is not offering any vote of confidence into that sentiment. The 72-year-old manager wears his heart on his sleeve and he isn't afraid to offer praise and candid reactions concerning the on-field product. He will pull players out of games due to a lack of effort, and has often publicly scolded players in the form of "teaching moments." He's a legend of the game and respected amongst his peers, but the product that is being limped out there is not acceptable for Washington nor Angels fans.

The Angels are giving up too many runs early in games, proving they are not ready to go out and compete at first pitch. Los Angeles posted two runs in the final two innings of the series finale against the Astros, but it didn't matter. They were already out of the game at that point, trailing 6-0 after plating zero runs through the first seven innings, leading to them getting swept by Houston for the first time this summer.

Washington was hopeful that his team would have more signs of life to close out the 2024 season. It's not going that way by any means, and although there is a lack in talent on the field each night, there's also very little sign of motivation. This season could not end faster for most of these players, which is not a good look in order for fans and the organization to be excited for 2025.