Building the dream LA Angels Opening Day starting lineup after MLB lockout

There recently has been a bit of progress with the saving of the season from this rough MLB lockout that the LA Angels, and everyone, is staring at right now.

If this lockout ends soon, the Halos will be at work to try to improve this roster. While most of the work to be done relates to the pitching, the starting lineup needs to improve as well. It may not need a lot of work, but there is a way to elevate this lineup from one of the best in the American League to one of the best in baseball as a whole.

In fact, they could have one of the best overall rosters in the league too, if they pencil in this lineup for 2022:

Dream LA Angels Opening Day starting lineup after MLB lockout

The top of a dream LA Angels lineup would look like this:

Batting leadoff for the LA Angels: Mike Trout, CF

LA Angels fans probably would have expected me to include Brandon Marsh in this lineup instead of Mike Trout, and have Trouty bat third. But nope, and you'll actually not even see Marsh in this entire article.

That's because if the Angels can trade Marsh for a Luis Castillo or Chris Bassitt, that would be ideal. I'd love to keep Marsh, but we need pitching. It appears that the only way we can attract Castillo or Bassitt is through trading Marsh.

Batting second for the LA Angels: Shohei Ohtani, DH

Why move Shohei Ohtani out of the two hole for the LA Angels? He only had the greatest season of all time in this spot last year, proving he's comfortable hitting second.

Besides, we want guys who can get on and get over in the top couple spots of this lineup. Ohtani recorded a .372 on-base percentage last season and led the team with 26 steals. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Batting third: Anthony Rendon, 3B

The LA Angels should give Anthony Rendon the confidence he needs to bounce back and have the year we know he's capable of having, and hit him third. Hitting him in arguably the most prestigious spot in the lineup would surely be a great vote of confidence for the ultra-talented slugger who averaged over 41 doubles per season before he came here with the Nats.

A guy nicknamed 'Tony Two-Bags' hitting third is a perfect scenario for a ballclub.

Dream LA Angels Opening Day starting lineup after MLB lockout

The middle of a dream LA Angels lineup would look like this:

Batting cleanup for the LA Angels: Jared Walsh, 1B

Jared Walsh bats cleanup for a dream LA Angels lineup. Slugging over .500 last season, Walsh certainly provides enough power to hit fourth for this squad. And coming off of an All-Star season last year, Walsh will only get better.

Batting fifth for the LA Angels: Trevor Story, SS

The LA Angels pick up Trevor Story in a dream situation, and not Carlos Correa. Think Correa is better? That's fine.

But he'd be so much more expensive than Story, and so expensive to the point where we wouldn't be able to pay for both him AND improve the staff. He already reportedly turned down a 10-year/$275 million deal. Besides, despite Correa being a key piece in one of the biggest cheating scandals in sports history, he still has a lower slugging percentage, OPS, HR per 162 game rate, and R per 162 game rate than Story.

Batting sixth for the LA Angels: Jo Adell, RF

Jo Adell batting sixth proves that this LA Angels lineup would be nasty. Oozing with potential, Adell has been an elite prospect for years. And last year when he came up, he drove in 26 runs in 35 games.

Keep him in the Big Leagues and watch him flourish.