Jo Adell’s latest struggles may be the final straw for Angels once Mike Trout returns

Mike Trout should be coming back relatively soon and that may be bad news for LA's slumping outfielder.

Eric Cole

Los Angeles Angels v Chicago Cubs / Quinn Harris/GettyImages

The Los Angeles Angels' focus at the moment is more than just on the trade deadline and what their roster will look like once it passes. With the word that Mike Trout is finally making real progress with his knee surgery, the Angels are going to have to make hard choices with their outfield when he's ready to return.

Barring a crazy scenario where the Angels trade Trout at the deadline, he is going to be out there almost every day. That means one of their current outfielders is going to be on the outside looking in, and while the smart money at the beginning of the season targeted Mickey Moniak, Jo Adell's recent slump could end up being the final straw when it comes to his Angels' tenure.

If Jo Adell doesn't show something soon, the Angels may need to move on from him

Adell came into the 2024 season with a lot to prove and without any minor league options left. The Angels decided to give Adell one last chance and put him on the Opening Day roster. For a little while, it looked like he had finally figured something out at the plate.

Unfortunately, the warmer months have not been kind to Adell. Since June 1, Adell is slashing a paltry .140/.205/.252, which is only marginally better than if LA had a pitcher hitting in his place in the lineup. While Moniak has also not been great of late, Adell's spot in the lineup has basically been a black hole.

Losing a guy like Adell, who has some of the best physical gifts in the entire league, would be painful to be sure. There is also a chance that the Angels change course from their public narrative of only entertaining trades for rental guys and end up trading Taylor Ward, which would allow them to hang on to Adell for a little bit longer.

The value of actually doing so is the problem. While Adell's spot in the lineup is secure with Trout still on the IL, that simply shouldn't be the case once the MVP slugger is healthy, especially with Moniak at least being a decent outfield defender.

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Eric Cole

I started my career writing about baseball covering the Atlanta Braves for SB Nation's Talking Chop back in 2015 which has since been renamed Battery Power. After years of writing for those fine folks, I made the decision to take over as Site Expert at House That Hank Built before becoming a full-time MLB Staff Writer for FanSided in 2023. Along the way, I have been a guest on multiple ESPN radio affiliates as well as 680 The Fan and 92.9 The Game to discuss Braves baseball and especially Braves prospects and was a long-time host on the Battery Power podcast. These days, I continue to write about the Braves as well as covering the Astros, Padres, and Angels with particular expertise with minor league coverage, the MLB Draft, and bashing Anthony Rendon when possible. When I am not writing about or talking about baseball (which is seldom), I am an avid baseball card collector (Maddux and Soroka being my primary personal collections) and I also collect shark teeth. All other sports are mostly dead to me as my Bills have broken my heart too many times.