Jo Adell making history should make the Angels look for a trade

Life hasn't been easy for Los Angeles Angels outfielder Jo Adell. After being a first-round pick by the Angels, he's struggled mightily at the big league level since debuting in 2020 as a 21-year-old.

The reality of Adell's situation is he was called up too soon. He was not ready for the majors and was exposed by MLB pitching. This does not mean his career is over, and Adell is doing his best to resurrect it.

LA Angels OF Jo Adell sets Salt Lake Bees franchise record with home runs in six straight games

The Salt Lake Bees just wrapped up a six-game series against the Albuquerque Isotopes, the Colorado Rockies AAA affiliate. In each of those games, Jo Adell homered. This includes two home runs yesterday. He is now slashing .353/.476/.1.088 with seven home runs and 15 RBI in his first nine games of the season. Stats get inflated in the PCL, but this is obviously super impressive.

To me, what's even more encouraging with Adell is the fact that he's walked seven times in his first nine games. He walked just 11 times in the 88 games he played for the Angels last season. He walked 20 times in 40 games in Salt Lake. He's on pace to shatter both of those marks. The power has always been there, the plate discipline has not.

It's easy to watch Adell and fall in love. There aren't many players who can hit a ball farther and run faster. He simply hasn't put it together at the MLB level.

The Angels trading for Hunter Renfroe signaled that they were not going to give Adell and Mickey Moniak shots at the big league level this season barring injury. The Brett Phillips signing allowed them to both play in AAA every day, and Adell has taken full advantage of that with his outstanding start.

Now, it's on the Angels to figure out how to proceed. My answer is to sell high. Is it possible a team will see the clear talent Adell has and give him a shot in a new environment?

The Angels are a team trying to compete right now, and if they're able to trade Adell for a reliever I think that's a no-brainer.

I, like many others, am still enamored with Adell's potential, but he doesn't have a place on the 2023 Angels. In order to keep Shohei Ohtani, the 2023 Angels have to at the very least compete for a playoff spot. They have the team to do that without Adell. Trading Adell to help with that goal would be the smart thing to do. They'd still have Mickey Moniak for depth, and would be doing the right thing by improving their biggest weakness.