3 Angels players who will shatter expectations in 2023

The Los Angeles Angels will try and make a push for their first playoff appearance since 2014. They have the talent to do it. Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout are superstars. Perry Minasian has finally surrounded them with quality MLB talent rather than just hoping the two of them and one aging star carries them to the promised land.

Even with all of the new additions, the Angels face an uphill battle in getting back to the postseason. The division is hard. Could be the hardest one in baseball with four teams trying to compete. The American League in general is hard with so many good to great teams. The Angels can easily win 85+ games and miss the playoffs even with the third wild card spot which would be crushing.

For the Angels to get to where they want to go, players will have to outperform their initial expectations. These three Angels players will do just that and more.

1. LA Angels outfielder Taylor Ward will be an all-star in 2023

All aboard the Taylor Ward hype train! Taylor Ward broke out in a big way last season, and I expect him to be even better in 2023.

Ward slashed .281/.360/.473 with 23 home runs and 65 RBI in 135 games. Ward dealt with a bevy of injuries last season including neck and shoulder issues after crashing into a wall making a catch. With a healthy season, there's no reason to think his first couple of months were a fluke.

Ward began the season slashing .370/.481/.713 with 9 home runs and 23 RBI before getting hurt. He then went in a three-month slump before having another dominant month of September offensively.

Ward was on track to be an all-star last season, but then got hurt and that ruined his season. His strong finish shows it was not a fluke. Ward has seven hits in 16 at-bats in Cactus League play so far with a home run off of Clayton Kershaw and five RBI. He's been arguably the best hitter on the team.

I don't expect Ward to have the gaudy numbers he had in April and May over a six-month season, but I do expect better total numbers than he had last season. He will be a huge piece to the Angels success in 2023.

2. LA Angels pitcher Reid Detmers will continue to break out

Reid Detmers had an up and down first full MLB season. He made 25 starts and had a 3.77 ERA in 129 innings pitched. Overall he had a solid season, but it didn't always look that way.

In the first half, Detmers had a 4.11 ERA in 14 starts. He only threw 70 innings, only struck out 7.3 batters per nine, and allowed 11 home runs. He did throw his no-hitter in the first half, but was otherwise inconsistent.

In the second half, the southpaw finally found some consistency. He had a 3.36 ERA in 11 starts. He threw 59 innings, struck out 9.9/9, and allowed just two home runs.

What really stood out against Detmers was his ability to pitch well against the really good teams. Whether it's allowing one run in seven innings in Seattle or not allowing a single run in Atlanta or Toronto, Detmers seemed to really lock in against the cream of the crop, particularly down the stretch.

We've seen Detmers take his strong finish into the spring. He's allowed two runs on four hits in eight innings. He has 11 strikeouts so far. There's a lot to like when looking at how Detmers has progressed.