Ron Washington's postgame quote after win might just be what's wrong with Angels

In an era where every plate appearance and every pitch is dissected for its value and metrics, there is something to be said for players going out and doing their damn jobs. Yes, that data can be infinitely helpful in making adjustments and understanding where improvement can be made, but the most important thing is for players and coaches to prepare well and execute every game. For Los Angeles Angels manager Ron Washington, that has been a philosophy he has preached for years and years.

Washington is unique in the game of baseball. He understands the value of analytics and when it makes sense, he is happy to use them to put his players in a position to succeed.

However, at his core, he is an old school manager that values practice, repetition, and mental toughness above all else. After Tuesday's dominant win over the Pirates, he made sure to drive that point home.

For Ron Washington, the Angels just have to focus on the fundamentals to succeed

In a lot of ways, this Angels roster is a particularly tough challenge for any manager to deal with. The lineup is full of journeymen veterans and really young players that often came through the minors very quickly and who are now having to learn on the job how to win baseball games at the highest level. Then, when you factor in the injuries the Angels are having to deal with on the pitching side, you have a very unstable situation.

In an ideal world, the Angels' talented young players would have come up immediately and made an impact. We saw that when Mike Trout madee it to the bigs, and obviously that worked out pretty well. However, players are very often unfinished products for years and the Angels are a classic example of that. We know that guys like Zach Neto, Jo Adell, and Nolan Schanuel have all the talent in the world, but they just haven't been able to figure out how to tap into it consistently yet.

The good news is that there might not be a better manager for the Angels to have hired than Washington. He is renowned for his relentless preparation, especially defensively, and his ability to get through to young players. That is far from a guarantee that LA will turn things around and become a playoff team, but it is a mortal lock that he will teach these guys that all the data and talent in the world doesn't mean anything unless you prepare well and actually execute your game plan on the field.

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