Ron Washington makes a baffling lineup decision as Angels shut out by Miami Marlins

It's not often that you can look at a matchup and declare that the Angels are clearly the superior team, but that's exactly how things appeared heading into this past weekend's series against the Miami Marlins. Not only were the Angels riding high on a torrid winning streak, but they were, on paper, a significantly better team than the Miami Marlins.

The Halos took game one of the series, extending their winning streak to eight straight. Saturday's contest saw the streak snapped, as all good things must come to an end. Sunday's finale should've given the Angels a chance to quickly rebound and win a third straight series before welcoming the powerful New York Yankees to town on Memorial Day.

Instead, the team was blanked by a score of 3-0, fanning 10 times against Miami starter Edward Cabrera, and 15 times overall. At the heart of the offensive no-show was another patented Ron Washington head scratcher.

Ron Washington's head-scratching lineup decision in shutout against the Marlins is nothing new for the Angels in 2025

Washington had decided to give star shortstop Zach Neto a well-deserved day off Sunday, though Neto would later be called upon as a pinch hitter. That in and of itself shouldn't raise too many red flags.

However, his replacement in the lineup, Tim Anderson, took Neto's customary leadoff spot as well. Yes, that Tim Anderson, owner of a .499 OPS in 2025 and a hitter who was so putrid last season he was cut by these very same miserable Marlins, was chosen to bat leadoff.

For some reason, Washington still believes that Anderson is the same player who won the AL batting crown back in 2019 and not the .205 hitter running a 32.2% strikeout rate to go along with a 3.3% walk rate.

While Anderson did finish the day going 1-for-3, he was eventually lifted so Neto could pinch hit for him (so much for a day off), as getting on base, a key component of what a leadoff hitter does, is no longer part of his skill set.

Unfortunately, this is not the first of many baffling Ron Washington decisions. Opening day saw him bat Anderson fifth in the lineup and also run out rookie Ryan Johnson, a pitcher without any previous professional experience making his debut, for a second inning of work where he promptly imploded, leading Washington to call on now-departed utility infielder NIcky Lopez to take the mound to close out the game.

The low point of the season for Washington came back on April 30 when he inexplicably sent two pitchers to the mound at the same time. Early in the season, many believed that Washington was already on the hot seat.

While the likes of the Pittsburgh Pirates and Colorado Rockies have already made managerial changes, the Angels likely won't. They haven't reached the depths of despair that those two clubs have in 2025, but moreover, Washington is one of the most well-liked and well-respected managers in the game.

With that said, as these gaffes and blunders continue, his status with the organization will grow murkier and murkier. The Angels can move on from the veteran manager at season's end simply by not picking up his option, a scenario that becomes more and more likely the more he continues to make decisions that make zero baseball sense.

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