The Los Angeles Angels, losers of 10 consecutive games, will have to regain their groove without contributions from their most productive hitter. Prior to Sunday's series finale against the Philadelphia Phillies, the Angels placed outfielder Taylor Ward on the 10-day injured list because of right hamstring tightness. In a corresponding move, the Angels recalled Jo Adell from Triple-A.
Ward, 28, has not played since June 3 because of the ailment. He'll head to the shelf having been the Angels' most prolific batter to date. In 38 games, he's hit .333/.443/.644 with 10 home runs and nine additional extra-base hits in 158 plate appearances.
For reference, Ward's 212 OPS+ is significantly better than the marks produced by Mike Trout (176), Shohei Ohtani (123), and even Jared Walsh (123). (Trout, it should be noted, is mired in a career-worst slump.) CBS Sports analyzed Ward's breakout earlier this season, deeming him a safe bet to remain an above-average hitter thanks to his improved selectivity, among other aspects.
Adell, 23, was also the subject of a deep-dive analysis on these pages earlier this year. Unfortunately, the tone wasn't as positive. He was demoted to the minors following a 19-game stretch that saw him hit .215/.227/.400 (78 OPS+) with an ugly 24-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. As noted then, no hitter had a higher whiff rate on fastballs than Adell did during that stretch.
Adell has since batted .222/.341/.597 in19 games at Triple-A Salt Lake. His strikeout rate remained high (32 percent), but, encouragingly, he did draw a walk in nearly 15 percent of his trips to the plate.
Ward joins a collection of notable Angels hitters on the mend, including third baseman Anthony Rendon (wrist inflammation) and middle infielder David Fletcher (adductor surgery).
