Sentiment has never been as low as it now sits for the formerly vaulted Angels prospect Jo Adell. The young ballplayer’s stock currently sits at an all-time low as he heads into the 2023 season.
Adell finds himself fighting for a spot among the crowded Angels outfield. He projects as the Angels’ sixth outfielder behind Brett Phillips and Mickey Moniak. Adell’s outlook is beyond rough as he stands unceremoniously buried behind a career .188 hitter in Phillips and a draft bust looking to kickstart his career on a new team in Moniak.
The Angels are already hard up for young established outfield depth and with Adell’s busted trade value, the Angels have no option but to “wait and see” on if he blossoms in the player scouts projected him to be when he was drafted. In years past, Adell was the one and only true competitor for corner outfield mainstay, yet now more options fall onto the Angels board everyday. One of those quickly rising competitors is Angels 2018 first round pick Jordyn Adams.
Adams’ Quick Rise In the LA Angels Farm System
Adams has vaulted himself to the top of Angels prospect rankings after slashing his way through the spring to a monstrous effect. The 23-year-old future star, just a year younger than Adell, has had a development free from the same chagrin that haunts Adell’s development. Though it is just a 12-game sample size, Adams is currently raking a 1.206 OPS through the spring, and is showing no signs of slowing down. He is striking out in less than a third of his at-bats, a much improved mark over Adell, who is striking out in almost half his plate appearances. Though Adams has been no fast starter in his current pace of development, slashing just .249/.326/.359 in last years AA season (236 plate appearances), this spring his power numbers have loudly thrust himself into the Angels outfield major-league outfield depth equation.
As things stand it is far too early to cast the die on where either prospect will end up, though by season’s end the picture will have painted itself. Will Adell feel the burn buried behind the perennial dead-bat of Phillips and behind the former first overall pick Moniak? Will Moniak reverse his fortunes and take precedence over another struggling Adell campaign? Nothing is certain, but what is clear is that fans should keep on eye on Adams and a potential rise to the top of the Angels’ outfield depth chart.
Adell enters the 2023 season attempting to reverse his downward trajectory, while Adams heads into this season on a development high. There are talented young players looming on the horizon in the Angels farm system, so Adell is no longer guarenteed an outfield spot. Remember, baseball is usually a meritocracy, and the players with the best abilities and recent performance will play.
