Jo Adell is expected to be in the lineup Thursday night when the Los Angeles Angels host the Oakland A’s in Anaheim, Calif., continuing his effort to show the club’s decision-makers he can be the player they expected when they selected him with the 10th overall pick in the 2017 draft.
The Angels (69-86) will attempt to complete a three-game sweep of the Athletics (56-99) on Thursday night.
With the A’s scheduled to start left-hander Cole Irvin (9-12, 4.05 ERA), the right-handed-hitting Adell will get the nod over left-handed-hitting Mickey Moniak in what has become a platoon situation with the two young left fielders.
Adell, 23, and Moniak, 24, are similar in that they are high draft picks (Moniak was the No. 1 overall pick of the Phillies in 2016) who have struggled to live up to expectations. The Angels acquired Moniak in the trade-deadline deal that sent pitcher Noah Syndergaard to Philadelphia.
With Mike Trout entrenched in center field and Taylor Ward in right field, the left-field spot for next season is up for grabs, and both Adell and Moniak are in the running.
Both have shown flashes of their talent in recent weeks, but displaying it on a consistent basis — and getting consistent playing time — has been an issue.
Adell showed what he is capable of on Tuesday. He robbed the Athletics’ Dermis Garcia of a possible home run with a leaping catch at the wall in the fifth inning, then delivered what turned out to be the game-winning hit, an RBI single in the eighth.
“It’s been tough, but it’s one of those things where we’re all working to get better, and for me, I want to be in a situation where I can help as much as I can,” Adell said. “But I’m glad for opportunities. You wait around for it and look for the opportunity to come in and make something happen, and I was able to do that.”
Adell, who did not start on Wednesday in the Angels’ 4-1 win over the A’s, is hitting .222 with seven homers, 11 doubles, 23 RBIs and a .623 OPS in 81 games this season. He entered Wednesday’s game when Moniak had to leave in the sixth inning after a pitch struck his left hand on a check swing.
The team announced postgame that X-rays were negative and that Moniak is day-to-day.
Moniak missed the season’s first six weeks due to a broken right hand. He also was out Aug. 7-Sept. 8 with a broken left middle finger after being hit on a bunt attempt.
Adell and the Angels will try to continue their 2022 success against Irvin, who is 0-3 in three starts vs. Los Angeles this year despite a 2.70 ERA. In eight career starts against the Angels, Irvin is 2-5 with a 2.82 ERA.
Irvin will be opposed by right-hander Shohei Ohtani (14-8, 2.47) in what figures to be the two-way star’s second-to-last start of the season. Ohtani is 3-3 with a 3.02 ERA in eight career starts against Oakland, including a 1-1 mark with a 1.54 ERA in two outings this year.
Oakland’s Tony Kemp is 2-for-11 with three walks against Ohtani in his career.
Kemp, who has started 67 games at second base, 56 games in left field and has played in a career-high 141 games this season, made a spectacular diving, over-the-shoulder catch of a flare into shallow right field on Tuesday against the Angels, saving a run.
It’s the kind of play his A’s teammates have grown to expect.
“Every week, there’s one from Tony and it’s top notch,” A’s pitcher James Kaprielian said. “It’s just kind of what you’d expect from that guy. He’s going to play hard all game. It’s fun to watch. It’s great to have him behind us.”
–Field Level Media