Los Angeles Angels

The Los Angeles Angels find themselves in a frustrating situation with a little over a week to go until the Aug. 31 trade deadline.

Los Angeles fell to 8-19 after a loss to the Oakland Athletics on Friday night, and are all but out of playoff contention. The record would seem to suggest the Angels will be sellers. However, the Halos signed Anthony Rendon to a massive deal this offseason and are committed to becoming more competitive with superstar center fielder Mike Trout in the midst of his prime years.

It is possible the Angels look to make a play for additional pitching at the deadline. While L.A.'s offseason acquisition of Dylan Bundy has paid dividends, the Julio Teheran signing has not. The back end of the rotation is struggling, and Shohei Ohtani is unlikely to pitch again because of elbow issues. 

Perhaps acquiring a controllable arm would give the Angels a better chance of contending in the coming years. But for now, L.A. will also listen to offers for some of its positional stars.

Jon Morosi of MLB.com reported any number of teams are likely to inquire about infielder David Fletcher. However, Morosi also noted the price tag on Fletcher is "extraordinarily high."

Fletcher might be less heralded than the likes of Trout and Rendon, but he has been an incredibly valuable member of the Angels infield all the same. Fletcher is also off to a big start this year.

The 26-year-old from Orange County entered Friday night's game hitting close to .300, with three homers and a 122 OPS+. Fletcher has been just as spectacular with the glove. He has filled in at shortstop for Andrelton Simmons for the majority of the year and is tied for the most defensive runs saved (DRS) at the position, per FanGraphs. 

Fletcher even spent some of spring training learning to play right field, which only adds to his value as a utility guy capable of supplying plus defense at multiple positions. 

Angels manager Joe Maddon gushed over Fletcher this spring, per Jesse Borek of MLB.com:

"I know he's going to play some right field. He's going to play some second base. He'll give [Andrelton] Simmons a rest at shortstop. He can give Rendon a rest at third. … Guys like him, with everybody being healthy, then you have to start planning on how to get him in there. Guys do get banged up, guys need rest and then all of a sudden he's playing more than you thought. But I want to get him in the game as often as possible because I think he's that good."

On the one hand, Fletcher is the kind of player who could fetch the Angels a decent return.

Fletcher is under team control through 2024, per Baseball Reference, and he also ranks ninth in terms of fWAR among shortstops since the start of last season. For reference, that is higher than stars such as Corey Seager, Trea Turner and Gleyber Torres.

There is a chance the Angels could goad a potential suitor into giving up a pair of marquee prospects so as to improve a farm system MLB.com ranked as the 25th-best in baseball entering the 2020 season.

Simultaneously, Fletcher seems like a crucial member of L.A.'s core moving forward.

Simmons will be a free agent this offseason, and it is possible the Angels simply elect to make Fletcher their full-time shortstop so they can spend on pitching upgrades.

Fletcher is one of the Halos' best assets. But he is unlikely to be on the move barring a massive offer, regardless of where the Angels stand in the next week.

All stats obtained via Baseball Reference, unless otherwise noted.

The Los Angeles Angels are reportedly placing an "extraordinarily high" price tag on utilityman David Fletcher in trade negotiations, according to MLB Network's Jon Morosi.

Morosi noted that the Angels, who are fourth in the American League West at 8-18, are "among [a] small number of clear sellers."

The 26-year-old Fletcher could be a popular commodity on the trade market since he is a career .287 hitter with the ability to play shortstop, third base, second base, right field and left field.

After enjoying a breakout campaign in 2019 that saw him hit .290 with six home runs, 49 RBI and 83 runs scored, Fletcher is off to a great start this season. Through 26 games, he is hitting .299 with three homers, nine RBI and 16 runs.

Fletcher is a valuable player not only because of his defensive versatility but also because he can be moved around in the lineup and is capable of producing at either the top or bottom of the order.

Also, Fletcher is making just $593,500 this season and is arbitration eligible through 2024, meaning he is under team control until 2025, per Spotrac.

Fletcher is far from a rental, and that is likely why the Angels are asking for so much in return, according to Morosi's report.

Depth is of the utmost importance this season, as players contracting COVID-19 is a constant threat. Also, with the truncated spring training prior to the season and a lack of off days during the season, injuries have seemingly piled up for many teams.

Fletcher is able to fill in at so many different positions and be productive both at the plate and in the field, which is something every major league team could use.

Trading Fletcher away could be a risk for the Angels since they are a talented team capable of contending as soon as next season if they tweak the roster properly, but with Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon leading the way, they may feel that pitching is a far bigger need than offense.

Los Angeles Angels manager Joe Maddon said "enough is enough" after San Francisco Giants reliever Shaun Anderson threw a fastball near the head of Angels superstar Mike Trout on Thursday for the third time in the teams' four-game series.

Maddon explained he doesn't believe there's malicious intent on Anderson's part, instead suggesting the Giants should know the pitcher probably isn't ready for MLB action.

"This is the major leagues. There's a level of accountability here also," Maddon told reporters. "I don't wanna use the word 'irresponsible' loosely, but in that situation, you pretty much knew it was gonna happen again. And I'm not accusing the guy of doing anything on purpose; I'm just saying he doesn't command his fastball enough in order to know where it's going."

Anderson has struggled with his command this season, walking 10 batters in 10 innings. He owns a 5.43 career ERA through 40 appearances since making his MLB debut in May 2019.

Poor control combined with a fastball that averages 94.8 mph, per FanGraphs, creates a potentially dangerous combination.

"You just can't permit that to happen," Maddon said about Anderson's high fastballs to Trout. "You can't. You cannot. People get hurt like that. And again, there's an anomaly moment that it'll happen once in a while. I get it. I get it. It happens to everybody. But too often, not good. Didn't like it."

A warning was issued by the umpires after Thursday's high-and-tight pitch.

Giants manager Gabe Kapler explained his view of the situation after two close calls Tuesday.

"I'm just going to be very direct. Shaun hasn't been on a mound in five days," Kapler told reporters after speaking to Anderson. "He got a little jumpy—we don't throw at people. It's not who we are."

Anderson remains on the Giants' active roster as of Friday morning.

Trout, MLB's gold standard for the past decade, is putting together another terrific season. He's posted a 1.003 OPS and 10 home runs, which is tied for second in the league behind only the San Diego Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr. (12), through 22 games for the Angels.

Los Angeles and San Francisco won't meet again during the shortened 60-game regular season.

Both clubs open new three-game weekend series Friday. The Angels are set to visit the Oakland Athletics, while the Giants host the Arizona Diamondbacks.

It's been 27 years since Jose Canseco misplayed a fly ball, allowing it to hit him in the head and bounce over the wall for a bizarre home run. It's one of the more unique moments in baseball history, and now it has a spiritual successor. 

On Sunday, Los Angeles Angels right-fielder Jo Adell saw an otherwise routine pop fly bounce out of his glove and over the wall:

From easy out to solo home run. Well, technically it was ruled a four-base error, but the end result is the same. The line between ecstasy and agony has never been so thin. 

Let this be an example to all the young players out there: Two hands. Whenever possible, always secure the catch with two hands.  

Former Los Angeles Angels employee Eric Kay has been charged with distributing fentanyl in connection to the death of Tyler Skaggs.

Federal authorities in Texas formally charged Kay, according to court documents obtained by Nathan Fenno of the Los Angeles Times.

"It was later determined that but for the fentanyl in [Skaggs'] system, [Skaggs] would not have died," per the affidavit in support of the complaint, via Fenno. 

The Angels issued a statement after the charges against Kay were announced:   

ESPN's T.J. Quinn reported last October that Kay told federal investigators he gave oxycodone to Skaggs and the two of them "abused it" together for years.

Quinn also noted Kay said two Angels officials "were told about Skaggs' drug use long before his death."

Angels president John Carpino issued a statement in October 2019 denying the team was ever made aware employees were providing players with illegal drugs, nor did they know any player was seeking illegal drugs.

Skaggs died on July 1, 2019, at the age of 27 when he was found unresponsive in his hotel room in Southlake, Texas where the Angels were staying while playing a series against the Texas Rangers. 

The autopsy report released on Aug. 30 revealed that Skaggs had a combination of alcohol and painkillers fentanyl and oxycodone in his system at the time of his death. 

In response to Skaggs' death, MLB and the MLB Players Association agreed in December to start testing for opioids and cocaine as part of the joint drug treatment program. 

Los Angeles Angels pitcher and designated hitter Shohei Ohtani is dealing with a forearm injury that could put his immediate and long-term pitching future in jeopardy, but he isn't giving up his hope of being an impact two-way player at the major league level just yet.

Ohtani said during a videoconference that he wants to remain a two-way player, per Bleacher Report's Scott Miller, but acknowledged "if it comes down to them telling me to focus (only) on my pitching or hitting I will listen."

The comments come after Joe Maddon told reporters Ohtani "definitely" will not take the mound again in 2020, although the Angels manager acknowledged he still could in the future.

On Monday, the Angels announced he will not throw for at least four to six weeks but is day-to-day as far as his DH role.

It appeared as if Ohtani was well on his way to a successful career as a two-way player in 2018 when he took home the American League Rookie of the Year with a .285/.361/.564 slash line, 22 home runs and 61 RBI as a hitter and 3.31 ERA and 63 strikeouts in 51.2 innings as a pitcher.

However, he underwent Tommy John surgery after the campaign and was limited to just his role as a hitter in 2019.

The plan was for him to once again do both in 2020, but he struggled by allowing seven runs in 1.2 innings of work in his first two starts before he was diagnosed with the injury. He is also struggling at the plate with a .148/.179/.407 slash line, two home runs and seven RBI in six games.

Los Angeles Angels center fielder Mike Trout said Tuesday that it will be "tough" to finish the 2020 MLB season with testing every other day instead of every day, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today.

"The protocols are good. It's just the testing. I've said this from Day 1, if you don't have testing every day, it's going to be tough. You're always trying to catch up and trying to catch it. You know, if we get tested Friday, we have to wait two days to get the results back, and you don't know what's going to happen in between."

"You've seen it with the Marlins, you've seen it with the Cardinals, it spreads fast," he continued, referencing the two breakouts that have already happened in the opening weeks.

Trout, who took a five-day leave of absence for the birth of his son, said the only reason he chose against opting out amid the COVID-19 pandemic is the amount of trust he has in the rest of the Angels to follow the health and safety protocols.

Still, he laid out a scenario where the current testing situation would be a problem.

"It's definitely scary for baseball," he said. "I've been saying this the whole time, it only takes one person. If you're asymptomatic and don't know, and you have it, and with the testing on Friday or Saturday, and you don't get the results until after you land on a flight Sunday, and you're positive, it would be a mess."

The Marlins, Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies have already had a number of games postponed because of the outbreaks. The Phillies' cancellations came after they played the Marlins around the time of Miami's outbreak.

As for Trout, he was included in Tuesday's lineup after he tweeted Monday that he was headed to Seattle for a series against the Mariners:

Tuesday marks his first game since Wednesday, July 29, and the Angels went 1-3 without him. They dropped to 3-7 overall, continuing their early failure to live up to elevated expectations after Anthony Rendon and Joe Maddon joined the team this offseason.

In addition, Shohei Ohtani is already dealing with injuries.

The three-time American League MVP and seven-time Silver Slugger will do what he can to help his team turn things around as long as MLB continues to hold games amid the pandemic.

Los Angeles Angels manager Joe Maddon revealed to reporters that designated hitter/starting pitcher Shohei Ohtani will not pitch again for the Halos this season after an MRI revealed a right forearm strain on Monday.

Maddon said that he still believes that Ohtani can be a two-way player in Major League Baseball, per Jeff Fletcher of the Southern California News Group. 

Ohtani arrived in the United States after a successful five-year stint as a pitcher and outfielder for the Nippon Ham Fighters of Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball. He hit 48 home runs alongside a .284 batting average and .854 OPS and also went 42-17 with a 2.55 ERA and 10.4 K/9 rate, per Baseball-Reference.

The Angels signed Ohtani before the 2018 season, and he excelled from the batter's box and pitcher's mound. He had 22 home runs, 61 RBI and a .285/.361/.564 slash line and went 4-2 with a 3.31 ERA and 63 strikeouts in 51.2 frames.

Unfortunately, Ohtani underwent Tommy John surgery at season's end and was limited to hitting duties only in 2019.

The Angels returned him to the mound in 2020, but he allowed seven earned runs in just 1.2 innings over a pair of starts against the Oakland Athletics and Houston Astros.

Following the Houston start on Sunday, Ohtani had an MRI after feeling discomfort, and he was diagnosed with a Grade 1-2 strain of the flexor pronator mass in his right arm.

The Angels reported that he could begin throwing in four to six weeks but that his designated hitter status was day to day. He was not in Los Angeles' lineup Tuesday against the Seattle Mariners.

Los Angeles Angels pitcher and designated hitter Shohei Ohtani has been diagnosed with a Grade 1-2 strain of the flexor pronator mass, an injury that could prevent him from returning to the mound in 2020:

As the Angels noted, Ohtani is day-to-day in regards to his role as a designated hitter. 

The 26-year-old has had a tough start to his MLB career, at least from a pitching perspective. He had Tommy John surgery in Sept. 2018, suspending his pitching career for the entirety of the 2019 season. He still made an impact for the Angels, however, hitting .286 with 18 homers and 62 RBI in 106 games. 

He was expected to fill both roles again in 2020, fulfilling the great promise he offered when he entered the league as a prized free agent from his native Japan in 2018, though he had to have an MRI after just his second start of the season. He's struggled on the mound this year, going 0-1 with a 37.80 ERA and 6.60 WHIP in two starts, allowing seven runs on three hits and eight walks in 1.2 innings of work. 

He's also hitting .148/.179/.407 with two homers and seven RBI in six games.

Ohtani's injury woes are now a major concern for the Angels. He's gone from being a player who absolutely set the MLB world ablaze in 2018—he went 4-2 in 10 starts with a 3.38 ERA and 1.16 WHIP while also hitting 22 dingers and 61 RBI in 104 games—to a player whose last two years have been defined by injury setbacks. 

The Angels are built around players like Mike Trout, Anthony Rendon and Ohtani. Keeping Ohtani healthy and playing to his full potential is crucial as the Angels (3-7) look to end a five-year playoff drought. 

Los Angeles Angels designated hitter/pitcher Shohei Ohtani will reportedly undergo an MRI on his pitching arm.

Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times reported the news, noting Ohtani "expressed some discomfort in his pitching arm" following Sunday's loss to the Houston Astros.

Ohtani is hitting .148 with two home runs and seven RBI. On the mound, the 26-year-old has a 37.80 ERA in two starts.

A Grade 2 UCL sprain forced Ohtani to miss a month of the 2018 campaign, and he underwent Tommy John surgery after the season.

That precluded Ohtani from pitching in 2019, but he returned as a designated hitter last May. One month later, he hit for the cycle.

A bipartite patella ended Ohtani's 2019 season in mid-September.

In the batting lineup, infielder David Fletcher has picked up some of the slack. 

Coming off hitting .290 in 2019, Fletcher is hitting .368 in the early going in 2020.

L.A. can turn to numerous options to fill Ohtani's spot in the rotation. For one, the Angels could choose the bullpen game route, with Felix Pena serving as a long reliever.

Pena threw seven hitless innings during a combined no-hitter against the Seattle Mariners on July 12 last season.