The Rise and Fall of the Angels 2022 Baseball Season

For years, the Los Angeles Angels were destined for greatness, but it seems they can never reach it. At the start of the 2022 season, the Angels looked unstoppable with a record of 27-17, competing for the spot as the first-place team. Midway through the season, the team took a turn for the worse, ending with a shocking record of 73-89. The Angels have a team full of stars, so why can’t they seem to get the job done?

The Los Angeles Angels team hasn’t won a world series since 2002  and has not made the playoffs since 2014. The Angels have had difficulty reaching their championship potential due to a lack of consistent team performance. The team needed help finding the right mix of players to create a championship-caliber team.

Additionally, the Angels have had difficulty competing against teams in their division, such as the Houston Astros and Oakland Athletics, which have been consistently strong in recent years. The team needed help attracting top free agents, affecting their ability to build a winning team.

The Angels have struggled a few seasons due to injuries, underperformance, and a lack of roster depth. Injuries to key players like Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon have been particularly damaging. The team has also been hampered by a lack of quality starting pitching, which has been a significant problem for the organization for the past few seasons.

However, people have different opinions on the Angels. Here’s what two Huntington Beach High School (HBHS) baseball team players had to say about the Angels. During the interviews, I asked players about their overall thoughts on the Angels and the 2022 season.

“The Angels are a team that lacks management and doesn’t know how to use players when needed. They also pick up players that aren’t needed and don’t take as many projectable people. In their season last year, they did better than expected. They are subpar with Mike Trout and Ohtani,” said Slater Vaughan, HBHS senior student.

Carson Lane, a fellow senior player on the HBHS baseball team, said, “They are not good; they have bad ownership. They did awful in their season last year; they have about two good players.”

The Angels are a team with many star players. The 10x MLB all-star and 3x AL MVP Mike Trout. The 2018 rookie of the year and 2021 AL MVP Shohei Ohtani. The All-star Third baseman Anthony Rendon. Lastly, the new upcoming star, First baseman Jared Walsh. The Angel’s biggest asset is their highly talented roster. The Team shares a strong base of experienced veterans and a talented group of young players.

When asked about the team’s development, Vaughan repeated, “Shohei Ohtani is the biggest asset for them now. Mike trout is always hurt. If you had asked me a couple of years ago, it would’ve been Mike Trout if he wasn’t hurt all the time. They need hitting, better pitching, and better management and coaching. They need a better manager, better team owner, more money, and a better lead-off.”

Lane then added, “Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout. They need to build the Team around those two. They need to sign more pitching and hitting. They need to sign for more pitching, trade for more hitters, and draft more prospects.”

For years one of the Team’s most significant faults has been their pitching, but this season their biggest fault seemed to be the offense. Aside from Ohtani and Trout, the offense only holds a little structure. With one of their key offensive players Anthony Rendon, suffering from multiple injuries this season. The injuries aren’t the only problem. Within the season, the Angels 4-9 hitters averaged around .607 OPS, one of the worst averages we, as fans, have seen.

Now not all problems occur on the field. The Angels require new management. After the team’s losing streak, the call to action was to fire their manager Joe Maddon who had been working for the angels for two-plus seasons. For the past couple of seasons, Joe Maddon and Angel’s front office held different ideas to improve the team. Maddon insisted that using his baseball IQ would be enough for the Team to reach the next level. The front office argued against using stats and analytics to improve Angel’s game. Now with Maddon gone, the angels need a new manager who can bring a fresh new perspective to the game and improve their Team’s performance.

Overall, Angel’s baseball team has much to improve in their postseason. The Angel’s finished in last place in the American League West and missed the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year. The team had trouble scoring runs, as they finished with the second-lowest run total in the AL and the fifth-lowest in the majors. The team also had issues with pitching, as they finished with the second-highest team ERA in the AL. The Team had some bright spots, as Shohei Ohtani had a strong season, and Mike Trout was named AL MVP  or the third time. Despite these successes, the Angels will need to make some changes in the offseason to improve for next season.