In yet another tough series loss to the Baltimore Orioles, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim might’ve found a spark they needed to reignite their offense and their energy as a team, with their All-Star moving up the batting order.
Mike Trout not only opted to move up in the order, but moved into the leadoff spot for the first time since 2020, and it proved to be worthwhile as he hit a leadoff home run on Tuesday night against the O’s.
It was his first leadoff homer since his rookie season in 2012 and set the tone in the Angels’ 7-4 win over Baltimore.
With the offense struggling to consistently score runs the last few weeks and falling well below .500, Trout needed to make a change after going 7 for his last 45 (.156 BA) in the previous 11 games, including a costly strikeout with the bases loaded in Monday’s 4-2 loss to the O’s. As a team, the Angels went just 3-8 in that stretch.
Clearly, Trout and his team needed a spark and manager Ron Washington gave his All-Star credit for accepting the move to the leadoff spot to get this offense rolling.
“The credit goes to Mike, it doesn’t go to me,” Washington said after Tuesday’s win. “I’m just trying to shake some things up. “Just trying to find some cohesiveness with my lineup and Trout has done it before, so it’s not foreign to him. If we can get a run in the first inning, I’m all for that.”
Trout followed that up with another solo home run on Wednesday, his MLB-leading 10th of the season, but the Angels dropped the game and another series to Baltimore.
Trout appears to be doing what he can to keep his team competitive as they navigate through injuries to their previous leadoff hitter Anthony Rendon (hamstring) and recently to Miguel Sano (knee).
In addition to their spotty offense, the pitching staff has also been struggling with consistency in the starting rotation, prompting a recent ‘starting pitchers only’ meeting with the pitching coaches and catchers to re-establish a plan on how to attack opposing hitters.
The move to the leadoff spot is also Trout trying to set a tone, so the rest of this struggling squad can feed off of and end this mid-April slide and maybe carry a little momentum into May.
“I think the mindset is that if we keep coming in and working and working, it’ll turn,” Trout said. “The guys are battling, but things just aren’t going our way right now. But we’re going to keep fighting.”
The key is for the Angels is to put it all together in one game. There have been too many games this season where their offense produces enough runs, but their pitching lets the game get away from them. When their pitching is competitive and gives them a chance, their offense can’t score runs.
Trout will continue to do the heavy lifting, but whether he bats leadoff, cleanup, or anywhere else, it will be up to the 24 guys behind him to do their jobs as well.
This first month of the season has shown for the Angels, the only thing you can count on is uncertainty beyond number 27.
