Former Angels First-Round Pick Among 'Low-Risk, High Reward' Trade Targets
The Angels drafted Jo Adell with their first pick in the 2017 MLB Draft. He was drafted 10th overall out of high school as an 18-year-old, and quickly rose the ranks of the Angels' minor leagues.
He made his MLB debut in August of 2020 at the age of 21-years-old, with lofty expectations to be the next great outfielder in Anaheim next to Mike Trout — his manager even compared their talent levels. Three years into his career, however, that hasn't really panned out.
Adell has played about a full season worth of games over the last three seasons — 161 to be exact — and hasn't exactly put up the most promising numbers.
He's slashing .215/.259/.356 with 15 home runs, 60 RBIs and an OPS+ of 70. He's also played all over the outfield, but hasn't been especially good anywhere.
Because of all these struggles, he's constantly found his name pop up in trade rumors. This week, it was no different. The guys at Bleacher Report picked their top 'low-risk, high-reward' trade candidates, and Adell, yet again, found his name involved in a trade-related story.
The risk is low, considering the 23-year-old will cost nowhere near what he would have a few years ago in terms of a potential return. And a team would be banking on the former first-round pick, you know, reaching that potential. Here's why they think it could be a high reward.
"Say whatever you want about Adell, so long as you don’t say his raw power isn’t impressive.
"In addition to legit light-tower power, Adell also has 98th percentile sprint speed and a strong (if not always accurate) arm. The only tools he lacks are the ones used for hitting and fielding.
"To the former, Adell simply has to get up to speed with hitting the fastball. A difficult experiment, perhaps, but one well worth a roll of the dice for a team that has more time for it than the Angels do as they seek to maximize what time they have left with Shohei Ohtani."
The last part is the key. If the Angels were to trade Adell this offseason (and I don't think they are), it would only be because they are getting a real, win-now return that could help them contend in Shohei Ohtani's final year under contract. And considering where his value is right now — Baseball Trade Values has it at just 1.9 — they won't be getting anywhere near that. So, it's unlikely they move on from him when he's still just 23-years-old, and they have tons of players heading to free agency next offseason, most notably Ohtani.
His manager, Phil Nevin, has also spoke very highly of him all offseason long, praising his work ethic and approach to getting better. So clearly, there's a bond there.
Adell may not make the biggest impact this year, but unless the Angels can land a true difference maker for him, he's not going anywhere. The Angels will continue banking on him making improvements in the minor leagues, and, at some point in the near future, turning into the player they hope he can be.
