The Angels introduced that infielder Luis Rengifo has been positioned on the 10-day injured checklist (retroactive to July 4) resulting from irritation in his proper wrist. In corresponding strikes, the Halos chosen the contract of infielder Keston Hiura from Triple-A, and moved right-hander Andrew Wantz to the 60-day injured checklist.
Rengifo was faraway from Wednesday’s recreation after showing to injure himself on a swing. Per Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register on X, the membership stated he had some wrist soreness and can be going for imaging. The X-rays discovered no break, per Fletcher on X yesterday, nevertheless it appears the irritation and soreness are sufficient that the membership will put him on the shelf for not less than a short time.
How he progresses within the coming weeks will likely be an attention-grabbing scenario to observe as he is without doubt one of the most easy commerce candidates this summer season. The Angels are 36-50 and one of many few clear sellers this 12 months. Rengifo has only one 12 months of membership management past this one, making $4.4MM right here in 2024 with one other cross by arbitration upcoming. The Halos are thought-about to have a poor farm system, making it unlikely that they’ll return to competition by subsequent 12 months.
He was a strong contributor for the Halos within the earlier two seasons however has seemingly taken a step ahead right here this 12 months. He slashed .264/.315/.436 over 2022 and 2023, with that manufacturing translating to a 108 wRC+. Right here in 2024, he presently sports activities a line of .315/.358/.442 and a 127 wRC+.
No less than a few of that’s most likely luck, as Rengifo had a .289 batting common on balls in play within the 2022-23 interval however is as much as .349 this 12 months. However it’s nonetheless his third straight season of manufacturing above-average offense. He additionally gives loads of defensive versatility, having performed all three outfield spots and the three infield positions to the left of first base. He’s not thought-about an particularly sturdy defender wherever, however the versatility remains to be engaging to golf equipment. He’s additionally added a base-stealing element to his recreation with 22 swipes this 12 months, greater than the 18 he had in his total profession coming into this season.
These on-field contributions, in addition to his wage and further 12 months of membership management, will make him very engaging if he’s wholesome. The commerce deadline is on July 30, so he has plenty of time if that is only a minor concern. But when he suffers any form of setback, the Angels may miss their window to capitalize on his commerce worth. Injured gamers can nonetheless be traded nevertheless it’s uncommon that they really occur because the presents normally get dropped to mirror the unsure well being standing.
Within the meantime, the Angels must cobble a lineup collectively with out Rengifo. He has principally been enjoying second and third base this 12 months, with Anthony Rendon, Miguel Sano and Brandon Drury all spending time on the injured checklist. Rendon remains to be on the IL however Sano and Drury are wholesome now and more likely to play third and second base, respectively. Luis Guillorme is round as a bench infielder.
Hiura, 27, signed a minor league cope with the Angels just some weeks in the past after being launched by the Tigers. He reported to Triple-A Salt Lake and has been on an absurd tear since, hitting 12 residence runs in 19 video games for a line of .360/.429/.853.
However hitting residence runs has by no means been the issue for Hiura. He has all the time put the ball over the fence however has additionally been struck out in enormous numbers on the identical time. In over a thousand plate appearances within the majors, he has 50 lengthy balls however a 36% strikeout fee. Even whereas occurring that insane velocity run with the Bees up to now few weeks, he’s been punched out 28.1% of the time.
For the Halos, there’s little hurt in bringing him as much as see if they will catch lightning in a bottle. They’ve been utilizing Willie Calhoun as their major designated hitter for the previous two months. He has a satisfactory line of .273/.337/.391 in 178 plate appearances this 12 months however with simply two homers, not the form of pop that golf equipment normally hope to get from their DH. Hiura is within the DH spot at present with Calhoun on the bench.
The Angels may also be tempted to place Hiura at second base typically, as that’s the place he performed when he first got here up as a prospect. However his glovework was thought-about poor and he has spent extra time at first base lately. However he did nonetheless get a little bit of time on the keystone whereas in Salt Lake, so it’s maybe not off the desk. Nolan Schanuel is having a subpar 12 months at first, hitting .239/.309/.352, and has virtually no minor league expertise. The membership shot him to the majors final 12 months after simply 22 video games on the farm as they had been attempting to remain within the playoff race, skipping him over Triple-A totally. If Hiura is hitting nicely, maybe a stint within the minors for Schanuel isn’t out of the query both.
If issues don’t go nicely with Hiura, he’s out of choices and must be faraway from the 40-man to be nudged off the lively roster. But when issues click on, he can theoretically be retained for 3 arbitration seasons past this one.
As for Wantz, he was simply positioned on the 15-day injured checklist a couple of days in the past with proper elbow irritation. His standing remains to be unclear however the truth that he has been shortly transferred to the 60-day IL is ominous. He’ll now be ineligible to be reinstated till early September.