Angels star shortstop Andrelton Simmons has been out two weeks because of a Grade 3 ankle sprain, and it doesn’t appear he’ll be back anytime soon. While Simmons has progressed to swinging a bat, there is still no timetable for a comeback, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com tweets. Meanwhile, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register points out the type of sprain Simmons is dealing with tends to require an eight- to 12-week absence. If that holds up, Simmons won’t grace the Angels’ lineup again until at least late July.
The 29-32 Angels have gone 7-7 without Simmons, a defensive virtuoso and solid hitter who exceeded the 5.0-fWAR mark in each of the previous two seasons. Simmons added 1.2 fWAR to his career ledger in 195 pre-injury plate appearances this year, batting .298/.323/.415 (100 wRC+) with three home runs and five steals on six attempts. Along the way, the 29-year-old posted the majors’ third-lowest strikeout rate (7.7 percent, trailing only teammates David Fletcher and Tommy La Stella) and third-highest in-zone contact percentage (98.0). Simmons, Fletcher and La Stella are among many Angels who have been almost incapable of striking out this year, which explains why the Halos own the majors’ best K rate as a team (16.3 percent).
The Simmons-less Angels have mostly deployed Fletcher at short, La Stella at third and Luis Rengifo. Assuming Fletcher and La Stella continue to perform well, they seem likely to divide their time between third and second once Simmons comes back. However, a return from injuried infielder Zack Cozart could complicate matters.
The infield’s not the only place where the Angels’ lineup is battling injuries. They’re also without big-hitting left fielder Justin Upton, who hasn’t played this season on account of sprained toe. The 31-year-old is progressing toward a rehab assignment, though, according to Jeff Fletcher. While Upton produced another quality offensive campaign in 2018 – his first full season with the Angels – David Fletcher, Brian Goodwin and Cesar Puello have done well in his stead this year.
Yawn
Sprained toe keeps him out over 2 months? I never question injuries but…
If Upton is involved, Qiestion it.
it affects balance. the body compensates by using other muscles/tendons more possibly resulting in fatigue, strains, and/or pulls leading even more time on the IL. Turf Toe takes quite some time heal properly.
Thanks Dr Google
Probably more of a common sense observation post there, smart guy.
Upton had turf toe.
Yeah. Turf to can keep athletes out for a full season.
We need to get Turf Toe renamed to something that conveys the severity better. It’s certainly not a death knell but, as is, it sounds like an owie a 3yr old gets playing in the park…
Upton is not out for the season.
Probably should change the name since there seems to be a number of fans who have no clue that turf toe is a sprain and a joint tear and is very painful. It’s one of those things where you can tell who actually played sports and who didn’t.
Upton is not out for the season.
I fail to see how Cozart’s return would complicate things. He’s batting .124.
Here comes the stats police whining about quoting a batting average
OPS+ of NEGATIVE 11.
Like that better?
It will complicate things when Simmons comes back. They are not going to cut Cozart and they are not going to keep two utility infielders.
Cozart’s return complicates nothing after he’s put out on waivers. dump his worthlessness, declare him a total loss, eat his contract and move on. maybe some team would offer us a 17th round draft pick in exchange.
Fascinating transition in baseball: “Halos own the majors’ best K rate as a team (16.3 percent).”
16.3 %, or roughly 100 K’s per 613PA. In 1950, there were only two players in all of baseball who struck out 100+times. Adapting for the shorter season, only six total who had more than 90.
That was a different era and pitchers threw batting practice in games…..
On the positive side, I think that the supporting cast has filled in admirably. I would say starting pitching is still the culprit for being 2 games under .500, not the losses of the best defender (Simmons) and 2 middle of the order bats. That says as lot about what these guys have accomplished in the field and in the batters box.
Starting pitching is the problem. The ERA’s on some of these expensive one year deal middle of the road pitchers are hurting the Angels. Pitching has always been the Angels down fall especially the last several years. The play of the utility players have been great. Pitching needs to get healthy.
I also think a lot of it is due to coaching, but how long do you give them before you give them the axe?
Sign Ausmus was bad move for beginning. A lot! He doesn’t have winner mind.
Upton injury timeline has proof that Angel training staff and medics belong in same group as other league terribles, with Mets!
Actually their offense has been their biggest problem after 2014. Even with those starting pitching injuries, just a league average offense would’ve given them playoff appearances in 2015 and 2017. That’s the effect of having a high payroll.