Jo Adell has been biding his time with the Triple-A Salt Lake Bees, waiting for an opportunity to return to the show for an elongated period, and with the Angels placing All-Star outfielder Mike Trout on the 10-day injured list with a left hamate fracture that could keep him out of the lineup for 4-8 weeks, Adell’s opportunity has taken shape.
A day before being called up on July 4th, the 24-year-old let off his own firework a day early, blasting his 23rd homer to give him the Minor League lead. This was Adell’s 59th career homer with the Bees, which is tied with Chad Rupp for 4th most in Salt Lake franchise history.
His latest performance in the Minors was seemingly a reminder that he’s been ready to make the jump back to the Majors.
“I’m playing the game me vs. me,” Adell said. “Every opportunity I get, I try to compete and see how much better I can be, whether it’s practice, weight room stuff, or out on the field during the game. I’m not doing anything comparative to anyone else other than myself. I’m gonna go out and play my game and see what happens.
In his first game back with the Angels, Adell came off the bench as Shohei Ohtani exited the game as a pitcher and designated hitter due to a blister on his right middle finger. The injury is similar to the cracked nail that he sustained on June 27, which forced him to exit the game as a pitcher but didn’t prevent him from crushing two homers.
Nonetheless, with the Angels’ two stars injured, Adell made the most of his lone at-bat. The North Carolina native hit a ball through the right-center field gap to the wall and hustled over to third for an RBI triple. Adell came in to score on Eduardo Escobar’s sacrifice fly. The Angels scored four runs in the top of the ninth, starting with Adell’s first appearance in the Majors since June 8.
Unfortunately, the comeback wasn’t enough in the 8-5 loss to the San Diego Padres, but it was evident how electric and impactful Adell’s game can be on a team, especially with their premiere run contributors unable to leave their mark.
Adell had a hit and an RBI on Wednesday night in a game against the San Diego Padres, so he’s all in with helping the Angels build on their winnign record.
Fans who weren’t familiar with Adell’s story became more accustomed to his name when he blasted a 451-foot homer earlier this season with the Angels to help them sweep the Cubs and again later that month when he crushed a 514-foot tank earlier this season for the Bees, which was a jack heard around the league.
“Our approach this year as a team was to go out there and do what you do best, and for me, it’s been my power numbers,” Adell said. “I’ve been able to put the ball in the air more consistently this year to this point. So I’m hoping to do that and bring that to the table as a strong suit for me.”
The expectations could be rising with Trout on the injured list and the Angels standing third in the American League West, just seven games behind the first-place Rangers and four behind the second-place Astros. But Adell knows nearly better than anyone else that a season is filled with ups and down, and he’s focused on improving his game and helping the team reach its first playoff series since 2014.
