Angels shortstop Zach Neto underwent shoulder surgical procedure and will miss the beginning of the 2025 season. Common supervisor Perry Minasian knowledgeable reporters akin to Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com (X hyperlink) and Sam Blum of The Athletic (X hyperlink), although didn’t specify the precise nature of the harm or process.
Per Minasian, Zeto sustained the harm taking part in in Chicago throughout the membership’s last week of the season. Whereas taking part in the White Sox on September 26, Zeto was on first base and tried to take second on a ball within the grime (video hyperlink from MLB.com). After sliding headfirst into the bag and getting thrown out, he was clutching at his proper shoulder and clearly in ache. The Angels then hosted the Rangers for the ultimate three video games of the season however Neto didn’t play in these.
Over a month has now handed since that harm. Per Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register (X hyperlink), Neto tried rehabbing however nonetheless had some lingering points, so it appears he needed to go below the knife.
Although the precise particulars of the scenario haven’t been relayed, the timetable shouldn’t be excellent news for the Angels. Neto has lower than two years within the large leagues however has taken over the membership’s shortstop job and carried out nicely. He simply wrapped up a 2024 season wherein he hit 23 residence runs and slashed .249/.318/.443 for a wRC+ of 114 wRC+. The critiques of his protection had been blended however he stole 30 bases on the yr. Placing his complete efficiency collectively, FanGraphs graded him as value 3.5 wins above substitute on the yr, tops on the crew.
The membership simply wrapped up their worst season in franchise historical past, going 63-99. Regardless of that, proprietor Arte Moreno stated final month that they deliberate to extend payroll and attempt to compete in 2025. They’ve already acquired slugger Jorge Soler from Atlanta and signed pitcher Kyle Hendricks as they try and improve the roster.
Turning a 99-loss crew right into a contender was all the time going to be a problem, particularly for a franchise that has frequently fallen in need of expectations. In recent times, they’ve had two-way star Shohei Ohtani and one thing close to peak Mike Trout on the identical roster however couldn’t even get their win-loss file over .500. Now they’ve misplaced Ohtani whereas Trout has turn out to be more and more absent as a consequence of accidents as he pushes in direction of his mid 30s.
Cobbling collectively a winner in 2025 will now solely turn out to be harder as their prime contributor from 2024 shall be lacking time. Since Neto will presumably be again in some unspecified time in the future, they in all probability gained’t go after a giant free agent like Willy Adames to fill the spot for a brief absence. Maybe they’ll preserve a watch out for multi-positional gamers that would fill the void after which transfer to a different spot as soon as Neto is wholesome.
It’s additionally doable that they’ve already been on this path. Tremendous utility participant Scott Kingery was despatched from the Phillies to the Angels final week, with the Halos including him to their roster shortly thereafter to stop him from reaching minor league free company. Kingery performed principally shortstop in Triple-A this yr, additionally spending a while at second base and middle area. He hit 25 residence runs and stole 25 bases, slashing .268/.316/.488. He has a line of simply .229/.280/.387 in his main league profession however could be a tremendous utility man if he carried out the best way he did within the minors in 2024.
Luis Rengifo can also be on the roster and might play everywhere in the diamond, although he’s probably not thought-about a robust defender wherever and might be higher fitted to a less-demanding spot like second base. Kyren Paris is on the 40-man however has simply 105 main league plate appearances with a tough line of .110/.214/.165 in these. Maybe the membership will preserve a watch out for different depth choices in free company, the commerce market, or on the waiver wire.
How the roster shakes out shall be decided within the months to return. For immediately, it’s a setback for the Halos. They’ve a roster with loads of query marks however shortstop wasn’t one among them earlier than this information.
