ANAHEIM -- Jo Adell continues to try to make a good impression down the stretch as he heads into a critical 2023 season. He contributed on both sides of the ball in the series opener against the A's on Tuesday night.
Adell made a leaping catch at the left-field wall to take away a potential homer from Dermis Garcia in the fifth inning and came through with a go-ahead RBI single in the eighth inning of a 4-3 win at Angel Stadium.
Adell has been platooning with the left-handed-hitting Mickey Moniak this month, which has limited his playing time, but interim manager Phil Nevin talked with Adell and told him he was going to play despite right-hander James Kaprielian being on the mound for Oakland.
"It's been tough, but it's one of those things where we're all working to get better and, for me, I want to be in a situation where I can help as much as I can," Adell said. "But I'm glad for opportunities like tonight. You wait around for it and look for the opportunity to come in, and make something happen and tonight I was able to do that."
Nevin praised Adell for the way he’s been handling his playing time, as he’s continued to work hard every pregame, especially on the defensive side. Adell does early work with outfield coach Damon Mashore to work on his reads in left field and he’s starting to see improvement.
"He had a really good game,” Nevin said. “I've praised his work in the outfield with Mashore every day. There are a lot of things that are paying off. His first-step quickness is getting better. That was a nice ball he caught tonight and he had a big base hit. It was a really good game for Jo and he hadn't played in four or five games, either."
Adell also started an impressive relay from left field in the second inning that saw Cristian Pache get thrown out at the plate easily by shortstop Livan Soto. Nick Allen doubled over Adell's head on a 1-1 slider from lefty Patrick Sandoval, but Adell got to the ball quickly and delivered an accurate throw to Soto, who fired home to get Pache at the plate.
Adell again helped Sandoval defensively with his impressive catch at the wall to open the fifth. He tracked down a deep drive to left from Garcia and snared it with a jumping effort at the wall to keep the game tied at 3-3. Adell said he wasn’t fully sure if it was going to be a homer, but that the ball was headed toward the top of the fence.
“Incredible,” Sandoval said. “He had an incredible game. His first two at-bats were kind of tough and then he goes out there and makes that play and drives in the winning run. I couldn’t be more happy for that guy.”
Adell untied the game with his go-ahead RBI single in the eighth inning off lefty reliever A.J. Puk. Matt Duffy started the rally by getting hit by a pitch and was moved over to second on a bunt from Michael Stefanic. Adell connected on a 2-1 slider from Puk and drove it past Allen at shortstop to bring home Duffy. Adell, who went to second on the throw home, clapped his hands in excitement as he got to second base.
"I just wanted to put the ball forward, that was my goal the entire at-bat," Adell said. "Just see what happens. And it worked out."
It was a good sign from Adell, whose offense has been a work in progress this year. The 23-year-old is batting .223/.262/.364 with seven homers, 11 doubles and 23 RBIs in 80 games this season.
But with the Angels deciding to trade fellow outfielder Brandon Marsh to the Phillies for catching prospect Logan O'Hoppe at the Aug. 2 Trade Deadline, Adell could play his way into a bigger role next season. The Angels also are set to call up O’Hoppe on Wednesday and are designating outfielder Magneuris Sierra for assignment, which could open up more playing time for Adell down the stretch.
"I think he just needs consistent at-bats in one place, but quite frankly, he hasn't had a lot of that in his career,” Nevin said. “He just needs to play, as many young players do. You see how young he still is. If you look back -- rushed, if you want to use that. It's been another learning curve. But the work he puts in and the effort he gives every day is something I appreciate."