Angels shortstop Zach Neto underwent shoulder surgical procedure and will miss the beginning of the 2025 season. Common supervisor Perry Minasian knowledgeable reporters equivalent 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 closing 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 beneath the knife.
Although the precise particulars of the state of affairs haven’t been relayed, the timetable is just not excellent news for the Angels. Neto has lower than two years within the huge leagues however has taken over the membership’s shortstop job and carried out properly. He simply wrapped up a 2024 season by which he hit 23 dwelling runs and slashed .249/.318/.443 for a wRC+ of 114 wRC+. The critiques of his protection had been combined however he stole 30 bases on the yr. Placing his whole efficiency collectively, FanGraphs graded him as price 3.5 wins above substitute on the yr, tops on the group.
The membership simply wrapped up their worst season in franchise historical past, going 63-99. Regardless of that, proprietor Arte Moreno mentioned 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 to improve the roster.
Turning a 99-loss group right into a contender was at all times going to be a problem, particularly for a franchise that has regularly fallen in need of expectations. Lately, 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 document over .500. Now they’ve misplaced Ohtani whereas Trout has change into more and more absent because of accidents as he pushes in direction of his mid 30s.
Cobbling collectively a winner in 2025 will now solely change into harder as their prime contributor from 2024 might be lacking time. Since Neto will presumably be again sooner or later, they in all probability gained’t go after an enormous free agent like Willy Adames to fill the spot for a brief absence. Maybe they may maintain 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 forestall him from reaching minor league free company. Kingery performed largely shortstop in Triple-A this yr, additionally spending a while at second base and middle discipline. He hit 25 dwelling 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 nice utility man if he carried out the way in which he did within the minors in 2024.
Luis Rengifo can be on the roster and might play everywhere in the diamond, although he’s not likely thought of a powerful 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 maintain a watch out for different depth choices in free company, the commerce market, or on the waiver wire.
How the roster shakes out might be decided within the months to return. For right now, it’s a setback for the Halos. They’ve a roster with loads of query marks however shortstop wasn’t one in every of them earlier than this information.
