TEMPE, Ariz. — The spring training position change last year was followed by a March leg injury and threatened to derail what was shaping up to be a breakthrough season for Angels outfielder Jo Adell.
Still trying to deliver on his full potential in his age-26 season, Adell refused to waver.
While leaning into the main tool that made him a No. 10 overall draft pick in 2017, Adell blasted his way to the forefront in 2025.
While the victories were hard to come by for the Angels, Adell posted a win by hitting a career-best 37 home runs with 98 RBIs and a .485 slugging percentage in 573 plate appearances. He delivered four multi-homer games, with three coming after the start of June when the weather warmed, along with his determination.
The turnaround from a disappointing start to the season came in a flash.
“It was definitely one of those things where, you know, the consistency of getting the full season of at-bats was kind of the key for me,” said Adell, who pushed through an early quadriceps injury. “Obviously, it was to get to a point where the team is willing to make that type of move and allow you to be able to do that. But obviously, when I was allowed to get over those 300, 400 plate appearances, I started to show kind of what my capabilities were.”
Just out of high school when he was drafted, Adell needed just three minor-league seasons to get to the major leagues when he played 38 games during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. But he ended up bouncing between Triple-A and the major leagues from 2021-23.
His 20 home runs and .682 OPS in 130 games and 451 plate appearances with the Angels in 2024 were welcome and yet not exactly at projections. His 2025 season, while becoming a regular center fielder again for the first time in five years, certified Adell’s arrival.
His quad injury during the season-opening three-game road series against the Chicago White Sox threatened to derail the process just as it began.
“It’s kind of weird, because every year I come in in really good shape, and so it was just kind of one of those fluke injuries,” Adell said. “We were in Chicago, and it was really, really cold, and, you know, maybe I wasn’t as loose as I thought that I was, and had kind of that strain go on.”
Adell was batting just .181 with a .541 OPS one month into the season and .184 with a .603 OPS on May 25. The thaw became more evident with a three-hit game May 30 and a two-homer game on June 2 in Boston.
In June alone, Adell hit 11 home runs with 19 RBIs and a .293 batting average with a 1.038 OPS. In August he hit nine home runs with 21 RBIs.
“I actually played with Jo, so I saw him when he was younger and really trying to establish himself, and the year he had last year, I feel like was just the beginning for him,” Angels manager Kurt Suzuki said. “I feel like now he understands himself more and he is stepping into that leadership a little more.”
With Mike Trout likely heading back to center field this season, Adell will transition back to his regular spot in right. And after a season when his foot speed was far from his best, he says his burst is back.
“I move pretty well,” Adell said. “I’m still at 28, 29 feet per second moving down the line so I can move.”
A full sprint this season, without the hurdles from a year ago, suggests the best is yet to come.
“I feel pretty good about getting back into right and getting back in where I have a comfort level in that corner and being able to cover ground,” Adell said. “So I’m excited to kind of just get back in that comfort zone and have Mike lock it down in center field. I know he’s excited to get back out there as well.”
DANA BACK ON TRACK
Right-hander Caden Dana said he will throw a bullpen session Tuesday after emerging from an energy-sapping illness that was diagnosed as mononucleosis.
Dana said he started feeling under the weather in late January before a persistent fever emerged. When he reported to spring training, he said he had been sweating through the night, barely getting any sleep. His illness was diagnosed after going through his annual spring training physical.
Dana, 22, has made 10 appearances (eight starts) for the Angels over the past two seasons. He was 0-4 with a 6.40 ERA in seven appearances (five starts) last season. In 18 starts at Triple-A Salt Lake in 2026, he was 6-9 with a 5.93 ERA.
OPEN CASE AT CLOSER
Suzuki said a set closer is something he has always experienced while in the major leagues, but remained non-committal about the role with the regular season just over three weeks away.
Kirby Yates, Jordan Romano and Ben Joyce are all candidates for the job, but Joyce is expected to start the season on the injured list as he recovers from last year’s shoulder surgery. Yates has 98 saves in 11 seasons, while Romano has 113 in seven seasons.
“Just to have three guys at the back end that can do it is definitely a luxury to have,” Suzuki said. “We’ll see how it plays out.”