Los Angeles Angels: Jo Adell Continues To Do Jo Adell Things

Los Angeles Angels prospect Jo Adell has outperformed expectations throughout his entire career. After being picked by the Halos 10th overall in the 2017 draft, Adell felt as if he had something to prove.

At 6’4” and 215 pounds, Los Angeles Angels prospect Jo Adell is an absolute force on the baseball field.

Yet many scouts felt that despite his rare combination of athleticism, speed, and defense, Adell – who was a two-way player in high school at Ballard High in Kentucky – was a risk as a high draft pick.  Some scouts contended that his high swing-and-miss ratio would not translate to high-level production at the plate.

In his short time in the minors, his play has certainly indicated that the 9 teams who passed on him made a crucial mistake. Throughout 99 games across Low-A, High-A ball and AA last year, Adell posted a .290 average with 20 HRs and a .897 OPS.

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In the aftermath of his fantastic 2018 season, he began this year as MLB.com‘s 4th-rated prospect, where he sits today. Baseball Prospectus is even higher on him, ranking him #2 in their rankings, behind only Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

When our Halo Hangout’s David Rice caught up with him 3 weeks ago, Jo Adell was hitting .400 through seven AA games in Mobile. He’s only slightly slowed down since then. Currently, MLB.com’s No. 1 outfield prospect continues to produce eye-popping numbers at the plate: in 24 games with the BayBears, he’s hitting .360, with 14 XBH, 16 runs, 4 HRs, 4 SBs, and a 1.037 OPS.

For the second straight year, he was invited to yesterday’s Futures Game, where he batted 4th for the AL squad and went 1-for-2 with 2 BBs.  He also made a really slick catch out in right field.

The Angels invited Adell, their top prospect, to spring training, where he hit .391 in 11 games, with a .462 OBP.  He pulled his left hamstring while running the bases on March 9th and thought his season may have been over.

Yet in addition to his All-Star stats and his undeniable athleticism, what makes Jo Adell so spectacular is his maturity.  When discussing the spring training injury, he told Jerry Bembry of The Undefeated :

"What did I learn? That having a lengthy career is not all about physical gifts, but about watching and learning. I watched closely what Trout and the others did, to see if what they did – the way they made cuts for balls in the outfield, the way they studies pitchers – could work for me. I listened intently to the messages that were relayed by the hitting and outfield coordinators.It was all about adding chapters to my book of knowledge."

Clearly, the 20-year-old has an emotional depth that matches his next-level playing ability. This year, Adell has teamed up with The Undefeated to write diary entries throughout the season. In his first entry with Jerry Bembry – published April 4th, 2019 – Adell wrote about his injury:
“From the moment I started playing low-A ball last year, I’ve made it a point to work hard and never miss a day. For me, it’s tunnel vision and only looking forward.”

Adell aspires to make a meaningful impact in his community, too. He cites LeBron James as one of his role models, and like James, Adell is giving back to his community in a big way. He already has his own charitable foundation in the Louisville area, called the Jo Adell Foundation.

The Foundation’s programs include a 6-week project “centered on making a difference in the community through STEM, the Arts, or Entrepreneurship/Business” and a free baseball camp for 300 Louisville youth. He even sought help from guys like 2017 MLB Draft’s No. 2 pick by Cincinnati Hunter Greene to be a camp counselor.

Not surprisingly, the Foundation’s motto is “Work Hard, Be Kind, Give Back”. This is an ethos which Adell has lived by since he first decided he wanted to chase down a dream of playing professional baseball at 15.

In addition to being a community ambassador and a philanthropist, Adell wants to be a shining example for aspiring African-American youth baseball players, too:

"“It’s important for African American kids to see more guys in the sport that look like them. When me, Royce Lewis [No. 1 overall pick by the Twins in 2017], and Hunter Greene were taken in the top 10 in the same draft, I have to think that there were many African American kids who looked at that on TV and said, ‘That’s what I want to do.’“The important thing for us as black players is to let them know that the opportunity is there.”"

If Jo Adell started a business, and if I knew anything about stocks, I would invest in his company. The dude is a flat-out winner.

The way he’s playing right now, we could be seeing him with the Angels by the end of the year.  While there is no rush to bring him up, you can bet that Adell will maintain his “Work Hard, Be Kind, Give Back” mantra regardless of when he gets that call.

One thing is certain, when Jo Adell writes, “People say I’ve accomplished a lot, but I’m far from done”, I believe him.

If he is in fact far from done, that is an exciting thing to hear for baseball fans everywhere.