Los Angeles Angels suffer horrific 1-2 punch as postseason door slams shut

The Los Angeles Angels were aggressive at the 2023 MLB trade deadline in an effort to not only make the postseason but also in the hopes of showing two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani that Anaheim was the place where he should stay past this offseason.

However, a horrific week of news for the Angels has not only dramatically altered those plans, but perhaps the entire offseason ahead as well.

Los Angeles Angels: Injury news for Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani horrific 1-2 punch

After Ohtani was removed from the mound on Tuesday against the Cincinnati Reds after throwing just 26 pitches, Angels general manager Perry Minasian announced that the Japanese sensation had suffered a tear in the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. The injury will keep Ohtani off the mound for the rest of this season and puts the possibility of surgery on the table, which would very likely impact the 29-year-old’s free agency this offseason, a chase which was expected to produce among the largest paydays in MLB history.

It’s unclear how much Ohtani will serve as the team’s designated hitter as he pursues next steps with the UCL tear. With FanGraphs putting the Angels’ odds of making the postseason at 0.0 percent, there is, at least on the surface, little reason for Ohtani to push himself this season with plenty of questions about his health and future ahead.

Additionally, Los Angeles had hoped to get a bit of a boost with the return of Trout from a hamate fracture when he was activated from the injured list on Tuesday. However, Minasian said that some swings from Trout on Tuesday “didn’t go well” and he will go back on the injured list.

In a perfect world, the Angels thought a pair of superstars and a plethora of trades, including one for a frontline starter, could help them snap their postseason drought. However, this certainly isn’t a perfect world at the stadium with an address not far from Disneyland, with both Trout and Ohtani injured and Los Angeles just 5-16 in August.

What comes next for Ohtani and the Angels will be fascinating to watch, despite what has been a horrific stretch for the franchise on the field and in the infirmary.