Who’s Hot, Who’s Not #19 (8/11-17)
August 23, 2025 - Written by Kian Behravan & Brayden Zielke
Photo Credit: @Angels - X
Another week has passed, which means it’s time for Who’s Hot, Who’s Not! Each week, Brayden and I dig deep in the stats to figure out who’s been doing well and who hasn’t.
Last week, the Angels went 4-2, including a walk-off win against the Dodgers, whom they swept in a three game set. The Halos then turned around to drop two of three to the last place Athletics. The team still sits in fourth place with two interleague series against the Reds and Cubs. The Wildcard seems to be out of the question now.
Hitters: Kian
As a team, the Angels’ lineup slashed .240 / .349 / .410. Once again, plate discipline was low, as they struck out over ten times per game on average, compared to around five walks per game. Every week, it’s the same story: leadoff homers and lots of strikeouts. However, the team's batting average has slowly gone up as the season has progressed.
Hot! Yoan Moncada
Yoan Moncada was on a tear last week, as he hit .500 and generated three RBIs at the plate. While he wasn’t hitting homers left and right, he did roped two doubles, including one hit 111.5 MPH of a Emmet Sheehan slider. In fact, he crushed Dodgers’ pitching, going 4-7 in three games, as well as hitting the ball over 101 MPH on average. He saw Shohei Ohtani’s sweeper well, as he hit it for a double on the 13th.
Overall it was an impressive week for Moncada, who has otherwise been sub-par this season.
Not… Logan O’Hoppe
Logan O’Hoppe had a rough go last week, as he collected just two hits in 15 at-bats and struck out five times in four games. After going over his film, it raised concern for me about his future as a catcher.
O’Hoppe seemed tired at the plate. Not lazy, but tired. People can brush it off as a slump, but I believe it’s genuine fatigue. The reason why O’Hoppe doesn’t want to take a break is because he knows his team needs him. He hustles–but only when he’s in good condition. It’s likely a spot at third base opens up next season, and with O-Hoppe already taking reps there during batting practice, it seems plausible to move him over there and look for another catcher with better fielding abilities with him. With the struggles of the Angel’s pitching staff every year, it’s imperative that the man behind the plate is an exceptional fielder. Perhaps a move could allow O’Hoppe to save his body and let him perform to his full ability every game.
It was an okay week for the Angels lineup, but there's always room for improvement.
Pitchers: Brayden
As a pitching staff, the Angels allowed 6.17 runs per game this week, to go along with the Angels 6 runs scored per game. Somehow, the Angels managed to go 4-2 this week. They averaged nearly 10 hits allowed per game and walked over 5. This was a rough week for Angels pitching.
Hot! Luis Garcia
With almost the entire pitching staff playing pretty terribly this week, Garcia was one of the only guys who actually pitched well. Garcia appeared in 4 of the Angels 6 games this week, throwing 3.1 innings and giving up 4 hits and 0 earned runs, along with walking 3 and striking out 2.
Not… The Entire Rotation
Despite having a 4-2 record this week, the Angels rotation was quite terrible. The Angels only had one good start this entire week, coming on Jose Soriano’s 6 scoreless innings against the Dodgers. Despite this, Soriano’s start in Sacramento wasn’t very good, and none of the other starters pitched well. The rotation had a 7.00 ERA this week, giving up 21 earned runs in 27 innings pitched.
It was another odd week for the Angels. Despite a winning record, there were plenty of struggling aspects of performance that were apparent. See you next week on Who’s Hot, Who’s Not!
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