Who’s Hot, Who’s Not #3 (4/19-25)
Apr 27, 2025 - Written by Kian Behravan
Photo Credit : @KUAthletics - X
Welcome back to the third week of Who’s Hot, Who’s Not! Each week I aim to pick one hitter and pitcher who have either been hot–or not. The Angels went 2-4 on the week and came off a brutal sweep to the Twins for this weekend series in Minnesota.
It was tough finding hitters who have been doing well, so the “hot” category will feature two pitchers, and the “not” category will be a little different as well.
Hot! Yusei Kikuchi and Ryan Zeferjahn
Yusei Kikuchi figured it out when he started on April 20. He went 5.1 innings, giving up no earned runs while striking out six. One thing that was concerning, however, was his four walks. It seemed that he lacked complete control over his slider, which is the pitch he uses almost equally as much as his fastball. Throwing 100 pitches in 5 innings is not ideal for any starter, and his lack of command was a main problem. However, he limited runs from scoring but still went home with a no-decision, as the Angels scored 4 in the ninth to walk it off 5-4.
Ryan Zeferjahn has bounced back after some bad outings, as this pick is retroactive to last week. Since April 12, he’s struck out nine hitters in just four innings, which is outstanding. He’s done so by keeping his pitches low in the zone, but he’s not afraid to challenge hitters. In his strikeout against Adolis Garcia, he blew a 99 MPH fastball down the middle right by him. Against lefty Joc Pederson, he painted a fastball outside, which is something that should be done against lefties, instead of trying to bury a sweeper down, risking a hanger. So far, he’s about to match his strikeout total from last season, except he hasn’t pitched ten innings yet. Last year, he struck out 18 in 17 innings. This year, he’s already struck out 16 in just 7.2 innings of work.
Not… The entire lineup
The Angels lineup has been atrocious for the better half of the season, and it’s shown this week. During the six-game stretch, they’ve slashed .183 / .227 / .361, have struck out a whopping 60 times, and left 28 men on base. They’re averaging more than a home run per game, but it hasn’t amounted to anything, as they went 2-4. The problem is that they can’t string hits together to score runs. They’re too aggressive to the point where they’re always chasing out of the zone, as they’ve only walked ten times in this six-game stretch (4/19-4/25). Another thing, as we dig more into the stats, could be a mindset problem. The Angels got off to a hot start in the power category, and it’s not like they’ve slowed down. Over these six games, 17 of their 35 hits have been for extra bases (8 2B, 1 3B, 8 HR). The declining batting average could stem from an urge to swing for the fences every time for some hitters. Three candidates that come to mind are Mike Trout, Jorge Soler, and Kyren Paris. These guys just need to shorten up and look to put the ball in play, as does the rest of the lineup. If this problem is still present by next week, the team will find themselves deeper in fifth place.
There's not much to talk about this week, as the team seems to be in an early decline. Hopefully, the Halos can bounce back next week so there can be a legitimate “hot” category. See you next week on Who’s Hot, Who’s Not!
Disclaimer : (1) All photos are not owned by InsideHalos and have been given proper credit beneath each photo. (2) Links of players are property of MLB, MiLB, and Baseball Reference. (3) InsideHalos is a fan-made site not affiliated with Angels Baseball.
