7 players Angels fans are already fed up with this season

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7 players Angels fans are already fed up with this season

Chris Spiering, ClutchPoints · ClutchPoints

Wed, May 20, 2026 ·

5 min read

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There is no doubt that the Los Angeles Angels are the worst team in the American League this season. It doesn't really come as a shock in the big 2026, but the Angels always find a way to start the season off hot (mostly due to Mike Trout ). After April ends and May begins, the Halos begin to lose their wings.

There is a lot you can point the blame at. The Angels have a rookie manager in Kurt Suzuki , a terrible rotation and bullpen outside of one elite starter, and one of the worst offenses in the league, with a 28th-ranked offense at a .225 team batting average.

There are many players on the roster who are not playing well. However, no Angels fan would argue that these seven players have to change things around immediately, or they could find themselves off the roster. These seven players include Nolan Schanuel , Josh Lowe , Yoan Moncada , Logan O'Hoppe, Reid Detmers , Yusei Kikuchi , and Ryan Johnson . There are more names you could add to this list, but for the sake of the conversation, we will focus on these seven.

Let's take a deep dive into each player and explain why Angels fans are fed up with them .

Yusei Kikuchi

Let's start with the one player who is currently injured, but had a poor start to the 2026 season. The southpaw may be out another month due to a shoulder injury. Before the injury, Kikuchi was 0-3 with a 5.81 ERA, 1.58 WHIP, 2.4 K/BB, and 33 strikeouts in 31 innings (respectable). Kikuchi has always allowed runs at a high rate, with a career 4.50 ERA. However, in 2025, he posted the 3rd-lowest ERA of his career at 3.99 and pitched 178.1 innings, the most of his career.

Many thought that 2026 would be the year he would compete for an All-Star spot. That is not close to being the case. Angels fans probably wouldn't mind not seeing him pitch ever again in Southern California.

Nolan Schanuel

Schanuel is supposed to be the Angels' best left-handed batter. While he technically does own that title for the time being, he isn't doing anything about it. Schanuel has the second most hits on the team at 44, but is hitting just .251 with three home runs, 20 RBIs, and an OPS of just .664. He is not off to the start that he would have liked, but he has plenty of time to figure it out. Hitting above .250 is still good enough to remain in the heart of the order, but the Angels were hoping he would turn into a 20-homer player in 2026.

Josh Lowe

The fact that Josh Lowe is still earning plate appearances is confusing to me. He has done nothing to warrant his playing time being 7th in PA's. The lefty is hitting .179 with four home runs, 12 RBIs, 21 hits total, two doubles, and an OPS of .523. He is seven for his last 40 with an average of .148 at home. It may be time to move on from Lowe.

Yoan Moncada

The once former top prospect has not had the career he wanted. Moncada is off to another poor start to a season and is already at a -0.2 WAR for the only time since his rookie season. In his second season in LA, Moncada is hitting just .191 with three home runs, 10 RBIs, and an OPS of .610.

The switch-hitter is only 30 years old. He still has plenty of time to try and figure things out, but it just seems unlikely at this point. His defense hasn't been great either, with four errors at third base this season. Angels fans are fed up with the small ounces of hope they get watching him play.

Logan O'Hoppe

Logan O'Hoppe sprinted on the scene a few seasons ago but has not been able to keep it going. From 2023-2025, O'Hoppe smashed 53 home runs and drove in 128 runs. Now in the big 2026, the catcher has one home run and eight RBIs on the season. He is hitting just .200 and owns an OPS of .553. He has played in 31 games this season, so it's not like he isn't getting the at-bats. He is 9th on the team in at-bats, which makes sense as he bats toward the end of the lineup.

Angels fans love O'Hoppe. However, if he continues to play like this, then fans will get over him quickly. It's interesting how he regressed after the Halos hired a longtime catcher as manager.

Reid Detmers

Detmers is supposed to be the second-best starter on this staff behind Jose Soriano. That has just not been the case. The southpaw is 1-5 with a 5.07 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, and recently allowed eight runs to the Athletics on Tuesday night. Detmers is a strikeout artist with 61 in 55 innings pitched this season. However, he's allowed four home runs while walking 19 hitters already this season.

It's been six seasons now in Los Angeles , and he owns a 4.80 ERA. It's time to consider moving on from him.

Ryan Johnson

Ryan Johnson is only on this list because of the absolutely terrible season he has had in 2026. It's a massive shock to still see him pitching. Johnson is coming off a relief appearance where he allowed five runs in 2.0 innings. In 8.1 innings this season, Johnson has allowed 14 runs, three home runs, and has walked seven hitters. He has a 15.12 ERA and 2.64 WHIP. He has to go.

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