The Los Angeles Angels have played 36 of their first 61 games on the road. That’s tied for the most in the Majors with the Minnesota Twins. But, in a surprise twist, that might be a good thing for them, as they are 18-18 away from Anaheim and have the seventh-best OPS in MLB on the road, at .723.
It’s at the Big A that they’ve had issues. 25 is the fewest home games played by any team so far this season. In Anaheim, though, the Angels are 10-15. And their .646 team OPS is the third-worst in the Majors, ahead of only the Texas Rangers and Milwaukee Brewers.
This is extremely surprising given how young the Angels are. Being led by Logan O’Hoppe, Zach Neto and Nolan Schanuel, it would stand to reason that the Angels would be a better home team, but that simply hasn’t been the case. Making the next six games vital for the Halos as they look ahead to the rest of their season.
The Angels play a three-game weekend set against the Seattle Mariners, then host the Athletics from Monday to Wednesday. Six home games against American League West opponents serves as an opportunity to stay afloat in the division and the Wild Card race, while also re-establishing rhythm at home, where they’ll play the most games in the Majors the rest of the way.
And the Angels have relatively good health at this point of the season. Yoan Moncada and Robert Stephenson — after making his Angels debut — are the only recent additions to the injured list, with both not expected to miss significant time. And Angels pitching — although in the bottom half of the league picture — has been consistent from road to home.
If the Angels can win more than they lose during this home stand, it keeps them hovering closer to .500 in what is a wide open AL West. The Houston Astros are currently winning the division at six games above .500. They are the only division leader to have a win percentage below .600, and they are at .548.
At only 5.5 games back with 100 games to go, the Angels can still make noise. But they have to start winning at home and winning against their division.
Angels vs. Mariners and Angels vs. Athletics game times and probables
Angels vs. Mariners
Game 1: Friday, June 6 at 6:38 p.m. PT
Kyle Hendricks vs. Bryce Miller
Game 2: Saturday, June 7 at 6:38 p.m. PT
Jack Kochanowicz vs. Luis Castillo
Game 3: Sunday, June 8 at 1:07 p.m. PT
Tyler Anderson vs. George Kirby
Angels vs. Athletics
Game 1: Monday. June 9 at 6:38 p.m. PT
Yusei Kikuchi vs. Jeffrey Springs
Game 2: Tuesday, June 10 at 6:38 p.m. PT
Jose Soriano vs. Mitch Spence
Game 3: Wednesday, June 11 at 1:07 p.m. PT
Kyle Hendricks vs. JP Sears
