Angeles' Ron Washington Explains Why He Surprisingly Pulled Zach Neto Mid-Game

Maren Angus-Coombs | Sep 1, 2024

Jonathan Hui-USA TODAY Sports

On the heels of Zach Neto's historic game for the Los Angeles Angels, manager Ron Washington made another statement with his shortstop on Saturday.

Neto, who became the first Angels infielder with a 20-homer, 20-steal season on Friday, was benched on Saturday.

Washington told reporters after the game that Neto "wasn’t into it tonight… sometimes you have to teach them a lesson."

Ron Washington said he pulled Zach Neto because he wasn’t playing well.

“He wasn’t into it tonight… sometimes you have to teach them a lesson.”

— Jeff Fletcher (@JeffFletcherOCR) September 1, 2024

Angels shortstop Zach Neto was pulled for a pinch hitter in the sixth inning, just one inning after a fielding error on a routine grounder. He was also out of position on a pickoff play during Seattle’s three-run fourth inning. Normally a reliable defender, Neto has made three errors in his last two games.

“I wasn’t trying to send a message to hurt his feelings, but he wasn’t into it,” said Washington. “Since he wasn’t into it, I removed him from the game.”

Neto, clearly reflective, added, “Me and Wash have a really good relationship, and he thought it was best to take me out in that moment. I respect it and just try to be the best teammate I can be.”

MICKEY MONIAK #WALKOFF HOME RUN 🤯 pic.twitter.com/IQNAc23Kmf

— MLB (@MLB) September 1, 2024

Even without the sure-handed Neto, the Angels managed to pull out a 5-4 win over the Seattle Mariners thanks to multi-home run efforts from Mickey Moniak and Jo Adell.

Moniak has four home runs in his past four games and launched his first walk-off homer in the bottom of the ninth. It was his first multi-home run game in the major leagues and it was an impressive August for him. He hit .360 in August with six home runs.

“I think in the beginning, I was dealing with a little bit of an ankle thing, but that’s not an excuse,” Moniak said. “I definitely feel now like I’m starting to feel better, physically and mentally.”

Jo Adell's second tank of the night is his 20th of the season 💥 pic.twitter.com/xQKNp8bYYo

— MLB (@MLB) September 1, 2024

Adell's first of the night was in the third inning and evened the score. His second one came in the sixth.

“Staying through the middle was huge,” Adell said. “I was able to stay under that and do some damage with it. The approach was just to hit something hard forward, and good things happen.”

Neto was back in the lineup Sunday and went 0 for 2 with a walk in the Angels' 3-2 win over Seattle.

More News: Angels' Zach Neto Says He's Still Struggling Mentally on Defense