Angels Journeyman Hits 480-Foot Homer at Triple-A; Is Call-Up Next?

Maren Angus-Coombs | Jun 21, 2024

Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports

Keston Hiura was a promising prospect for the Milwaukee Brewers. He was selected ninth overall in the 2017 draft out of the University of California-Irvine, and looked like a budding star when he hit 19 homers in 84 games as a rookie for Milwaukee during the 2019 season.

Lately, he's been trying to find his way back to the major leagues since the Brewers outrighted him off their 40-man roster on the eve of the 2023 season.

The Angels brought the Southern California native home with a minor league contract on June 11. All he is done since is tear up minor league pitching at Triple-A Salt Lake.

Hiura has five home runs in seven games for the Bees. On Thursday night, he had two with one landing 480 feet from home plate.

KESTON HIURA OH MY GOODNESS! 😱💣

Hiura SMASHES his second home run of the game 480 feet to give the Bees a four run lead! pic.twitter.com/TvPVH2O9eX

— Salt Lake Bees (@SaltLakeBees) June 21, 2024

Hiura has always had a strong showing in the minors. He owns a .289/.382/.550 batting line in nearly 1,100 Triple-A plate appearances over parts of five seasons. Just last season, he launched 23 homers in 85 games.

Compared to his rookie year, however, Hiura's game just hasn't translated to the big leagues. Perhaps that could change with the Angels? At this point, the big league club is searching for a spark. Manager Ron Washington is constantly trying to find a winning lineup and Hiura might get a chance to compete with first baseman Nolan Schanuel, who is batting .229 through 66 games.

The situation might not be ideal but if Hiura continues to rake at this rate, he will be hard to ignore.