Angels' Ron Washington Praises Team's 'Little Bitty Increments in Growth'

For a team that refuses to rebuild, it sure sounds like the Angels are embracing rebuilding.

May 15, 2024; Anaheim, California, USA; Los Angeles Angels manager Ron Washington (37) hitting a practice grounder to his infielders before a recent game. / Kiyoshi Mio-USA TODAY Sports

Not every baseball team can realistically contend for a World Series, a playoff berth, or merely remain competitive for a playoff berth late into each season. Competitive cycles are real, and sometimes teams are simply at a low point in their ability to contend.

Teams that are confident in their abilities and back up that confidence with real results tend to focus on how well they're executing: are they winning most of their games and playing well in losses? Teams that know they realistically can't keep up with the best teams in baseball tend to focus on smaller victories — skill development, incremental improvements, and other signs the players on their current roster might be able to contribute when the team is ready to contend for a playoff berth in the future.

These teams, in the industry parlance, are known as "rebuilding teams."

The Angels sure sound like a rebuilding team.

In a recent interview with reporters, Angels manager Ron Washington laid bare his reasons for feeling encouraged. His team is 16-28, last place in the American League West, and doing better than only one other AL team. The Angels entered the season with grand pronouncements about being underrated and wanting to win in 2024, but the self-confidence simply hasn't manifested results.

So, how is Washington evaluating the team's success now?

“You guys just don’t see the little bitty increments in growth that these guys are having,” Washington said, via the Orange County Register. “Sometimes it takes a while for them to figure it out. Because all of a sudden you hit a situation in the ballgame where the first five or six innings they were so relaxed, and then that same situation hits in the seventh inning when something has to be made, all of a sudden something kicks in and they have to work their way through that."

Washington's sentiment is absolutely fair given where the team is in the standings. Injuries have robbed the Angels of key veterans — Mike Trout, Anthony Rendon, Brandon Drury, Luis Rengifo — and forced them to rely on a mix of castaways and young talent.

It's fair to debate whether the Angels' championship ambitions would be justified even if the team were at full health. Still, the injured list has been a familiar place for Trout and Rendon in recent years, and now the Angels must grapple with that reality again. With it comes an unspoken adjustment in expectations: this probably isn't their year.

“I’m happy with the way we’ve been playing," Washington said. "I’m like you guys. I want to see us win more ballgames. But you have to learn to do that. And this group I have, they are learning how to win. … At some point, I do believe it’s gonna start kicking in. I have no doubt about it.”