The Los Angeles Angels went all-in at the trade deadline to try to make a playoff run before Shohei Ohtani hits free agency. That decision has yet to work out, and it has the Angels doing some pretty unorthodox things to try to salvage their season.
The Angels are promoting first baseman Nolan Schanuel to the majors from Double-A, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN. The Angels drafted Schanuel roughly six weeks ago with the No. 11 pick in the MLB Draft, and are bringing him up after he played in just 21 minor league games.
The Los Angeles Angels are calling up first baseman Nolan Schanuel, who they took with the 11th overall pick in the draft less than six weeks ago and was in Double-A, sources tell ESPN. The 21-year-old from Florida Atlantic is hitting .370/.510/.493 in 21 minor league games.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 18, 2023
There is not much precedent for a player coming from the draft to the big leagues this quickly, especially among position players. Schanuel was viewed as a more pro-ready bat within the class, but this still beats anyone’s expectations. To his credit, he did perform well in his brief minor league stint by hitting .370.
The Angels are just 4-11 in August since going all-in at the deadline, when they added names like Lucas Giolito and CJ Cron to try to bolster their team for a playoff run. It seems unlikely that bringing Schanuel will save the season, but they’re desperate enough to try.
