Jo Adell has yet to stick with the Angels in the big leagues.
But he’s making it as difficult as he can for them to keep him in the minors.
Playing for the triple-A affiliate Salt Lake Bees, Adell hit his MiLB-best 20th home run of the season Tuesday night during a 12-11 loss to Sugar Land.
And what a home run it was — a three-run, game-tying moon shot off Space Cowboys pitcher Austin Hanson in the eighth inning that went way over the left-center field wall. According to Major League Baseball’s Statcast tracking technology, the ball traveled 514 feet, farther than any home run hit in the major or minor leagues this season.
And there’s more. Adell’s blast also traveled farther than any ball hit in the majors since Statcast launched in 2015. The MLB mark is held by Nomar Mazara, who was a member of the Texas Rangers when he hit a 505-foot home run off Chicago White Sox pitcher Reynaldo López on June 21, 2019, at Globe Life Park.
When Adell hit his historic homer Tuesday, it was the second time during the game the outfielder had faced a 3-0 count against Hanson. Back in the fifth inning, Adell had watched a strike go right down the middle but eventually walked.
He was ready for the pitch the second time around.
“Runners were on base this time and I figured if I get something in the zone, just be ready,” Adell told MiLB. “I happened to get a pitch that was over the plate, and I put probably one of my best swings ever on it.”
Adell was selected 10th overall by the Angels in the 2017 draft. He made his big league debut in 2020 but has yet to become a permanent fixture with the team. He played in a career-high 88 games with the Angels last season, batting .224 with eight home runs.
In his only appearance for the Angels this season, filling Hunter Renfroe’s roster spot while the outfielder was on paternity leave earlier this month, Adell hit a 451-foot home run off Chicago Cubs left-hander Drew Smyly.
“I’m not trying to force a hand or try to make something that’s not going to be,” Adell said before that game. “Every chance that I get, I’m gonna try to make it the best I can.”
Angels manager Phil Nevin said after that game: “If something happens to somebody, we know that [Adell] can come up here and do good things for us.”
