Randal Grichuk & Brandon Drury Defend Angels Training Staff After Injury-Plagued 2023 Season

The Los Angeles Angels were one of Major League Baseball’s most disappointing teams this year as they finished with a 73-89 record and failed to advance to the playoffs for the ninth consecutive season.

The Angels were cautiously optimistic that drought would end after improving their roster through free agent signings and trades, but a plethora of injuries ultimately derailed them

The Angels hovered around contention for the first few months of the season before the likes of Shohei Ohtani, Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon all missed a significant amount of time in the second half.

Randal Grichuk, who joined the team at the trade deadline, defended the Angels training staff and said it is one of the better groups in the league, per Jeff Fletcher of the Southern California News Group:

“Honestly, when it comes to the training staff and the medical staff, I think it’s probably better than a lot of places I’ve seen and heard,” said outfielder Randal Grichuk, who is with his fourth big-league organization. “So (the blame) is definitely not there.”

Brandon Drury, who just completed his first season with the Angels, also had nothing but positive things to say about the team’s training staff:

Drury added: “Strength and conditioning and medical has been awesome this year. If you look back at our injuries, it has nothing to do with anything in the gym, anything you could do in the training room.”

The Angels placed 34 different players on the injured list during the 2023 season, which was the third-highest total in all of baseball. They ranked only 20th during the 2022 campaign with 29 injuries, so it is possible this year was merely an anomaly.

L.A. overhauled their training staff just over a year ago, so it is unlikely there will be major changes this offseason. However, the organization must figure out ways to keep their players healthier going forward.

Perry Minasian doesn’t blame Phil Nevin for Angels’ disappointing 2023 season

The fallout of the Angels’ disappointing 2023 season led to the dismissal of Phil Nevin as manager, who went 119-149 during his one and a half year tenure.

After deciding to make a change, Angels general manager Perry Minasian explained that he has all the respect in the world for Nevin and doesn’t blame him for the team’s shortcomings.