Los Angeles Angels midseason awards: Most surprising hitter

Today is the last day without Los Angeles Angels baseball (besides the scheduled off-days) until the end of the year and we have one more midseason award to give away.

The Los Angeles Angels, along with the rest of Major League Baseball, are going to back in action on Friday as the team starts off the second half with a seven-game homestand against the Seattle Mariners and Houston Astros.

The Angels are undoubtedly looking to elevate themselves past the .500 threshold that has anchored them down all year. The team has been both over and under .500 by a few games but has consistently hovered around that mark for the entire year.

While it might not seem ideal, it has kept the team in the wild-card picture for the entire year and all it takes is one really good run to make a run at that second wild-card spot. As long as the Angels take it game by game, they are talented enough to go on such a run.

Before we completely lock into the second half and look at what is ahead though, we have to give out our fourth and final Los Angeles Angels midseason award. The last one might be a bit of an obvious one, but here is the Angels’ most surprising hitter of the first half.

Los Angeles Angels’ most surprising hitter: Tommy La Stella

There was absolutely nobody else that could win this award. In fact, on any other team, the Los Angeles Angels might have several players that would have won this award.

The team has had several players perform well after getting called up. And while they might not be lighting the world on fire, the players that have filled the spots have surprisingly kept the team afloat, hence the name of this award.

However, it is impossible to ignore what Tommy La Stella has done so far this year. La Stella has had a breakout year in which he was named an all-star for the first time in his career.

The infielder is hitting .300 with a .848 OPS, 16 home runs and 44 RBIs. He did cool off a bit as the second half approached but he was the rightful leader in all-star voting at second base for quite some time; that is until DJ LeMahieu went on a tear and deservingly was named the starter.

But still, an all-star selection in upon itself is impressive and it is even more surprising when you consider that La Stella hit 10 home runs and drove in 94 RBIs in the five seasons combined before becoming an Angel.

The Angel front office is not known for having the best free agent luck (Zack Cozart and all of last winter’s signings are a prime example) but they really hit the jackpot on La Stella.

Unfortunately, La Stella is going to miss 8-10 weeks with a fractured right tibia. It does not change the fact that he was the Los Angeles Angels most surprising hitter in the first half.