The Angels beat Seattle 1-0 on Saturday night, and Jo Adell basically won the game by himself. The outfielder robbed three home runs in one night – something that seems impossible until you see it happen.
With Los Angeles managing just one run, each of Adell’s catches was the difference between winning and losing. Take away any of those three robberies, and we’re talking about extra innings or a Mariners victory instead.
“JO SAID NO ”
That’s how the Angels’ Twitter account put it after Cal Raleigh’s first-inning blast got turned into an out. Little did anyone know Adell was just getting started.
Three Robberies, One Night
Adell’s night began with that Raleigh robbery in the first inning. The kind of play that usually ends up as the highlight of someone’s week, not their opening act.
After the Angels scratched across their lone run, Adell kept the lead intact in the eighth by robbing Josh Naylor in almost the exact same spot. Two home run robberies in one game is already legendary territory.
But Adell wasn’t done.
In the ninth inning, with the Mariners looking to tie it up, J.P. Crawford sent what looked like a game-tying homer toward the stands. Adell made a running catch and tumbled into the crowd to complete his hat trick of robberies.
Three solo home runs that never were. In a 1-0 game, that’s the entire ballgame right there.
The Adell Development
This is the same guy who’s been working his way through some growing pains since arriving as a first-round pick back in 2020. Adell’s always been known more for his power than his glove – he’s got 57 homers over the last two seasons to prove it.
The 27-year-old struggled early in his career, hitting .161 in his debut season and battling consistency issues. But something clicked for him in 2025 when he finally put together his best season, launching 37 homers with 98 RBIs.
Now he’s showing he can impact games with his defense too. That’s huge for an Angels team that’s trying to find any path back to relevance.
Besides Mike Trout, Adell might be the most important player on this roster. Any chance Los Angeles has at making noise this year probably runs through him being one of their best all-around contributors.
The Numbers Tell the Story
Looking at Adell’s career progression, you can see the development happening:
- 2020-2023: Inconsistent playing time, struggling with contact
- 2024: 130 games, 20 homers, but still hitting .207
- 2025: Breakthrough season with 37 homers, 98 RBIs in 152 games
- 2026: Early returns mixed offensively, but defensive highlights like Saturday night
The power’s always been there. It’s everything else that’s been coming together piece by piece.
Adell’s making $5.2 million this season and has one more year of arbitration before hitting free agency after 2027. Performances like Saturday night are exactly what the Angels need to see if they’re going to consider locking him up long-term.
What makes this performance special isn’t just the rarity of it – it’s the timing. The Angels are a team looking for reasons to believe, and Adell just gave them a pretty compelling one. Three home run robberies in a 1-0 win is the kind of thing that can galvanize a clubhouse and remind everyone what’s possible when everything clicks.
