The Los Angeles Angels are gearing up for the season-opener Thursday, when the club travels to Houston for a four-game series against the Astros.

Opening up the season on the mound for the Angels will be right-hander José Soriano, battling against Houston’s righty Hunter Brown.

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Our trio opens up this week’s show, discussing that matchup and what it means for the Angels’ rotation this season

While discussing the rotation, righty Alek Manoah’s name was, of course, among the hurlers mentioned by Lucas Stackpole. The 28-year-old had one of the more surprising fall-offs in Major League Baseball, and has now found himself in Los Angeles trying to make his way back to the majors.

Manoah’s storyline is one that many baseball fans have been keeping tabs on. Once an All-Star and Cy Young candidate, now struggling to fight for a spot in the Angels’ rotation — he’ll be a name to look out for all season long.

Peter Pappalardo makes it known that he is not a fan of Manoah, like many Angels fans, and isn’t too confident that the righty will wind up making Los Angeles’ rotation. Only time will tell, but as spring training winds down, it’s looking more likely that Peter is correct.

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Looking into a bright spot on the Angels roster, shortstop Zach Neto has been heralded as one of the best at his position across MLB. Our trio is very high on him, and note that Neto has extremely high potential as he enters his age-25 season.

Another player that fans may want to invest in, outfielder Jo Adell, has had an incredible spring training — and our trio is very hopeful that his success will carry into the regular season.

Adell is hitting .354 with eight extra-base hits including four home runs, eight RBIs and a 1.055 OPS in 17 games this spring.

Although there shouldn’t be too much excitement based on a player’s spring training, it’s great to see that Adell is seemingly picking up right where he left off in the 2025 season.

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Lastly, right-hander Grayson Rodriguez had an unfortunate ending to a great spring training. The 26-year-old has “dead arm” which is a temporary injury that typically occurs due to overuse. Rodriguez will begin the 2026 season on the injured list, and there is currently no known timeframe for his recovery.

Be sure to listen to the full podcast, and join Roundtable’s Angels site to ensure you won’t miss a beat with the team as the 2026 regular season gets underway.