ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Angels are currently riding an eight-game winning streak with the best offense in baseball over the last few weeks, and right in the middle of all of it is 24-year-old Zach Neto.
A 13th overall pick in the 2022 MLB Draft, Neto is one of the recent Angels' draft picks who was raced to the big leagues quickly. Neto appeared in just 48 games before his call-up to the big leagues in 2023. Because of the quick call-up, he's been forced to develop at the major league level.
A back injury held Neto to just 84 games in 2023, but in his first full season last year, the Angels saw the type of talent he could be.
Neto's first half of the season was respectable for a player in his first full season, hitting .251 with a .735 OPS. But Neto wasn't satisfied, and a mental adjustment over the All-Star break allowed him to unlock more of his potential.
“Not taking my bats to defense, and vice versa, not taking my defense to my bats,” Neto said. “Like I've been saying since I've been back, just slowing everything down. I'm a way better player when I'm not trying to rush to do something or when I'm just focused on one thing and not trying to do too much. I had a lot of time this off-season to think on it and mentally prepare myself for what was about to happen this year, and I feel like I'm doing a pretty good job of it.”
The results were immediate.
Neto raised his on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS in the second half. He held a .339 on-base percentage, .457 slugging percentage and .796 OPS in the second half.
On top of that, Neto eclipsed the 20-20 mark, finishing the season with 23 home runs and 30 stolen bases. He became the first infielder in Angels' history to reach the 20-20 mark.
Zach Neto is on pace for 21 HR and 24 SB. He's on pace to be the first Angel shortstop ever to have a 20-20 season and would also become the 7th shortstop in the Wild Card Era to have a 20-20 season at the age of 23 or younger. #RepTheHalo @baseball_ref pic.twitter.com/dvcP7vx4hQ
— Jack Janes (@JackJanes_) July 11, 2024
But Neto has taken his play to new heights in 2025, and missing time due to shoulder surgery in the offseason may have actually helped him.
Neto spent all of spring training doing minimal on-field activities as he continued to rehab his shoulder, but he was there every day to watch.
“It gave me a different perspective of the game," Neto said."I've never really sat around and just watched the game myself. But sitting back, watching, knowing that I'm not going to go in the game and just watching the other guys play and learning from them.
"This is what this game is all about. No matter how old or young you are, you're going to learn every day about something new.”
So far in 2025, Neto is hitting .287 with a .874 OPS, as well as playing solid defense at shortstop.
Among shortstops with 130 or more plate appearances, Neto ranks second in OPS (.874), second in slugging percentage (.543), second in wRC+ (143) and is tied for third in home runs (eight).
If you go back to last year's All-Star break, Neto ranks third in wRC+ (131) and OPS (.825) among qualified shortstops. Only Bobby Witt Jr. and Francisco Lindor are ahead of Neto in both categories.
“It's night and day, and he hasn't even reached his ceiling yet, and that's only because of Neto," manager Ron Washington said. "The way he goes about his business, the way he cares, the way he works, the way he applies things, and how good he wants to be.”
The ability to be a power and speed threat is something that Neto is still focusing on. Over his last 162 games played, he has 30 home runs and 34 stolen bases.
Neto currently has eight home runs and eight stolen bases in his 32 games played this year. That's a 41-41 pace over 162 games. Unfortunately, with the time missed due to the shoulder surgery in the offseason, Neto's true pace is for 26-26.
He's one of 16 players this year to have eight or more home runs and stolen bases, while being the sixth youngest on that list and needing the second least amount of plate appearances. Four of those sixteen players are shortstops.
Mike Trout in 2012 and Bobby Bonds in 1977 are the only players to have a 30-30 season in an Angel uniform.
It's a goal for Neto to be the third player on that list.
“Selfishly, hopefully be an All-Star and a 30-30 season," Neto said of his goals this year.
Those goals are lofty, but attainable for someone of Neto's caliber.
But Neto knows it's a process, and he said it's just a matter of making the little things matter.
Despite the personal goals, Neto is making the team his priority. While the Angels are in the midst of an eight-game heater, Neto and the rest of the lineup are focused on consistency.
“As a team, just keep doing what we've been doing," Neto said. "It's been working, it's been a lot of fun. Just making sure we're consistent, holding each other accountable, not worried about my at-bats, not worried about something bad that I did. It's just a matter of how can I be better and what can I do to help the team win.”