Angels' Christian Moore Has Extremely Mature Answer Regarding Early Struggles

The Los Angeles Angels newly-promoted second baseman and No.1 prospect Christian Moore revealed how he grew as a player during his early season struggles in the minor leagues.

“I think when you play this game every day, you figure out what type of player you are, figure out what type of person you are,” Moore said Friday ahead of his MLB debut. “That was really good for me, and I definitely needed that, that struggle, per se. And I think I came out of it a little bit. I found myself a little bit, found what I what I love to do. And it was awesome.”

Moore began the season with Double-A Rocket City, but batted .234 through 34 games and had an OPS of just .665 with one home run and 14 runs batted in. Regardless of how he performed, the Angels showed their faith in him by moving him to Triple-A Salt Lake on May 20, where he hit the ground running.

In his first game with the Bees, he went 3-for-4 with a walk and two RBIs. Two days later, he went 4-for-5 with a home run, a double and three RBIs. Moore played 20 games in Triple-A, batting .350 and posting an OPS of .999. He hit four home runs and had 18 RBIs, both of which eclipsed his Double-A totals despite playing less games.

The Angels called Moore up before Friday's game against the Orioles, and had him batting ninth in the contest. The Angels lost 2-0 and Moore went 0-for-3, but the rookie held a positive view of the experience.

“That was unreal,” Moore said after his debut. “Best day of my life. Everything you dream of. Everything you hear people talk about. The buzz. Everything. It’s that. The adrenaline. It’s the bright lights. It’s fun. I’m just grateful to be here and be able to put this uniform on and play with these guys.”

The 23-year-old took over Luis Rengifo's post at second base, sending the veteran back to third base, where he served much of the season prior to Yoan Moncada's breakout and Kyren Paris' move to the outfield.

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