Livan Soto Promoted To Angels For MLB Debut 

On Saturday, the Los Angeles Angels announced that infielder Livan Soto, a star in the 2022 Rocket City Trash Pandas lineup and one of the top players in the Southern League, has been promoted to join the Angels for his MLB debut.

Soto becomes the 16th former Trash Pandas player to reach Los Angeles and will be the sixth to make his Angels debut this season, following Aaron Whitefield, Chase Silseth, David MacKinnon, Michael Stefanic, and Ryan Aguilar.

Born in Valencia, Venezuela, Soto, 22, appeared in a team-leading 119 games for the Trash Pandas this season, batting .281 with six home runs, 57 RBI, 69 runs scored, 17 doubles, 18 stolen bases, and 71 walks. He currently ranks second in the Southern League in hits while his average ranks third and his walk total is fifth in the league.

An integral part of the Trash Pandas’ first and second half North Division Championship team, Soto was named Southern League Player of the Week on July 10 after hitting .524 (11-for-21) with a .630 on-base percentage in six games that week in Chattanooga, including reaching base in 10 straight plate appearances to end the series.

This season, Soto has recorded three hitting streaks of 10 games or longer and was at his bets in August, hitting .301 with two home runs and 14 RBI over 25 games.

Soto signed with the Angels as a free agent ahead of the 2018 season and is in the midst of his fifth season in the organization. He was originally signed by the Atlanta Braves as a 16-year-old in 2016.