ANAHEIM -- When the Angels traded for infielder Tommy La Stella from the Cubs this offseason, they thought he’d be a good fit for the club because of his ability to get on base and play multiple positions.

It was nearly impossible to predict that La Stella would provide power in the early going of the season, however, as he hit one homer in 123 games with Chicago last year and his career high was five blasts in 73 games with the Cubs in '17. But La Stella has already topped that total with six homers through his first 21 games with the Angels, including his second multi-homer game of the year in Sunday’s 8-6 win over the Mariners.

La Stella, who wasn’t in the starting lineup against the Yankees on Monday with lefty J.A. Happ on the mound, said he believes a change in his swing philosophy and more playing time has helped him unlock the power this year. He's hitting .246/.348/.579 this season in 67 plate appearances with eight walks and four strikeouts.

"I think getting to see pitching a little more consistently has helped," La Stella said. "In the past, I think I took a little bit more of a passive approach, maybe trying to take the ball to left field a little bit more. Getting out there a little bit more has allowed me to move my sights a little more out front.”

It sounds counterintuitive, but La Stella said one of the main keys has been trying to swing less hard this year because he believes it allows him to get a better path to the ball instead of tensing up when trying to swing too hard.

"For me, it’s kind of swinging a little easier," La Stella said. "I don’t have to put such an aggressive swing on it. Just take the barrel to the ball."

La Stella is also swinging less than in prior years, as his overall swing percentage has gone down from 44.8 percent last year to 41.4 percent this year with a huge reduction in swinging at balls out of the zone. Last year, La Stella chased 28 percent of pitches out of the zone but this year, it's down to 19.7 percent, per FanGraphs.

He’s hitting balls harder than last year as a result, as his average exit velocity last year was 86 mph but it's up to 88.2 mph this season. Combined with an average launch angle that went up from 8.1 degrees in ’18 to 14.6 degrees this year means that La Stella has put more balls in the air with power. His hard-hit percentage is up from 24.6 percent in '18 to 34 percent this season, per baseballsavant.com.

Angels manager Brad Ausmus has been impressed with La Stella’s offense and he’ll continue to see time at second against right-handed starters. David Fletcher remains a better defender than La Stella at second but La Stella has more power, which is something the Angels have lacked with Justin Upton and Shohei Ohtani both injured.

“Certainly, the power has been a surprise,” Ausmus said. “We knew he gave good at-bats, that he falls under the category of professional hitter, but the power has been a very pleasant surprise because we’ve lacked a little power as a team.”

Ohtani nearing facing live pitching

Ohtani, who is on track for a return in May as a designated hitter after undergoing Tommy John surgery on Oct. 1, threw, ran the bases and took batting practice with his teammates before Monday’s series opener against the Yankees but has yet to take the final step of facing live pitching.

Ausmus said he doesn’t expect Ohtani to face live pitching Tuesday but left it open from there, which means Ohtani could face pitchers as early as Wednesday. Ohtani is not going on a Minor League rehab assignment and is expected to face live pitching for at least a week before being activated.

Heaney, Skaggs progressing

Lefties Andrew Heaney (left elbow inflammation) and Tyler Skaggs (left ankle sprain) are both scheduled to throw bullpen sessions off a mound this week, Ausmus said.

Heaney doesn’t have a set date for his first time off a mound since suffering a setback with his left elbow in Spring Training, but Ausmus said it’ll come later this week. But he’ll essentially be starting his throwing program from the ground up, which means he’s still out at least another month before he’s fully stretched out and ready to return.

Skaggs, who suffered the ankle sprain on April 19, will throw off a mound for the second time since the injury Tuesday. If all goes well, he’s expected to be activated later this week.