It was pretty obvious the LA Galaxy needed some younger legs in central midfield in 2021, and the club addressed that, notably by bringing in Adam Saldaña as a homegrown signing and playing him real minutes early in the campaign.
Saldaña was a Galaxy academy product coming off a strong season for LA Galaxy II in 2020. A pure holding midfielder, I think some fans were surprised to see him getting slotted into the lineup straightaway, but it seemed likely heading into the season based on what Greg Vanney did in preseason and the options available at a defensive mid position.