Angels flex unexpected financial muscle. Lurking in free agency, they eye top pitching and outfield talent to finally contend.
The Los Angeles Angels have had one of the more active winters in the MLB thus far, making several moves to add pitching help and a couple more to add lineup depth. The biggest splash of the season came when they traded outfielder Taylor Ward to the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for starting pitcher Grayson Rodriguez. It was a move that showed aggressiveness as general manager Perry Minasian enters his final year under contract with the Halos.
The moves made by Minasian and the Angels have overall been a plus, bringing in both proven and low-cost, high-potential players. They aren’t done making moves, however. In a recent piece from The Athletic by Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon, the Angels are said to be ‘lurking’.
There’s more money to be spent in Anaheim this winter, especially after the restructuring of third baseman Anthony Rendon’s contract and the settlement of the Tyler Skaggs lawsuit. This comes after the Angels already have a lower estimated payroll in 2026 than in 2025. All the signs point towards the Angels' desire to add more pieces in hopes of bringing winning baseball to Angel Stadium for the first time in over a decade.
In the article, Rosenthal and Sammon wrote that despite Angels owner Arte Moreno having a history of not spending on starting pitching, the extra financial flexibility this offseason could entice the club to bring in one of the remaining top free agent starters, such as Framber Valdes, Ranger Suarez, or Zac Gallen, on a short-term deal with high average annual value. As reported, if they’re going to sign more pitching, it’ll have to be for a top-end rotational guy after already bringing in Rodriguez and Alek Manoah.
If pitching isn’t the priority for the Angels, then the outfield is. After trading Ward away, the depth in the Halos’ outfield is looking very slim. There’s no reason to expect Mike Trout to return to an everyday outfielder next season, and Jo Adell proved he isn’t best-suited for center field. This leaves the Angels with two openings in their outfield: center field and corner outfield.
Once the outfield is filled out, another position that the Angels could be ‘lurking’ in is third base. With Rendon officially not returning to the club in 2026, the Angels can finally find their replacement after years of temporary fill-ins for the always-missing Rendon.
With their unusual financial flexibility and an obvious desire to improve in 2026, the Angels could be a sneaky team to grab one or two of baseball’s top free agents that remain on the market.