A flamethrower's return from injury could reshape the Angels' pitching staff and playoff hopes, making him the winter's crucial acquisition.
The Los Angeles Angels will have plenty of new faces making their debut for the club this spring, providing a much-needed breath of fresh air for fans who have endured back-to-back seasons of 90 or more losses.
Involved in several trades while also signing even more free agents, the Angels will be heavily reliant on their offseason acquisitions to take the club out of last place in the American League West. With many options to choose from, I’m predicting the addition of right-handed starting pitcher Grayson Rodriguez will be the most impactful for the Angels over the winter.
It may have been just the first move of the offseason for the club, but it’s the one that has the most potential to shake things up for the Halos. Considering their need for pitching over the last decade or so, it was a bold but necessary move for the front office to cash in on outfielder Taylor Ward while his value was at its highest and land the 26-year-old flamethrower.
Ward was coming off a career-high 36 home runs and 103 RBIs in 2025, recording his second-highest OPS and WAR of his eight-year career. Instead of dealing him at the deadline, the Halos waited until after the season and were still able to receive good value in return.
Rodriguez doesn't come without question marks, however. He missed all of the 2025 campaign recovering from multiple injuries, most notably bone spurs in his right elbow, which he had surgery to remove back in August.
His last time on a major league mound was impressive, though, making it clear as to why the Angels were willing to do a straight swap with the Baltimore Orioles. In 20 starts in 2024, Rodriguez posted a 3.86 ERA and 1.24 WHIP.
He ranked in at least the top quarter of the league in fastball velocity, whiff rate, strikeout rate, and extension, thanks to his six-foot-five-inch frame. In what was just his second season in the big leagues, Rodriguez laid a promising foundation for being a top-end starter at the highest level.
The reason why he’s the most impactful move of the winter for the Halos is that the Angels need just that. Their starting rotation was not strong in 2025 and isn’t strong again in 2026. If Rodriguez can stay healthy and improve from his sophomore season in the majors, the Angels could have landed themselves a great starter with four more seasons of team control left.
He also has the chance to negatively impact the club if he continues his struggles of staying on the mound. The Angels are significantly weaker in their lineup without Ward, and if Rodriguez doesn't make up for that value on the mound, another 90-loss season could very well be on its way. Staying optimistic, however, Angels fans will be hoping Rodriguez’s addition will be impactful for the best reasons possible.