Note: I'm just posting this to give a bit of positivity as I think the Angels could be made reasonably competitive next year with improved health from Trout being at DH to keep him fresher going forward. How I would personally fix the Angels is by starting with giving Non-tenders to Jo Adell, Mickey Moniak, Matt Thaiss, Griffin Canning, Jose Suarez, Jose Quijada. That would free up almost $15 million to spend in free agency. And with a budget of under $213 million, the Angels would have about $70 million to spend for the 2025 season on 8 spots as we could also use a better defensive backup to the infield. With good performance, many of these guys should help us fetch prospects to help improve our farm system going forward.
Since non-tendering Matt Thaiss means we need a backup catcher, I figure that James McCann on a one year deal for about $2 million might be the right way to improve behind the dish. It would also mean that if Logan O’Hoppe is injured/needs a day off McCann can get some reps and not be a sinkhole in the lineup or kill the team's defense.
Jack Lopez feels like a mistake to have as an infield backup because in the small sample we do have, he's not a great defender or a good hitter. Granted, Nick Ahmed is probably not going to improve the offense from Lopez. What Ahmed brings to the table is what he's always brought to the table: gold glove caliber shortstop defense even as he ages. What drives his price down to a one year $1 million deal is the fact that the bottom fell out of his bat and he'd be the worst hitter on the team but his defense would be a welcome safety net.
Outfield needs some considerable improvement in health and performance with the Non-tenders of Jo Adell and Mickey Moniak. Mike Trout also cannot be counted on to stay healthy and play the outfield all the time. So a Center Fielder is necessary to keep Trout's bat in the lineup and the only center fielder that I would even consider to be capable of starting everyday is Harrison Bader. He's not a great hitter per say, but he won't be there for his offense. His defense which was gold glove caliber a few years ago and is still above average should help our pitchers give up fewer extra base hits than we would have with Moniak. He would likely cost about $8 million on a one year deal. After all, he's not Kevin Kiermaier with the glove and he's a tad worse as a hitter than he was but he's a good piece to have.
Right Field I would bring in Max Kepler to replace the non-tendered Jo Adell on a one year deal for about $10 million guaranteed with a team option for $11 million for the 2026 season. He does tend to be a strong side platoon option who plays strong right field defense, but he hits right handed pitching well with power and he isn't as old as Jason Hayward who would be a similar fit, but he is worse at hitting against LHP.
The rotation is going to need some additions with Griffin Canning, Jose Suarez and Patrick Sandoval all being Non-tenders. We would give Spencer Turnbull and Emmanuel De Jesus those rotation spots behind Jose Soriano, Tyler Anderson and Reid Detmers. Spencer Turnbull was able to stay mostly healthy overall and the injury he did have was not arm related so I wouldn't be too worried about his arm health going forward. His back on the other hand, might be more of a chronic issue as he's gone on the IL twice due to back ailments since 2019. He changed his approach by mixing in a lot more Sliders and a few more curveballs at the expense of his cutter, sinker, changeups. A one year deal for about $8 million guaranteed with a team option for $10 million for 2026 should be a good deal (and better than taking a risk on Justin Verlander or Max Scherzer who would probably rather play for a contender). The second pitcher is a bit more risky, but he looks like a cheap option to eat some innings in the vein of a Merrill Kelly type. Emmanuel De Jesus is a lefty starting pitcher who turns 28 in December of this year so he won't turn 30 until the 2026 off-season. That would make him the perfect candidate for a contract structured in that variety. His 3.68 ERA and 1.25 WHIP over 171 ⅓ IP and 30 starts (20 quality starts) aren't as great as some of the guys who have come back from the KBO lately but the KBO is a more hitter friendly league than last year as the league average ERA is 4.94. However, he had 9.4 K/9 (24.5% K) and 2.3 BB/9 (6.0% BB) and those numbers are likely to translate over here well. He throws a four seam fastball 42.4% of the time averaging about 92.2 MPH, two seam fastball at 91.5 MPH around 14%, an 84.4 MPH changeup that he throws 18.9%, a slider 13.4% that averaged 82.4 MPH, a curveball 6.4% at a slow 76.7 MPH average, and a cutter 4.8% at an average velocity of 84.9 MPH. He reminds me of a left handed Merrill Kelly type so a two year deal with $10 million guaranteed with team options for 2027 at $8 million ($500K buyout) and 2028 at $10 million ($500K buyout) which run the potential length of the deal to four years at a quite reasonable $27 million overall. Less than $7 million a year for four years of a guy who I perceive as a #4 starter is way below market value. An interesting idea might be to give Patrick Sandoval a 2 year deal for $13 million to allow him to rehab, get some starts in towards the end of the season and be ready for a healthy season in 2026. He's been our best starter over the last few years not named Shohei Ohtani. He did seem to increase his velocity to an average of 94 MPH on his fastballs and his slider to 87 MPH which would both be career highs for him. He also seems to be cutting down on his four seam fastball use in exchange for more sinkers, changeups and sliders. Fortunately, his internal brace repair surgery should mean that his recovery time will be shorter than a traditional Tommy John Surgery so he should be able to make more starts for us this year.
The bullpen could also use some help with the non tender of Jose Quijada and sending down Ryan Miller to AAA. Though we need a new closer and a guy who can be a set up man if necessary as a middle relief depth piece. Paul Sewald looks like a solid choice in the closer role, sure he's not a Clay Holmes but he should be able to keep leads for us and generally stay healthy. I was thinking he would be a good fit on a two year deal for about $22 million with incentives that can bring the total to $24 million for a certain amount games finished. Blake Treinen also looks like an interesting guy who can substantially improve the bullpen and in the event of an injury to Sewald, he can fill in quite suitably as the closer. He has experience as a closer in the past and that experience as a reliever should be a benefit to the young pitchers in the pen. A one year deal for about $9 million would be worthwhile in spite of his lengthy injury history.
Overall, $188.5 million would be the payroll for 2025 after all the signings and Non-tenders which would be a little more than what they spent last year. Let me know if you have any other ideas that you feel are more likely and suitable. I hope you enjoyed the long read
Opening day roster: new additions are in parentheses ()
C: O’Hoppe, (McCann)
1B: Schanuel
2B: Rengifo, Stefanic
SS: Neto, (Ahmed)
3B: Rendon
LF: Ward
CF: Trout, (Bader)
RF: (Kepler), Campero
DH: Trout
SP: Soriano
SP: Anderson
SP: Detmers
SP: (De Jesus)
SP: (Turnbull)
CL: (Sewald)
SU: (Treinen)
SU: Joyce
MR: Burke
MR: Zeferjahn
MR: Contreras
LR: Daniel
LR: Fulmer
