The Angels were the most active team in the first few weeks of the offseason. They added a mid-rotation starter and a new designated hitter to upgrade the middle third of the lineup. They went oddly quiet after that, leaving them to enter the season with a roster that again seems too thin to hang in the race all year.
Major League Signings
- LHP Yusei Kikuchi: Three years, $63MM
- C Travis d'Arnaud: Two years, $12MM
- RHP Kenley Jansen: One year, $10MM
- 3B Yoán Moncada: One year, $5MM
- SS Kevin Newman: One year, $2.75MM (including buyout of '26 club option)
- RHP Kyle Hendricks: One year, $2.5MM
2025 spending: $47.25MM
Total spending: $95.25MM
Option Decisions
- None
Trades and Claims
- Acquired DH Jorge Soler from Braves for RHP Griffin Canning
- Claimed 1B Ryan Noda off waivers from A's
- Acquired 2B Scott Kingery from Phillies for cash (later designated for assignment)
- Traded C Matt Thaiss to Cubs for cash
- Selected LHP Garrett McDaniels from Dodgers in Rule 5 draft
- Acquired C Chuckie Robinson from White Sox for cash
- Traded RHP Davis Daniel to Braves for minor league LHP Mitch Farris
- Claimed RHP Michael Petersen off waivers from Blue Jays
- Acquired LHP Angel Perdomo from Braves for cash or a player to be named later
Notable Minor League Signings
- Shaun Anderson, Tim Anderson, Travis Blankenhorn, Connor Brogdon, J.D. Davis, Victor González, Dakota Hudson, Carter Kieboom, Sebastian Rivero, Yolmer Sánchez, Bryce Teodosio
Extensions
- None
Notable Losses
- Griffin Canning, Patrick Sandoval (non-tendered), Brandon Drury, Matt Thaiss, Hunter Strickland, Kevin Pillar, Matt Moore, Adam Cimber (remains unsigned), Davis Daniel, Eric Wagaman (non-tendered), Jordyn Adams (non-tendered), Roansy Contreras (lost via waivers), Guillo Zuñiga (released), Kenny Rosenberg (released), Ryan Miller (released)
The Angels finished 63-99 under first-year manager Ron Washington, narrowly avoiding what would have been their first 100-loss campaign. Only the White Sox, Rockies and Marlins had a worse run differential. They have the longest active playoff drought in MLB at 10 years.
Shortly after the season ended, owner Arte Moreno told Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register that he expected to compete for a playoff spot in 2025. "(General manager Perry Minasian's) marching orders are we need to build a team that can compete for a playoff spot. When you get to playoffs, anything can happen," Moreno said. The owner indicated he was prepared to raise payroll to make that happen. The Angels had cut spending by more than $40MM over the 2023-24 offseason.
Expecting to add 20+ wins within one offseason, even with a payroll spike, is unrealistic. Still, the Angels began the winter with a sense of urgency that reflected a real desire to improve in the short term. They pulled off the first major trade of the offseason within hours of the World Series concluding. The Angels took the remaining two years and $26MM on Jorge Soler's contract off the Braves' hands. Los Angeles sent Griffin Canning, whom they were presumably planning to non-tender, the other way. Atlanta subsequently cut Canning themselves, confirming that was purely a salary dump on their part.
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I predict our first 100+ loss season in 2025.
Stop it! They are definitely built for 63 wins!
Rendon is out all season so you’re probably right.
The “Los Angeles” Angels have reached the point where the only thing that can save them is the law of averages.
@mlb fan. I believe in miracles and pecota.
The Angels have 11 players making a combined $105 million annually falling off the books over the next two years, Rendon’s anchor a huge chunk of that after 2.
This season should be all about letting young pitchers develop and finding some position players for when the team might be good again in 2027.
Looking at this season through any other lens is just asking for disappointment.
“11 players making”….A very coherent, well stated point. I do tend to agree.
I can’t really say Rendon and Stephenson are earning that money.
Yeah because they always hit on free agent signings.
Free agency is a double edged sword that cuts both ways. Personally, I’m awfully glad the Angels will soon gain salary relief.
But, until the Halos start drafting, assessing talent and developing better, it really won’t matter how much payroll money is freed up.
Hence the need to keep Detmers, Kochanowicz, Dana, and Klassen in the fold and add to them via trades and the draft.
Kyren Paris, Matthew Lugo, and Christian Moore look like they could add to Zach Neto and Logan O’Hoppe at the MLB level in a year or so.
Trading Taylor Ward, Luis Rengifo, and Tyler Anderson should both free up cash and add to the prospect pipeline.
The team really needs to hit on the 2nd overall pick in the draft and again at 47. I’d love to trade one of the above for a comp pick if possible.
There’s a lot that needs to go right, but some nice looking pieces as well. Ideally the team doesn’t need to hit on a ton of free agents after a couple of years.
@darren. The last one they did was rendon. I literally can say 3-4 players from every team. I get it free agency isn’t the way to build a team
Noda’s spring training is insane. How do you walk and strikeout that much in just spring training? That screams hes too passive and takes pitches to the point of putting himself in a hole. Who walks 15 times and ks 14 times in 42 PAs???
@pronklington. Not sure if noda makes the team. That’s kinda how moancada was in spring training. had 9/10 walks in three games with a .000 avg. I guess it depends if rengifo lands on the dl. He’s been playing so who knows.
It’s just 42 PA against competition that averages out to AA-caliber.
His K rate in ST is consistent with his K-rate throughout the minors while his BB rate in the minors is not so different that it’s surprising: He would have taken about 8 BB under conditions this spring consistent with his minor league numbers, whereas here he faced a couple of wild pitchers and took half a dozen more walks. Impressive, in its way.
@jackstrawb. Noda was probably playing against aa players more often because he came in late to games. So good point. It’s close to mlb guys now. I watched a a’s game early on, and he plunked two guys before he ultimately hit trout, obviously wasn’t ready to be in spring training or was the ball boy. The weird thing was it was the third inning.must’ve been a split squad from the a’s
@Rexhudler86 Thanks for the details–good color there. Btw, some sites including Baseball-reference (no paywall or subscription required) compute the level of the pitchers / hitters faced by hitters / pitchers throughout ST. Very handy evaluation reduced to a single figure under “OppQual” in a player’s “2025 Spring Training Stats” on each individual player’s page.
Clubs that improve drastically usually have 4 components:
* Breakout season (or 2) from young veterans (Glavine, Ian Kennedy, Mike Norris, Tony Armas, Matt Garza)
* A run-of-the-mill free agent signing that works out (JJ Putz, Terry Pendleton, Seth Lugo, Pudge)
* A “surprise” rookie (Mike Hargrove, Longoria)
* Health/Luck
It’s not always obvious before the season, because none of these names were expected to be difference makers in March.
Detmers finally breaks out!
Maybe Kanley solidifies the bullpen.
What if Kyren is a surprise rookie?
Maybe Trout is healthy all season and hits 45 HR’s.
Or….forget it…maybe I’ll be watching football in September…
Anyone know whatever happened to Evan White? The Angels picked him up last offseason from Atlanta (who flipped him from Seattle) in the Fletcher/Stassi deal. The Angels took on his contract but has yet to play a minor league game nor appear in spring training.
@orange2001. Good question i brought him up last year, and was told he was hurt. Did they just acquire him for insurance money?
I will be opto mystic and predict that the angels win it all in 2025. Big story, trouts first World Series, and then a win over the dodgers. Big news.
Arte Moreno signed Washington, game over. Enjoy everything going the angels was 25. Remember the titans, remember the 02 angels, with Shawn Wooten
The angels way is keep you head in the game