The Angels still have a lot of work to do this offseason. Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com writes that the club hopes to add multiple starting pitchers and bullpen help. General manager Perry Minasian said at the general manager meeting that they are also looking to run an offense that favors left-handed bats.
“Is (a left-handed hitter) a No. 1 pressing need? Is that ‘A’ on the list of things to do? No,” Minassian told reporters (link via Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register ). “But it’s something we’ve talked about a lot. We want the offense to be more balanced. … I’d love to have some really attractive right-handed hitters who are just good hitters and I don’t think anyone necessarily cares if they’re right-handed or left-handed. So does it have to be left-handed? No. Apples versus apples? Of course, you choose left-handed over right-handed.”
The Halos have three pitchers in the Opening Day rotation: Kikuchi Yusen, Jose Soriano and Reed Detmers. Apart from that, they have nothing Kadendana, Sam Aldeghari, Jack Kochanovich or Mickey Farris Make sure to rotate the point. They’ll likely push for the No. 2 pick in 2025 Tyler Bremner Soon, but it would be surprising if the Angels were willing to add him to the Opening Day rotation before he even plays in the minors. They skipped the 2024 second round Rian Johnson He reached the majors last season as a reliever, but he struggled and was drafted in early May. Johnson returned as a starter and performed well in High-A, but still had no starting experience at the high level.
The bullpen could lose two of its most reliable arms. Detmers, last season’s top starter, will return to the rotation. closer Kenley Johnson Is a free agent. The Angels may want to bring Jansen back after a stellar season. The four-time All-Star has a save percentage of 29-30. He had a 2.59 ERA in 59 innings. Even so, that number is inflated after a nightmare game against the Tigers in which he gave up 6 of 17 ERA all season. Jansen is likely limited to a one-year deal at this point in his career, although he could match last winter’s $10 in guaranteed money.
left handed Brock Burke Entering the offseason as the Angels’ only reliable backup. Minassian provides positive update on talented but oft-injured right-hander Robert Stephensonhe was sidelined for the season due to elbow inflammation. Bollinger revealed that Stephenson will not require surgery and is expected to be ready for spring training. Stephenson has the talent to pitch late in games, but his durability issues make him a wild card. The Angels clearly need to add multiple leverage arms.
While characters are a priority, Halo has some issues with its roster. They don’t have an everyday center fielder or third baseman. Christian Moore As the starting second baseman, he struggled as a rookie and was quickly pushed out of the minor leagues. Arguably, there is a glut of outfield corners. Tyler Ward, Mike Trout, Jorge Soler and Joe Adell –He was out of center field and should have been left in right, where he spent the final month of the ’25 season. Ward and Adell have emerged in trade rumors. One of those players could be swapped out for a player who is more needed, but that’s nowhere near enough to do all the work the front office needs to do.
The club’s preferred option is to add a left-handed hitter at one or both positions. No team has allowed fewer at-bats to left-handed hitters this year. Only the Astros lean more towards a pure righty bat. The Angels have an MLB-worst .224 batting average against right-handed pitching. They rank 28th in on-base percentage (.299) and 24th in slugging percentage (.394). switch batter Louis Rengifo and Juan Moncada Becomes a free agent, leaving first baseman Nolan Sanur As their only left-handed hitter, he will play a big role.
If they enter free agency out of that need, focusing on center makes the most sense. Trent Grisham and Cody Bellinger Available at the high end of the market. Cedric Mullins Is a bounce-back candidate who could potentially sign for one year.
There are far fewer left-handed bats that can play second or third base. If both Rengifo and Moncada are retained, the best free agent options are Jorge Polanco, Louis Alas and willy castro. Polanco can play either position, but has seen a lot of DH work with the Mariners this year due to knee issues. Araz hasn’t played second base regularly in two years because of limited range. Castro is a bat-first utility player who started the season well but went downhill after being traded to the Cubs at the deadline.
players like CJ Abrams, Brendan Donovan or Brandon Lowe Can be obtained through trade. This required the Angels to seek short-term help from an already poor farm system after the 1972-90 season. As Minassian noted, that could lead them to pursue a quality right-hitting infielder, even if that’s not ideal for roster balance. Beau Bichette, Alex Bregman, Eugenio Suarez, Kazuma Okamoto, Kim Ha Sung and Gleyber Torres Both are right-handed hitting free agents who can play second and/or third.
Torres, who is considering a qualifying offer from the Tigers, was an apparent target for the Angels last winter. Ken Rosenthal, Will Sammon and Katie Woo of The Athletic reported that Torres turned down a multi-year offer from the Halos in the 2024-25 offseason because he doubted the team could compete. He signed a one-year, $15MM contract with Detroit. The Tigers are in the playoffs for the second consecutive season, while the Angels remain one of the worst rosters in the American League on paper.
