Angels Select Logan Porter
4:19pm: The Angels have officially announced Porter’s selection. Rivero was placed on the 10-day IL with a left hamate fracture and will require surgery, reports Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com. Kochanowicz was transferred to the 60-day IL to open a 40-man spot.
10:31am: The Angels are set to select the contract of catcher Logan Porter, reports Ari Alexander of 7News. He signed a minor league deal with them five days ago after choosing free agency over an outright assignment with the Giants. Porter hasn’t even suited up for a game with the Halos’ Triple-A affiliate yet, but he’ll jump right to the big leagues after backup catcher Sebastian Rivero exited last night’s game due to an apparent hand injury.
Porter, 30, is joining his third big league team. He has brief experience in the majors with both the Royals and Giants, for whom he’s totaled a combined 47 plate appearances. Porter is just a .184/.326/.289 hitter in that time, but he’s a .244/.359/.389 hitter in parts of five Triple-A seasons. He’s light on power but has walked at a gaudy 14.4% clip in more than 1200 Triple-A plate appearances.
Porter also gives the Angels a defensively sound backup to starting catcher Logan O’Hoppe. He’s thrown out a roughly average 22% of runners who’ve attempted to steal on him in the minors (33% dating back to last season) and drawn quality framing grades with slightly below-average marks for his blocking abilities, per Baseball Prospectus.
The Angels have already utilized four different catchers in 2026. Porter will be the fifth, joining the quartet of O’Hoppe, Rivero, Travis d’Arnaud and Omar Martinez. He has a full slate of minor league options remaining, so the Angels don’t necessarily need to designate him for assignment when d’Arnaud and/or Rivero get healthy. The Halos will need to open 26-man and 40-man roster spots for Porter, but that should be pretty straightforward. His selection to the majors seems to point to an IL trip for Rivero, and righty Jack Kochanowicz can be shifted to the 60-day IL after undergoing Tommy John surgery this week.
Angels Re-Sign Shaun Anderson To Minor League Deal
The Angels announced another minor league deal with Shaun Anderson. He’s back at Triple-A Salt Lake in a non-roster capacity.
Halos fans are familiar with the shuffle at this point. Anderson is out of options and needs to get through waivers every time the Angels want to send him back to Triple-A. They select his contract, keep him on the roster for a few days, then designate him for assignment. He clears waivers, elects free agency, then signs a new minor league deal.
They’ve done this six times over the past two seasons. It’s not unique to the Angels, as the Braves have done the same with Carlos Carrasco all year. Anderson is clearly on board with the arrangement since he continually re-signs. He has gotten into 16 MLB games over the past two seasons as a result, working 28 innings with a 7.71 earned run average.
Anderson’s big league work has come in long relief. He stayed stretched out as a starter in Triple-A last season but has been in more of a swing role this year, starting four of seven appearances. The 31-year-old righty has a 6.35 career ERA at the big league level and a 4.34 mark over eight Triple-A campaigns.
Jack Kochanowicz To Undergo Tommy John Surgery
Angels right-hander Jack Kochanowicz told members of the media, including Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register, that he will be undergoing Tommy John surgery. He’ll be out of action until the second half of the 2027 season. He is already on the 15-day injured list and will be transferred to the 60-day IL as soon as the Angels need his roster spot.
It’s obviously a brutal blow for Kochanowicz and the Angels alike. The righty has logged 240 1/3 innings for the Halos over the past three seasons, allowing 5.88 earned runs per nine. His 13.4% strikeout rate and 9.7% walk rate aren’t great figures but he has induced grounders on 54.6% of the balls in play he has allowed. He now won’t be able to add to those totals for quite a while.
The only silver lining for Kochanowicz is that he will collect big league pay and service time for the rest of the year. He came into this season with his service clock at one year and 12 days, so he will be at 2.012 at the end of the campaign. The IL goes away in the offseason, so the Angels will have to decide whether or not to add him back to the roster for the winter.
While Kochanowicz’s number haven’t been amazing, the Angels aren’t in a great position to be losing more rotation depth. The Halos have been struggling to put together a serviceable rotation for years. The club’s starters have a collective 4.76 ERA this season, which is better than just three other clubs in the majors, a key reason why the club is in the basement of the American League with a 25-42 record. Yusei Kikuchi is sidelined with a shoulder issue and has an uncertain timeline. Now Kochanowicz won’t be a factor for the remainder of the year.
With Kochanowicz hitting the IL a few days ago due to elbow inflammation, the rotation is now down to José Soriano, Reid Detmers, Walbert Ureña and Grayson Rodriguez. Urena and Detmers are scheduled to go tonight and tomorrow. The club is then off on Thursday and may not need a fifth starter right away, but they will eventually need to fill that spot.
Sam Aldegheri has been starting in the minors and pitching long relief outings in the majors, so he could be an option, though he has an ERA over 7.00 in the minors this year. George Klassen and Caden Dana are on the 40-man roster and currently on optional assignment, so one of them could be recalled. Klassen has an ERA near 6.00 in Triple-A on the year. Dana’s 4.31 ERA doesn’t look amazing but isn’t too bad in the context of the Pacific Coast League. His 12.2% walk rate is too high but he is striking out 26% of batters faced. Alek Manoah was outrighted off the roster last month and then jumped into the Triple-A rotation but hasn’t able to get through three innings in his recent outings.
Given the state of the depth, the Halos could look to external options. Considering their place in the standings, it wouldn’t make much sense to make a headline-grabbing trade, but they could perhaps look to the waiver wire or guys with other clubs who have opt-outs or upward mobility clauses.
Photo courtesy of Rick Osentoski, Imagn Images
Yoán Moncada To Undergo Knee Surgery
Yoán Moncada will require surgery to address his right knee injury, reports Francys Romero. Specifics on the procedure aren’t clear, nor is it known whether Moncada is expected back this season. He’s out until at least mid-July after the Angels transferred him to the 60-day injured list this evening.
Moncada seemingly never fully recovered from the right knee issue that cost him five weeks last summer. The veteran switch-hitter said the injury most severely impacted him when he would bat from the right side. The Angels accordingly limited him to 26 plate appearances versus lefty pitching this year. That wasn’t enough to avoid an IL stint, nor apparently to stave off surgery.
This is the fifth straight season in which Moncada has missed time. He has lost over a month in each of the past four years and hasn’t reached 400 plate appearances in a season since 2022. Moncada remained a slightly above-average hitter when he was able to take the field between 2023-25. That hasn’t been the case this season, as he batted .189/.308/.297 in 130 trips before going on the shelf.
Moncada is playing his second season in Anaheim on a $4MM contract. He’ll return to free agency in November. If this procedure winds up sidelining him for most or all of the remaining 2026 schedule, he’d very likely be limited to a minor league deal next offseason.
Journeyman utility player Donovan Walton has gotten the bulk of the third base playing time over the last couple weeks. The Halos recalled 22-year-old Denzer Guzman from Triple-A this evening. He’s mashing at a .336/.403/.571 clip in the minors and is one of the better prospects in a weak farm system. Guzman is in the lineup at the hot corner tonight against Houston. That’ll be the plan for the time being, as skipper Kurt Suzuki told reporters (including Jack Janes of The Sporting Tribune) that Guzman will be the primary third baseman.
Angels Select Trey Mancini
For the first time in three years, Trey Mancini is in the big leagues. The Angels selected the veteran first baseman onto the MLB roster before tonight’s series opener with the Astros. Mancini is starting at first base and batting seventh against his old team, who are sending Spencer Arrighetti to the mound.
The Halos also confirmed their previously reported call-up of rookie infielder Denzer Guzman, who’ll make his season debut tonight with a start at third base. In corresponding moves, they placed Vaughn Grissom (left oblique strain) and Adam Frazier (right elbow inflammation) on the 10-day injured list. Grissom’s placement is retroactive to June 5, while Frazier’s is retroactive to June 6. Yoán Moncada moves from the 10-day to the 60-day IL to clear a 40-man roster spot for Mancini.
Mancini signed an offseason minor league contract. He had sat out the 2024 campaign and only played a half-season in Triple-A with the Diamondbacks last year. Mancini never seemed likely to break camp as a result. Assigned to Triple-A Salt Lake, he has hit .273/.377/.464 with six home runs across 224 plate appearances. Mancini has walked at a huge 14.3% clip against an average 22% strikeout rate.
They’re not dominant numbers but are a little better than those of the average Pacific Coast League hitter. Mancini struggled in his most recent look at big league pitching, as he posted a .234/.299/.336 slash over 79 games for the Cubs in 2023. He hasn’t been an above-average MLB hitter since he was traded from the Orioles at the ’22 deadline, but he made a couple strong defensive plays to help the Astros win that year’s World Series.
The Angels welcomed Nolan Schanuel back from the injured list over the weekend. Schanuel missed a couple weeks with left ankle inflammation. He played on Saturday and Sunday but will get a day off tonight after reporting lingering soreness (relayed by Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com). Schanuel said he does not expect to need another stint on the injured list.
Moncada has been on the injured list since May 22. He has battled right knee discomfort going back to last summer. He’s now officially out into the middle of July, all but removing any chance the Angels could find a trade partner at the deadline willing to assume any portion of his $4MM salary.
Shaun Anderson Elects Free Agency
Right-hander Shaun Anderson has elected free agency after being sent outright to Triple-A Salt Lake, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. That indicates he cleared waivers after the Angels designated him for assignment a few days ago.
The most likely outcome from here is that Anderson re-signs with the Angels via a new minor league deal. He and the team have been doing this dance for quite a while. Dating back to the start of the 2025 season, Anderson has been selected to the Angels’ roster five times. In each case, after a short amount of time on the roster, he has been designated for assignment. Then he clears waivers, elects free agency and re-signs.
It’s a nice arrangement for the team, as they effectively get an extra pitcher on the roster. They can call on Anderson whenever they need a fresh arm in the bullpen and discard him for the same reason. Since he is out of options, he has to be bumped off the 40-man when removed from the active roster.
For Anderson, he would presumably prefer a more steady big league job. However, the fact that he keeps clearing waivers indicates no club is willing to give him one. With this arrangement, he at least gets sporadic hits of big league pay and service time.
Anderson has 180 big league innings under his belt with a 6.35 earned run average. 28 of those frames have been with the Angels since the start of last season, with Anderson posting a 7.71 ERA in that time. As mentioned, he will probably re-sign with the Angels soon, but he is technically on the market for the time being.
Photo courtesy of Jay Biggerstaff, Imagn Images
Taijuan Walker Opts Out Of Angels Contract
Veteran right-hander Taijuan Walker has been granted his release by the Angels, per the transaction log at MiLB.com. Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports that Walker, who signed a minor league deal with the Angels a few weeks ago, had an opt-out in that deal, which he triggered.
Walker, 33, was released by the Phillies earlier this season after being shelled for 25 runs (23 earned) on 36 hits and 11 walks with 17 strikeouts in 22 2/3 innings. The resulting 9.13 ERA put an end to a disappointing stint with the Phils, who’d signed him to a four-year, $72MM contract ahead of the 2023 season. Walker posted decent numbers in 2023 and 2025 but was clobbered in 2024 and 2026. His time in Philly drew to a close with a 5.12 ERA, a 16.9% strikeout rate, a 9.1% walk rate and a 42.9% ground-ball rate in 402 2/3 innings.
In three starts with the Angels’ Triple-A affiliate in Salt Lake City, Walker pitched well. He tallied 11 innings and held opponents to four runs (three earned) on 11 hits and four walks with nine strikeouts. The Halos’ rotation is a mess right now, but apparently they didn’t see enough in those three starts to plug Walker into the staff. They’re currently going with Jose Soriano, Reid Detmers, Walbert Ureña and Grayson Rodriguez. Righty Jack Kochanowicz hit the injured list with elbow inflammation this weekend after surrendering seven runs (six earned) in just one-third of an inning against the Dodgers in his most recent start.
Walker will once again explore free agency in search of new opportunities. Even if the Angels prefer other in-house options to step into the fifth spot in the rotation, there are plenty of other clubs around the league whose starting staffs have been ravaged by health troubles. The Blue Jays, Cubs, Tigers, Twins and Marlins are just a few of the teams that have multiple rotation arms on the injured list at the moment.
Rotation depth is always in demand, so Walker should find another opportunity, even if it means taking another minor league deal and trying to earn his way onto a big league roster with continued solid performance in Triple-A. Any team that signs Walker would only owe him the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the major league roster. The Phillies are on the hook for the rest of his $18MM salary.
Angels Place Jack Kochanowicz On 15-Day IL, Recall Sam Aldegheri
The Angels announced that they have placed right-hander Jack Kochanowicz on the 15-day injured list with right elbow inflammation. Lefty Sam Aldegheri is being recalled from Triple-A in place of Kochanowicz.
Kochanowicz told reporters, including Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com, that his elbow has been bothering him in his past three starts. Kochanowicz tried to pitch through it, but he’ll now head to the IL in an attempt to fully recover. He will undergo an MRI tomorrow. Aldegheri is available out of the bullpen for now, per Bollinger, but he could slide into the rotation if needed. Caden Dana and George Klassen are other candidates for that spot.
Kochanowicz is having as good of a season as the Angels overall, which is to say not very good. The 6’7″ righty has covered 64 innings over 13 starts, recording a 6.05 ERA in the process. Kochanowicz has a 5.38 xERA, a 4.98 FIP, and a 5.00 SIERA, suggesting he’s been somewhat unlucky, but still ineffective. Indeed, manager Kurt Suzuki was non-committal about keeping Kochanowicz in the rotation before the IL placement was announced. “[We will] talk about it and see what our options are,” Suzuki told Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register. Fletcher also noted that Kochanowicz was experiencing mechanical issues, which can now be partly attributed to his injury.
The fact that Kochanowicz has held onto his spot for this long speaks to the Angels’ lack of rotation depth behind José Soriano and Reid Detmers. The former has cooled off after a hot start but still has a 2.72 ERA in 76 innings. Detmers has strong peripherals that suggest he’s due for improvement on his 4.26 ERA. Otherwise, rookie Walbert Ureña has a 2.68 ERA and an excellent 51.4% ground ball rate, but also a 4.53 SIERA thanks to a high walk rate. Grayson Rodriguez has allowed 19 earned runs in 18 innings since returning from injury.
Yusei Kikuchi is on the 60-day IL and won’t be back until late July at best, per the club’s official injury report. Dana and Klassen are both on the 40-man roster as depth options, and Dana was a Top-100 prospect last year according to MLB.com. However, neither Dana nor Klassen is performing well at Triple-A this year despite high ground ball rates.
Working in Kochanowicz’s favor are his own high ground ball rate (54.6% in 240 1/3 big league innings), 72nd-percentile fastball velocity, and much improved slider (-6 run value in 2025, +1 this year). Granted, the Angels are not contending and can afford to give the 25-year-old Kochanowicz plenty of leeway. Still, his ground ball rate and decent stuff are intriguing on their own, so it wouldn’t be unrealistic to see Kochanowicz back in the rotation when he returns. The Angels only have four starters at the moment per FanGraphs’ RosterResource tool, so Kochanowicz could reclaim his spot as the fifth starter.
Aldegheri returns to the Majors as a long reliever for now. He’s scattered three big league appearances around three recalls and options this year, with this move being his fourth recall. Aldegheri has a 7.24 ERA in 46 innings over nine starts at Triple-A in 2026. His big league track record consists of an uninspiring 5.26 ERA in 37 2/3 innings from 2024-26. It would not be surprising for Aldegheri to appear in one game then get optioned once again, with one of Dana or Klassen getting a temporary rotation spot with Kochanowicz out.
Photo courtesy of William Liang, Imagn Images
Angels Announce Several Roster Moves
The Angels made several roster decisions ahead of Saturday’s matchup against the Dodgers. First baseman Nolan Schanuel is back from the IL. Outfielder Jorge Soler heads to the IL with an oblique strain. The club selected the contract of outfielder Gustavo Campero, then put him on the IL with a broken hand. Catcher Omar Martinez was designated for assignment.
The Soler move is retroactive to June 4. He was scratched on Friday with what was initially believed to be a hip injury. Instead, it’s an oblique issue. Soler has been mediocre at the plate through 58 games. The veteran has a 95 wRC+ across 243 plate appearances. Soler struggled mightily in May, posting a .571 OPS. He was off to a strong start in June, going 4-for-11 with two extra-base hits in a series against the Rockies.
Schanuel had slightly more than a minimum stay on the IL with an ankle injury. He should step back in as the club’s everyday first baseman. Schanuel hasn’t shown the on-base skills he’s had in previous seasons, walking at a career-low 6.3% clip. His .313 OBP is more than 30 points below his career mark.
Vaughn Grissom has stepped in at first base in Schanuel’s stead and played well. The former big-name prospect has slashed a respectable .246/.325/.410 in 40 games. He’s striking out just 11% of the time, while walking at a 9% rate. Grissom has been particularly effective in games he’s played first base, delivering a .988 OPS in 62 plate appearances. Grissom has also played second and third base this year. He might not have a permanent defensive position, but he’s earned regular playing time.
Campero has spent the entire season at Double-A. He went to the minor league injured list on June 1 with a fractured right hand. Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reported that Campero had an opt-out clause in his deal. Adding him to the 40-man roster allows the Angels to keep him in the organization. The 28-year-old outfielder has scuffled to a 74 wRC+ in parts of two seasons with the big-league club, but he was performing well in the minors this year. Campero had an .830 OPS with six homers and 11 steals with Rocket City before his injury.
After seven seasons in the minors with the Yankees, Martinez joined the Angels on a minor league deal. He earned his first MLB shot in early May after Travis d’Arnaud went down with plantar fasciitis. Regular starter Logan O’Hoppe was already out with a broken wrist. Martinez briefly tag-teamed the catching duties with Sebastian Rivero. The 24-year-old mostly appeared on defense. He had three plate appearances in five games, going 1-for-3.
Martinez will now head through the DFA process. The Angels can look for a trade partner before placing him on waivers. Martinez is still in his first minor league option year, which could intrigue teams in need of catching depth. If he clears waivers, he’ll head back to Triple-A Salt Lake and wait for his next big-league opportunity.
Photo courtesy of Gary A. Vasquez, Imagn Images
Angels, Logan Porter Agree To Minor League Deal
The Angels are in agreement with catcher Logan Porter on a minor league contract, reports Ari Alexander of Boston 7 News. The Gaeta Sports Management client had elected free agency this morning after being outrighted by the Giants. He’ll report to Triple-A Salt Lake.
Porter backfills the catching depth after the Halos traded Austin Wynns to the Braves on Thursday. Atlanta selected Wynns onto the MLB roster, so it’s likely his minor league deal contained some kind of upward mobility provision. That left them with Omar Martinez and 28-year-old non-roster catcher Zach Humphreys at the Triple-A level. Martinez is the only healthy catcher on the 40-man aside from the MLB duo of Logan O’Hoppe and Sebastian Rivero.
The 30-year-old Porter spent two days on the Giants’ active roster in early May. They called him up after trading Patrick Bailey to Cleveland, getting him into one game as a pinch-runner after Christian Koss was hit by a pitch. Porter was quickly optioned back to Triple-A, where he hit .241/.292/.362 in 65 plate appearances this season. He’s a .244/.359/.389 batter over five Triple-A campaigns and has appeared in 17 big league contests over parts of three seasons.