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Luis Rengifo

Angels Reinstate Luis Rengifo, Designate Keston Hiura

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The Angels are designating infielder Keston Hiura for assignment, reports Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register (X link). The move opens an active roster spot for the reinstatement of Luis Rengifo from the 10-day injured list. The Halos now have two vacancies on their 40-man roster.

Rengifo missed around three weeks with inflammation in his right wrist. It doesn’t seem all that serious. The Halos fortunately managed to get him back a week before the deadline, giving him a few games to demonstrate he’s at full health. The switch-hitting Rengifo is one of the better offensive options who should be available this summer. He’s hitting .315/.358/.442 across 269 plate appearances.

While he’s unlikely to maintain a .349 average on balls in play, Rengifo should still be an above-average hitter. He makes a ton of contact and topped 15 homers in 2022 and ’23. Over the past two and a half seasons, he owns a .275/.325/.437 line over more than 1200 trips to the plate. He has destroyed left-handed pitching while turning in league average results against righties. Rengifo isn’t a great defender anywhere, but he’s capable of bouncing around the infield and occasionally logging corner outfield reps.

Rengifo is making $4.4MM this season. He’s controllable through arbitration for one more season. MassLive reported yesterday that the Red Sox have shown some interest, though they’re likely one of many teams that’ll be in touch with the Halos. Speculatively speaking, the Yankees, Pirates and Royals are a few others that would make sense as suitors for Rengifo.

Hiura got the call in conjunction with Rengifo’s IL placement. The former #9 overall pick went 4-27 (all singles) and struck out 10 times in as many games. That was Hiura’s first major league work since 2022. Since an excellent rookie campaign five years ago, he’s a .203/.287/.384 hitter with a 38.5% strikeout rate at the MLB level.

The UC Irvine product has continued to hit well against Triple-A pitching, but he hasn’t carried that over against MLB arms. He owned a solid .270/.346/.536 slash over 68 minor league contests with the Tigers and Angels before being called up. He’s out of options, so the Halos couldn’t send him back to the minors without taking him off the 40-man roster. It’s unlikely they’ll find a trade partner, so Hiura is likely to hit the waiver wire this week. He has already cleared outright waivers once in his career and could elect free agency if he goes unclaimed again.

Red Sox Interested In Luis Rengifo

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A few weeks ago, Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow told reporters that the club is committed to picking a lane prior to the trade deadline. That deadline is now just over a week away, falling on July 30, and the Sox are still trying to decide on their approach, reports Chris Cotillo and Sean McAdam of MassLive.

The Sox have been hovering around in the Wild Card chase for most of the year but are coming off a three-game sweep at the hands of the Dodgers. That has knocked them down to 53-45, one game back of the Royals and Twins for the final two playoff spots, with the Mariners, Rays and Tigers just behind Boston.

Per Cotillo, the front office is considering all sorts of scenarios and is having exploratory talks with various other clubs. In those talks, Boston is reportedly focused on pitching and a right-handed bat, which aligns with what Breslow said to reporters a couple of weeks ago about his targets. Cotillo reports that this right-handed bat would ideally play multiple positions and that Luis Rengifo of the Angels is one target.

Rengifo, 27, is versatile in more ways than one. Defensively, he has played all three outfield positions and the three infield spots to the left of first base. He’s not considered an especially strong defender anywhere but that helps him slot into the lineup. In addition to that, he’s also a switch-hitter.

He struggled when first called up to the majors but is in the midst of a solid three-year run with the Angels. Since the start of the 2022 season, he has produced a line of .275/.325/.437. His 5.8% walk rate in that time is subpar but he’s also limited strikeouts to a rate of 16.1%. Overall, that production translates to a 112 wRC+, indicating he’s been 12% better than league average. He’s also stolen 34 bases in 36 tries in that time.

That includes a very strong line of .315/.358/.442 this year along with 22 stolen bases, though there are also some flags. His .349 batting average on balls in play this season is well beyond his career rate of .290 and the .289 league average in 2024. He also landed on the 15-day injured list two weeks ago due to inflammation in his right wrist and has an uncertain path back. As of a few days ago, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com relayed on X that Rengifo was fielding grounders, throwing and hitting off a tee, but without concrete details of his upcoming timeline.

What also could complicate matters is how the Angels are approaching the deadline. It was reported a couple of weeks ago that the Halos have a preference for only trading rental players while holding onto controllable guys like Taylor Ward, Tyler Anderson, Griffin Canning and perhaps Rengifo.

Whether that’s a true reflection of how the Angels are approaching the deadline or not remains to be seen. The club is clearly not good this year at 42-57 and there are reasons to suspect they may be challenged in being better next year. Their farm system isn’t especially well regarded and they are heavily committed to players like Anthony Rendon and Mike Trout, who continue to be held back by injuries as they age.

Rengifo is making $4.4MM this year and set for one more arbitration pass before he’s slated for free agency after 2025. He would be a sensible trade target unless the Halos really believe they have a chance at competing this year, though his current injury status might perhaps lead them to wait until the offseason or next year’s deadline. Players can be traded while on the IL but his status might impact the offers and lessen the chances of the Halos pulling the trigger.

For the Sox, their lineup leans heavily to the left side, with Tyler O’Neill, Connor Wong and Ceddanne Rafaela the only righties to be getting regular plate appearances this year. A righty bat therefore makes plenty of sense and Rengifo’s switch-hitting abilities allow him to slot into that need. He’s hit .279/.323/.452 from the right side in his career compared to .243/.308/.373 from the left side, leading to respective wRC+ tallies of 112 and 88. The split has been even more drastic lately, as he’s hit .328/.368/.555 as a righty since the start of 2022.

Whether Boston can pull the trigger on a deal there remains to be seen. Other righty bats with the ability to play multiple positions who may be available include Isaac Paredes, Brendan Rodgers, Gio Urshela, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Nico Hoerner, Christopher Morel, Jonathan India and Abraham Toro.

Part of the reason the club is shopping in this market is due to the disappointing season of Vaughn Grissom. Acquired from Atlanta in the Chris Sale trade, he has missed time due to hamstring strains in both legs. He’s only played in 23 games for the Sox and hit .148/.207/.160 in that time. Per Sean McAdam of MassLive, manager Álex Cora indicated earlier this year that Grissom would be the club’s second baseman when he returned from his first hamstring strain. But now that he’s back on the IL with a second strain, he has no such guarantees.

“We have to take all the steps and get him stronger, get the athlete we envisioned,” Cora said. “If we get that, then we’re going to get the player and then the player shows up and we make a decision.”

In Grissom’s absence, Enmanuel Valdéz got a lot of rope but struggled and ended up optioned down to the minors. Much of the recent playing time has been going to David Hamilton, who is hitting .268/.321/.405. That’s exactly league average but his defense has been good and he’s also stolen 25 bases in 28 tries. Grissom recently began a rehab assignment and hits from the right side, while Hamilton is a lefty. Theoretically, Grissom’s return could negate the need for the Sox to go out and trade for a righty bat like Rengifo, but it sounds like their confidence in Grissom is at a bit of a low ebb right now.

Latest On Angels’ Deadline Outlook

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The Angels are one of the few obvious deadline sellers at the moment, but even they might not be fully open for business. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale suggests that the club prefers to hold onto outfielder Taylor Ward and starters Tyler Anderson and Griffin Canning, due to the fact all three are signed/controlled into next season. If the Angels are reluctant to move anyone signed or controlled beyond the current campaign, that would then extend to Luis Rengifo as well. Anderson is signed through 2025 and earning $13MM each season. Ward is controlled through 2026 via arbitration. Canning and Rengifo are arb-eligible through the 2025 season.

It’s always possible, especially this time of year, that there’s some level of posturing in that stance. The Halos are 15 games under .500, 10.5 games out of the division lead and 12 games out of a Wild Card spot as of Monday morning. Their -78 run differential is the fifth-worst in MLB. Mike Trout has been on the injured list since late April. Patrick Sandoval and Robert Stephenson have both been lost to UCL surgeries. To say things have not gone well in 2024 would be putting things mildly.

That said, Angels owner Arte Moreno has long appeared averse to embarking on any kind of rebuilding effort. The Angels have regularly been active in free agency and on the trade market over the past decade, even as their playoff drought has grown to the largest in the sport. (They last qualified for postseason play in 2014.) That trend has spanned multiple general managers — Jerry Dipoto, Billy Eppler, Perry Minasian — and thus seems largely attributable to ownership. Even as they were faced with losing Shohei Ohtani in free agency this offseason, Minasian decisively stated that the Angels would not rebuild.

When considering that context, it’s easier to see a scenario in which the Angels would rebuff interest in names like Ward — even if there’s a strong logical case that they should be capitalizing on trade value nearly anywhere it exists on the roster. As it stands, Nightengale writes that the Angels have been “bombarded” with interest in closer Carlos Estevez and are also likely to trade setup man Luis Garcia. Other rental players of note on the Halos include Matt Moore, Brandon Drury, Kevin Pillar, Hunter Strickland and Miguel Sano.

The 31-year-old Estevez is in the second season of a two-year, $13.5MM contract signed in the 2022-23 offseason. The longtime Rockies hurler has taken his game to a new level in Anaheim — particularly in 2024. He boasts a tidy 2.89 ERA with a strong 26.9% strikeout rate and a career-best 3.8% walk rate. Estevez averages just shy of 97 mph on his heater, has picked up 16 saves this year (and 31 last year), and was named the AL Reliever of the Month in June after tossing 10 shutout innings and recording a 32.3% strikeout rate without issuing a walk.

Garcia, 37, is on a one-year, $4.25MM contract. He’s pitched 36 innings and yielded a 4.25 ERA while recording nine holds. The veteran righty has fanned a sharp 23.7% of his opponents against a similarly strong 7.9% walk rate. He’s kept the ball on the ground at a hearty 49.5% clip. His sinker is down from the career-best 98.7 mph average he showed with the Padres in 2022 but still has plenty of life, sitting at 96.4 mph, per Statcast.

Strickland, 35, has had an up-and-down career with inconsistent year-to-year results but is in the midst of a strong season. He’s pitched 40 innings out of the bullpen and logged a 3.60 ERA, 20.6% strikeout rate, 6.3% walk rate, 35.3% ground-ball rate and 0.90 HR/9. Over his past 9 2/3 innings, he’s gone unscored upon and allowed only one hit and three walks while punching out 10 batters.

The 35-year-old Pillar was released by the White Sox in April and has been a godsend in Anaheim. Since heading to Orange County, the journeyman outfielder has turned in a huge .305/.360/.516 slash with six home runs and five steals in just 139 plate appearances. Pillar recently acknowledged that this will likely be his final season, so it stands to reason that he’d welcome the opportunity to join one more playoff race and one more chance to chase down a World Series ring.

None of the other rental options on the Angels’ roster are performing particularly well. Moore, Adam Cimber and Jose Cisnero all signed one-year deals in the offseason. Moore has seen his strikeout rate plummet as he’s struggled to keep his ERA under 5.00. Both Cimber and Cisnero have ERAs north of 7.00 and are presently on the injured list. Drury, hitting .172/.24/.227 in the second season of a two-year $17MM deal, is more a release candidate than a trade candidate. Sano, back in the majors after not playing in 2023, is hitting .205/.295/.313 with a 37.9% strikeout rate in 95 plate appearances.

Angels Place Luis Rengifo On 10-Day IL, Select Keston Hiura

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The Angels announced that infielder Luis Rengifo has been placed on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to July 4) due to inflammation in his right wrist.  In corresponding moves, the Halos selected the contract of infielder Keston Hiura from Triple-A, and moved right-hander Andrew Wantz to the 60-day injured list.

Rengifo was removed from Wednesday’s game after appearing to injure himself on a swing. Per Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register on X, the club said he had some wrist soreness and would be going for imaging. The X-rays found no break, per Fletcher on X yesterday, but it seems the inflammation and soreness are enough that the club will put him on the shelf for at least a little while.

How he progresses in the coming weeks will be an interesting situation to monitor as he is one of the most straightforward trade candidates this summer. The Angels are 36-50 and one of the few clear sellers this year. Rengifo has just one year of club control beyond this one, making $4.4MM here in 2024 with another pass through arbitration upcoming. The Halos are considered to have a poor farm system, making it unlikely that they will return to contention by next year.

He was a solid contributor for the Halos in the previous two seasons but has seemingly taken a step forward here this year. He slashed .264/.315/.436 over 2022 and 2023, with that production translating to a 108 wRC+. Here in 2024, he currently sports a line of .315/.358/.442 and a 127 wRC+.

At least some of that is probably luck, as Rengifo had a .289 batting average on balls in play in the 2022-23 period but is up to .349 this year. But it’s still his third straight season of producing above-average offense. He also provides plenty of defensive versatility, having played all three outfield spots and the three infield positions to the left of first base. He’s not considered an especially strong defender anywhere, but the versatility is still attractive to clubs. He’s also added a base-stealing component to his game with 22 swipes this year, more than the 18 he had in his entire career coming into this season.

Those on-field contributions, as well as his salary and extra year of club control, will make him very attractive if he’s healthy. The trade deadline is on July 30, so he has lots of time if this is just a minor issue. But if he suffers any sort of setback, the Angels might miss their window to capitalize on his trade value. Injured players can still be traded but it’s rare that they actually happen as the offers usually get dropped to reflect the uncertain health status.

In the meantime, the Angels will have to cobble a lineup together without Rengifo. He has mostly been playing second and third base this year, with Anthony Rendon, Miguel Sano and Brandon Drury all spending time on the injured list. Rendon is still on the IL but Sano and Drury are healthy now and likely to play third and second base, respectively. Luis Guillorme is around as a bench infielder.

Hiura, 27, signed a minor league deal with the Angels just a few weeks ago after being released by the Tigers. He reported to Triple-A Salt Lake and has been on an absurd tear since, hitting 12 home runs in 19 games for a line of .360/.429/.853.

But hitting home runs has never been the problem for Hiura. He has always put the ball over the fence but has also been struck out in huge numbers at the same time. In over a thousand plate appearances in the majors, he has 50 long balls but a 36% strikeout rate. Even while going on that insane speed run with the Bees in the past few weeks, he’s been punched out 28.1% of the time.

For the Halos, there’s little harm in bringing him up to see if they can catch lightning in a bottle. They have been using Willie Calhoun as their primary designated hitter for the past two months. He has a passable line of .273/.337/.391 in 178 plate appearances this year but with just two homers, not the kind of pop that clubs usually hope to get from their DH. Hiura is in the DH spot today with Calhoun on the bench.

The Angels might also be tempted to put Hiura at second base sometimes, as that’s where he played when he first came up as a prospect. But his glovework was considered poor and he has spent more time at first base in recent years. But he did still get a bit of time at the keystone while in Salt Lake, so it’s perhaps not off the table. Nolan Schanuel is having a subpar year at first, hitting .239/.309/.352, and has almost no minor league experience. The club shot him to the majors last year after just 22 games on the farm as they were trying to stay in the playoff race, skipping him over Triple-A entirely. If Hiura is hitting well, perhaps a stint in the minors for Schanuel isn’t out of the question either.

If things don’t go well with Hiura, he is out of options and will have to be removed from the 40-man to be nudged off the active roster. But if things click, he can theoretically be retained for three arbitration seasons beyond this one.

As for Wantz, he was just placed on the 15-day injured list a few days ago with right elbow inflammation. His status is still unclear but the fact that he has been quickly transferred to the 60-day IL is ominous. He’ll now be ineligible to be reinstated until early September.

Angels Acquire Luis Guillorme, Transfer Anthony Rendon To 60-Day IL

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8:40pm: Guillorme is active for tonight’s game against the Royals. The Halos placed both Drury and Rengifo on the 10-day injured list while recalling Kyren Paris in corresponding moves.

10:00am: The Braves announced that Guillorme has been traded to the Angels for a player to be named later or cash. The Angels have also announced the swap, transferring third baseman Anthony Rendon to the 60-day injured list to create roster space. Rendon has been out since April 20 with a hamstring injury and will now be sidelined into at least late June.

7:27am: The Angels are reportedly acquiring infielder Luis Guillorme from the Braves, according to Daniel Alvarez-Montes of El Extrabase. The return headed to Atlanta is not currently known.

Guillorme, 29, was non-tendered by the Mets back in November but signed with the Braves in early January on a one-year, $1.1MM deal. A tenth-round pick by New York in the 2013 draft, Guillorme made his big league debut in 2018 but did not receive significant playing time until the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. While he had struggled to a .227/.303/.297 slash line in 80 games over his first two seasons in the big leagues, 2020 saw Guillorme appear in 29 of the club’s 60 contests while slashing an incredible .333/.426/.439, good for a wRC+ of 145.

Impressive as that performance in the shortened campaign was, it was inflated by a .463 BABIP that would be completely unsustainable over a full season. Even so, Guillorme began to see more frequent use by the Mets in the seasons following his strong performance in 2020. With that increase in playing time came improved results; Guillorme slashed a serviceable .265/.374/.311 (97 wRC+) in 69 games during the 2021 campaign, and in 335 plate appearances the following year he hit .273/.351/.340 (104 wRC+).

Overall, that trio of campaigns saw Guillorme post production that was 7% better than league average off the bench while striking out just 15.4% of the time and walking at an excellent 12.4% clip. Guillorme’s overall offensive performance was capped by an extreme lack of power that saw him hit just three home runs in 559 trips to the plate from 2020-22. Still, the infielder managed to make up for that not only through strong plate discipline but also excellent glovework; those years saw Guillorme post an impressive +10 Outs Above Average in limited playing time while shuffling between second base, third base, and shortstop.

While his combination of contact, on-base ability, and versatile infield defense made Guillorme one of the better bench bats in the league over that three year stretch, the 2023 campaign saw him regress significantly. In 120 trips to the plate across 53 games, Guillorme slashed just .224/.388/.327 (70 wRC+) with much weaker peripherals than his previous seasons. His 23.3% strikeout rate was nearly a ten-point jump from where it had been the previous year, while his 8.3% walk rate was the worst of his career. Making matters worse was a regression in Guillorme’s fielding that saw him go from a clearly above-average defender around the infield to below average at every spot he played. The infielder generated -4 Outs Above Average in 2023, including at least a -1 figure at each of his three positions.

That difficult 2023 season is what led the Mets to non-tender Guillorme back in November, allowing the Braves to add him to their bench mix. Unfortunately for Guillorme, however, he’s been limited to just nine games this season and his .150/.190/.250 slash line in that limited playing time hardly made a case for a larger role in Atlanta. With Luke Williams currently occupying a spot on the bench and non-roster veterans such as David Fletcher and Leury Garcia able to step into Guillorme’s utility role, it’s unlikely the Braves will be impacted too significantly by his departure.

With that being said, it’s possible the 29-year-old will receive more runway to re-establish himself in Anaheim. The club’s infield has struggled to stay healthy this year with Anthony Rendon, Michael Stefanic, and Miguel Sano all currently on the injured list. Meanwhile, Luis Rengifo has been out for nearly a week due to illness and Brandon Drury could be headed to the injured list in the coming days himself after exiting yesterday’s game in the sixth inning due to hamstring tightness.

Cole Tucker and Ehire Adrianza are currently filling in on the infield alongside shortstop Zack Neto, but Tucker has routinely struggled at the big league level throughout his career and Adrianza sports a .165/.248/.218 slash line in the majors over the past three seasons. Given those limited options, it appears likely that Guillorme will have plenty of opportunities to earn a larger role in Anaheim than he had in Atlanta over the coming weeks. If he manages to bounce back to the form he showed from 2020-22, the Angels will have found a solid in-season addition to their infield mix who could remain valuable even once the club’s infield regulars begin to get healthy.

Who Could The Angels Trade This Summer?

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The Angels came into 2024 hoping to compete, despite losing Shohei Ohtani to free agency, but it’s not going well so far. It’s usually unwise to pour dirt on a club’s grave so early in the season, but the odds were against them even before the 2024 campaign started. They have piled up a few losses while Mike Trout is once again facing a significant absence, narrowing whatever contention window they had.

The Playoff Odds at FanGraphs gave them a 16.9% chance of making the playoffs prior to any games being played. Now that the club is 11-20 and Trout is set to miss weeks due to surgery to repair a torn meniscus, those odds have slimmed. As of this morning, their chances of cracking the postseason are down to 2.6%. The PECOTA Standings at Baseball Prospectus are even more pessimistic, giving the Halos just a 0.3% shot.

Barring a miracle in the next few months, they are going to be deadline sellers in the months to come. There could be some speculation about Trout being available, but that’s a complicated situation. He has full no-trade protection and has said he wants to stay in Anaheim. Even if he changes his mind and wants out, facilitating a deal won’t be easy. Despite his immense talents, he actually has negative trade value right now. He is about to turn 33 years old, is making $35.45MM annually through 2030 and has frequently been injured in recent years.

The Angels would be in a tough spot, as they would likely want some notable prospect return in trading a face-of-the-franchise player like Trout, but they would have to swallow a significant portion of the deal to make that happen. On top of that, Trout’s no-trade clause means they would have to factor in his preferences, perhaps narrowing their options and reducing their leverage. Given how convoluted the factors are, a Trout trade isn’t likely to come together hastily, especially since he’s currently hurt.

On top of Trout, there are others who aren’t likely to be moved. Anthony Rendon has a massive salary and hasn’t been healthy in years. Robert Stephenson recently underwent Tommy John surgery and is out until the middle of next year, at least. Players like Logan O’Hoppe, Zach Neto and Nolan Schanuel are still in their pre-arbitration years, giving the club little reason to move them.

But that still leaves them with quite a few options that could hold appeal around the league:

Luis Rengifo

Rengifo is currently hitting .326/.376/.465 this year for a 142 wRC+. That’s at least partly a mirage because he won’t be able to sustain a .377 batting average on balls in play all season. But even with a bit of regression, he’d be on track for his third straight year of above-average offense. He hit a combined .264/.315/.436 over 2022 and 2023, with a 103 wRC+ in the first of those two seasons and a 114 wRC+ last year.

Defensively, Rengifo can play all over the diamond. He has spent time at the three infield positions to the left of first base, as well as all three outfield slots. He’s not considered especially strong at any one spot, but the ability to move around will help him fit in with other clubs. The fact that he’s a switch-hitter gives him extra versatility.

Financially, Rengifo is making just $4.4MM this year and can be controlled via arbitration for next year as well. Even if a club has financial concerns due to the competitive balance tax or lack of TV revenue, he won’t break the bank.

Carlos Estévez

Estévez is out to a rough start this year with a 6.23 ERA, but the numbers are good just about everywhere else. He is striking out 29.4% of batters faced on the year and hasn’t yet issued a walk. The runs are scoring at least partially due to a tiny strand rate of 48.4%. His 3.83 FIP and 2.70 SIERA point to him being the same lockdown reliever he has been in previous years.

The righty has a 4.51 career ERA but spent his entire career in Colorado until last year. He secured a two-year, $13.5MM deal with the Angels going into 2023. His first season in Anaheim saw him rack up 31 saves while punching out 27.8% of opponents, though walking 11% of them. He should be one of the better rental relievers available this summer. He’s making a salary of $6.75MM this year.

Tyler Anderson

Anderson’s up-and-down career is in a bit of an upswing right now, at least in terms of results. Through six starts this year, he has a 2.23 earned run average. But with a .194 BABIP and 90.9% strand rate, he likely won’t be able to keep that up. His 4.76 FIP and 4.80 SIERA suggest regression is coming, as his 18.5% strikeout rate and 10.3% walk rate are both subpar.

The lefty secured a three-year, $39MM deal with the Halos going into 2023. He had a 4.62 ERA through 2021 but then posted a 2.57 ERA with the Dodgers in 2022. That led to his deal with the Angels, but he regressed immediately with a 5.43 ERA last year. Though his results will likely dip a bit as the year goes on, pitching is always in demand at the deadline and the Angels could be able to eat some of his salary to get a deal done. His contract pays him $13MM annually and runs through the end of 2025.

Griffin Canning

Health has been the big question mark for Canning, but he showed positive development in that department last year. He missed the 2022 season entirely but then appeared in 24 games in 2023 — 22 of them starts — while logging 127 innings. All of those figures were career-highs. Beyond the quantity, the quality was also encouraging. He had a 4.32 ERA on the year with a 25.9% strikeout rate and 6.7% walk rate.

Unfortunately, things have backed up in 2024. Through six starts, he has struck out just 15.9% of opponents while walking 9.1%, leading to a 7.45 ERA. A 56.1% strand rate isn’t helping him, but even his 5.48 FIP and 4.96 SIERA aren’t amazing. He’ll have to get things back on track in the months to come but would have some appeal if he did. Because of the missed injury time, he’s making a modest $2.6MM salary this year and has one more arbitration season remaining in 2025.

Patrick Sandoval

Sandoval’s ERA is up at 5.91 this year, but the numbers under the hood are more encouraging. His 10.8% walk rate is a bit high, but he’s striking out 25.7% of batters faced and getting grounders on 47.3% of balls in play. Were it not for a .396 BABIP and 57.5% strand rate, he’d be in better shape, which is why he has a 3.17 FIP and 3.83 SIERA.

He’s a bit less of an obvious trade candidate since he’s controlled through 2026. He’s making $5.025MM this year and will have two more arb seasons before he’s slated for free agency. The Halos could hold him if they think they can compete again in that window, but his trade value will only decline going forward as his control window shrinks and his salary keeps rising.

Taylor Ward

Ward is in the same service bucket as Sandoval, meaning he has two years of control beyond this one. He’s had a bit of a stop-and-go career due to injuries but is often in good form when healthy. He already has seven home runs this year and is slashing .278/.313/.492 with a 126 wRC+. Going back to the start of 2021, he’s hit .267/.343/.453 for a 122 wRC+.

Similar to Sandoval, the Halos don’t have to move Ward, but there’s an argument for it. He’s making $4.8MM this year and will be in line for a healthy raise if he keeps hitting homers. Since his health has been so mercurial, they might be tempted to strike while the iron is hot, cashing him in for younger players if he stays healthy through July.

Matt Moore

Moore is continuing to enjoy a nice second act to his career after moving from the rotation to the bullpen. Since the start of 2022, he’s made 125 appearances with a 2.35 ERA, 26.9% strikeout rate, 9.8% walk rate and 40% ground ball rate.

His strikeout rate has dipped to 21.3% this year, but in a small sample of 12 appearances. His 3.97 ERA is more passable than it is exciting and he’s making $9MM on the year. But every contender is looking for bullpen upgrades at the deadline and Moore will have suitors, especially since he’s left-handed.

Brandon Drury

Drury parlayed a 28-homer breakout in 2022 into a two-year, $17MM deal to suit up for the team he grew up cheering for. The first season went well, as he launched another 26 home runs last year while bouncing between multiple positions, but he’s out to a dreadful start here in 2024. He has battled some hamstring tightness and migraines while hitting just .176/.245/.235.

Those nagging injuries are surely playing a part in his struggles, as is a .209 BABIP. He could be due for a turnaround if his health and batted-ball fortune both improve. If that comes to pass, he could fit on multiple clubs around the league. He has played all four infield positions and the outfield corners in his career, so various teams could find a way to squeeze him in.

Luis García

Somewhat similar to Estévez, García is allowing more runs than he seemingly deserves. He has struck out 28.3% of opponents this year while walking just 5.7% and keeping 54.3% of balls in play on the ground, leading to a 2.52 FIP and 2.38 SIERA. But a strand rate of just 39.7% has helped push some runners across the plate, leading to a 5.54 ERA.

He’s a 37-year-old veteran and won’t fetch a huge return, but each contender needs bullpen help. He’s making just $4.25MM on a one-year deal and has a decent track record. Since the start of 2021, he has a 3.77 ERA, 23.8% strikeout rate, 7.3% walk rate and 55% ground ball rate.

Adam Cimber

Cimber had a pretty solid run in 2021 and 2022, pitching over 70 innings in each of those seasons with a combined ERA of 2.53. He only struck out 18.8% of batters faced in that time, but he only walked 5% of them while his submarine delivery helped him produce a 47.9% ground ball rate and lots of weak contact.

He was hurt for a lot of 2023 and his ERA shot up to 7.40 when he was on the mound. The Angels took a shot on a bounceback which has mostly gone well so far, as Cimber has a 3.14 ERA this year. His 11.1% walk rate is uncharacteristically high, as he’s never finished a season above 7.8% in that department. If he can shake off the rust and rein in his control, perhaps he’ll be back in 2021-22 form in the months to come. He’s making just $1.65MM this year and could fit in the budget of any club.

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The Angels could also push further, depending on what their long-term plans are. Reid Detmers and Jo Adell haven’t yet reached arbitration yet, but they will this coming winter. Adell has struggled so much over the years but is in good form so far this year, which may tempt the Angels to listen to offers on him now in case he turns into a pumpkin. He’s slashing .290/.338/.565 for a 152 wRC+, with his 26.5% strikeout rate a big improvement compared to previous years.

Parting with Detmers could be painful since he seems to be breaking out this year. He has a 3.12 ERA, 26.6% strikeout rate, 7.2% walk rate and 44% ground ball rate. With three more years of control beyond this one, there’s no rush to move him. But if the club is planning a significant rebuild, those years might be wasted in Anaheim. If they decide to pull the trigger, he would fetch a haul.

AL Notes: Angels, Bradish, Carrasco

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The Angels infield depth has taken a bit of a hit in recent days, as Sam Blum of The Athletic noted that second baseman Luis Rengifo is dealing with a hamstring issue and pulled himself from yesterday’s team workouts. While Blum notes that Rengifo won’t be participating in baseball activities for the next few days, manager Ron Washington remained “adamant” that Rengifo would be ready for Opening Day. That same certainty doesn’t appear to be present regarding infielder Michael Stefanic, who (as noted by Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register) exited today’s game with a left quad strain and will be re-evaluated tomorrow.

That Rengifo’s hamstring issue doesn’t appear to be serious is surely a relief for Halos fans, as Rengifo is looking to build on last year’s career season in 2024. While shuffling between shortstop, second base, third base, and all three outfield spots last year, the switch hitter managed to hit .264/.339/.444 in 445 trips to the plate. Solid as that production was, Rengifo’s second half last year was even more impressive as he slashed a whopping .318/.374/.587 after the All Star break before his season came to an end in early September due to a biceps issue that ultimately required surgery. That strong second half leaves Rengifo likely to earn the lion’s share of playing time at second base with the Angels this season, so long as he can stay healthy.

As for Stefanic, the 28-year-old has just 50 games of big league experience under his belt across the 2022 and ’23 seasons, though last year he managed to hit a respectable .290/.380/.355 in 71 trips to the plate while splitting time between second and third base. Stefanic entered the spring likely competing with the likes of Kyren Paris and Livan Soto for a spot on the Angels’ bench to open the year alongside the likes of Aaron Hicks, Matt Thaiss, and Jo Adell. With that being said, the club has been frequently connected to utility man Enrique Hernandez and earlier today was reported as one of four finalists for the 32-year-old’s services. Should the Angels succeed in landing Hernandez, that could crowd the club’s bench mix significantly and potential push Stefanic into a depth role at Triple-A to open the season.

More from around the American League…

  • Orioles fans received an encouraging update from GM Mike Elias today regarding right-hander Kyle Bradish, who is rehabbing from a UCL sprain. As noted by Matt Weyrich of the Baltimore Sun, Elias said that while Bradish’s recovery process is “going to take some time,” the club feels that the right-hander’s recovery is “moving in a really positive direction” following the platelet-rich plasma injection he received earlier this month and him resuming his throwing program. Bradish was the club’s ace during his sophomore season in the majors last year, pitching to a sterling 2.83 ERA with a 3.27 FIP across 30 starts. With the righty expected to open the season on the injured list, any time missed by the right-hander is sure to be a blow to the Orioles, though the club’s recent addition of Corbin Burnes should help to mitigate the loss of Bradish.
  • Veteran right-hander Carlos Carrasco made his spring debut for the Guardians today, suiting up for the organization for the first time since he was traded to the Mets alongside Francisco Lindor prior to the 2021 season. Carrasco, who turns 37 next month, struggled to a 6.80 ERA in 20 starts with the Mets last year but told Zack Meisel of The Athletic recently that he hopes to continue pitching through his 40th birthday, following in the footsteps of his former Mets teammates Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer. While it remains to be seen if Carrasco will be able to recapture the form that allowed him to post a 3.41 ERA and 3.16 FIP in 194 games with Cleveland across his final seven seasons with the club, the Guardians were eager to give him the opportunity to earn a spot with the club this spring; Meisel notes that talks regarding a reunion began back in December, well before the deal was reported near the end of January.

Several Angels Players Reportedly Drawing Trade Interest

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According to a report from Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Angels have received trade interest on several of their controllable players this offseason. Infielder Luis Rengifo, catcher Matt Thaiss, left-hander Jose Suarez as well as outfielders Taylor Ward and Mickey Moniak are all pieces who have reportedly been asked after to this point in the winter.

That clubs would see the Angels as a potential trade partner is hardly a surprise. With Shohei Ohtani having departed the club in favor of Chavez Ravine, the club figures to be all but forced to begin a significant retool of their roster if they hope to improve upon their consecutive 73-win campaigns in 2022 and ’23 even after parting ways with the most valuable player in the sport.

While that could see the club dabble in the free agent market, where they’ve been connected to left-hander Blake Snell and veteran slugger J.D. Martinez recently, it seems unlikely the club would be able to completely retool their roster just through free agency even as RosterResource projects the club for a payroll of just $153MM next season, more than $60MM below their payroll in 2023. As such, it’s hardly a surprise that the Angels would consider exploring the trade market, particularly given reports earlier this month that they have been aggressive in their pursuit of starting pitching via trade.

With all that being said, each of the rumored players garnering interest are controllable, inexpensive pieces who could prove key to Anaheim’s hopes of contending in 2024 and beyond. According to Rosenthal, the club’s willingness to deal any of the aforementioned players could hinge on the willingness of ownership to spend to replace the outgoing talent on the open market. It’s possible that between money spent on a replacement and the trade return the club could receive for their controllable talent, the Angels could improve their overall outlook even by trading away a fairly key piece in their current 2024 outlook.

Rengifo, 27 in February, is coming off the best season of his career in 2023. After entering the All Star break with a mediocre .219/.312/.326 slash line, the switch-hitter caught fire down the stretch with a .318/.374/.587 the rest of the way until his season came to an end due to a torn biceps tendon that ended up requiring surgery. With Rengifo expected to be ready for Spring Training, however, it’s easy to see why rival clubs would be interested in his services. Overall, Rengifo posted a solid 114 wRC+ while playing passable defense all around the diamond, with time spent at second base, third base, shortstop, and all three outfield spots over the course of the 2023 season. That positional flexibility paired with a solid bat would make Rengifo a worthwhile addition for most any team, and the fact that he can be controlled for two seasons surely makes him all the more enticing for rival clubs, and the presence of Brandon Drury could allow the Angels to replace Rengifo at the keystone fairly seamlessly.

Thaiss and Suarez, on the other hand, are not quite as obviously enticing as Rengifo. Thaiss slashed just .214/.319/.340 overall last season in 307 trips to the plate while posting average defensive marks behind the plate, while Suarez missed most of 2024 with shoulder issues and struggled to a 9.62 ERA in six starts prior to that trip to the IL.  With that being said, each could nonetheless be of interest to clubs.

Catching depth is always something clubs are on the hunt for, and Thaiss offers an average bat and glove for the role with enough offensive potential that he could even have further upside as a tandem catching option should his offense take a step forward at some point. Thaiss also bats left-handed, making him a potentially useful pinch-hitter off the bench on days where he isn’t catching. Suarez, meanwhile, was an extremely valuable lefty swingman for the Angels in 2021 and ’22, with a 3.86 ERA across 207 1/3 innings of work. Given the fact that Suarez and Thaiss are controllable for three and four more seasons respectively, they’d be affordable options for clubs in need of a catcher or flexible pitcher who can throw from the left side.

It’s easy to see why Ward and Moniak would be attractive to rival clubs, but they may be difficult for the Halos to part with this offseason. Ward has become one of the club’s steadiest offensive producers in recent years, with a .265/.349/.446 slash line in 297 games since the start of the 2021 campaign. Ward is likely penciled in for everyday duty in one of the outfield corners not only for 2024, but for seasons to come, as he won’t be a free agent until after the 2026 campaign. Moniak, meanwhile, enjoyed a breakout season in his first full season as an Angel in 2023, slashing a respectable .280/.307/.495 with a wRC+ of 114 in 85 games. Moniak is also the club’s best option in center field besides Mike Trout, who has dealt with injuries more and more frequently in recent years and may benefit from additional rest in the form of occasional DH starts as he stares down his 33rd birthday in August.

In terms of the potential return headed to Anaheim should any of these players be dealt, it’s easy to assume the club would focus on bolstering their pitching staff in any deal. The club posted a respectable 101 wRC+ as a team in 2023, and while that includes the incredible production of Ohtani, its fair to point out that healthy seasons from the likes of Trout and Ward as well as continued development from key youngsters like Nolan Schanuel, Logan O’Hoppe and Zach Neto could all help the club make up for some of Ohtani’s lost production.

By contrast, the team posted an ERA of just 4.64 in 2023 even with Ohtani contributing 132 innings of 3.14 ERA baseball. The rest of the club’s rotation was essentially league average, with Patrick Sandoval’s 4.11 ERA (109 ERA+) leading the pack. Meanwhile, the club’s bullpen posted a disastrous 4.88 ERA that ranked bottom-six in the majors last year. Given those massive shortcomings, the addition of impactful pitching talent figures to be the Halos’ best hope of getting Trout back to the postseason for the first time since 2014.

Luis Rengifo Undergoes Biceps Surgery

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Angels infielder Luis Rengifo underwent surgery to repair a torn left biceps, manager Phil Nevin informed reporters after tonight’s loss to the Tigers (relayed by Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com). The expectation remains that he’ll be ready for Spring Training.

Rengifo, 26, suffered the freak injury last week while taking practice swings in the on-deck circle. The Halos initially announced the issue as a tendon rupture, though Nevin said it was a full biceps tear. He was quickly ruled out for the season and placed on the 60-day injured list. It wasn’t clear until tonight that he’d require surgical repair.

It’s a sour end to what had been a strong season for the switch-hitting infielder. Rengifo had been one of the few bright spots in a dismal second half. While he carried a .219/.312/.326 line into the All-Star Break, he raked at a .318/.374/.587 clip from the Midsummer Classic on. That brought his season slash to an above-average .264/.339/.444 mark with 16 home runs through 445 trips to the plate. He almost certainly would’ve surpassed last year’s personal-high 17 longballs were it not for the injury, while he walked at a respectable 9.2% clip after drawing free passes just 3.3% of the time a season ago.

Rengifo has bounced around the diamond. He’s primarily a second baseman but handled regular shortstop duty while Zach Neto was on the injured list. Rengifo can cover third and was playing in the corner outfield upon Neto’s return until his own injury. While public defensive marks haven’t been enamored with his glove anywhere, his versatility and solid offense made him one of the Halos’ more effective position players.

In February, Rengifo won a $2.3MM salary at an arbitration hearing. He’ll earn a raise going into 2024 and is eligible for that process through ’25. He’s on track to hit free agency in advance of his age-29 season.

Angels Select David Fletcher, Jared Walsh

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The Angels announced a series of roster moves today, selecting infielders David Fletcher and Jared Walsh. To open active roster spots for those two, the club optioned outfielder Jordyn Adams and infielder Kyren Paris. To open spots on the 40-man roster, they transferred infielder/outfielder Luis Rengifo to the 60-day injured list and designated right-hander Gerardo Reyes for assignment.

Both Walsh and Fletcher looked like potential building blocks for the club not too long ago, but both of fallen off considerably in recent years. Walsh hit 38 home runs in 176 games over 2020 and 2021, slashing .280/.338/.531 for a wRC+ of 130. Unfortunately, significant health issues have prevented a significant obstacle to him since then. He underwent thoracic outlet syndrome surgery last year and has been dealing with headaches and insomnia this year, hitting just .202/.265/.353 over the past two seasons. He was outrighted in August and has a batting line of .217/.360/.375 in Triple-A this year.

Despite those struggles, he’ll get a chance to play out the string over the final weeks of the season with the Halos out of contention. He’s making a salary of $2.65MM this year and would be eligible for arbitration again this winter, though the Angels may not tender him a contract unless they have reason to expect he can get back to the form he showed in 2020-2021.

Fletcher hit .319/.376/.425 in the shortened 2020 season, wRC+ of 121, which was enough for the Angels to give him a contract extension going into the following year. In April of 2021, he and the club agreed to a five-year deal with a $26MM guarantee, though his production fell off immediately. He’s hit just .258/.292/.325 since the start of 2021 for a wRC+ of 69.

Twice this year, the club has passed Fletcher through waivers and outrighted him to Triple-A Salt Lake. Since he has over three years of major league service time, he could have rejected either of those assignments and elected free agency. However, since he’s still shy of five years of service, doing so would mean forfeiting what’s left of his contract, which runs through 2025. Naturally, he decided to accept in both instances.

He will still be shy of that five-year mark at season’s end, meaning the Halos could outright him again this winter and keep him around as depth without him taking up a roster spot. In the minors this year, he has a batting line of .330/.382/.428 that looks good at first glance but is par in the Pacific Coast League, translating to a wRC+ of 100. He’s generally considered a strong defender, so he could be valuable even with average offense at the big league level, though he’s been well beneath that in recent years.

Reyes signed a minor league deal with the club in the offseason and had his contract selected in June. He has an earned run average of 7.45 in his eight major league appearances and 6.25 in his 33 Triple-A appearances. He’ll be out of options next year, giving him less roster flexibility going forward.

As for Rengifo, it was reported last week that he won’t be able to return this year due to a bicep tendon rupture, making today’s transfer an inevitable formality.

It’s possible there are luxury tax implications to these moves, as it was reported earlier this month that the club remained narrowly above the lowest threshold of the competitive balance tax. Since then, they have tried to further cut their CBT number by putting catcher Max Stassi on the restricted list and putting outfielder Randal Grichuk on waivers a second time. Fletcher and Walsh each already had their salaries for this year locked in, so bringing them back up doesn’t add any payroll. But Adams and Paris will no longer be receiving major league pay after being optioned, which will trim a small amount of spending from the club’s ledger.

Getting under the CBT line could have implications for the club since the compensatory draft pick they would receive in the event Shohei Ohtani signs elsewhere after rejecting a qualifying offer would be significantly better. There are also compounding penalties for paying the tax in consecutive years, meaning that ducking under now would lessen their penalties if they were to go over again next year.

Whether the club pays the tax or not won’t be officially known until later in the year. Roster Resource estimates the Angels’ tax number at $229MM whereas Cot’s Baseball Contracts pegs it at $237MM. The lowest threshold of the CBT is $233MM this year.

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