Angels Re-Sign Shaun Anderson To Minor League Deal
The Angels announced they’ve re-signed righty Shaun Anderson to a minor league contract. He elected free agency on Tuesday after being outrighted off the big league roster.
Anderson and the Angels clearly have a strong relationship. This is the sixth minor league deal upon which they’ve agreed over the last two seasons. The Halos have called him up a few times when they need a long reliever. He’s usually designated for assignment a few days later when they bring up a new fresh arm. Anderson clears waivers, elects free agency, then returns on a new non-roster deal.
The 31-year-old got a little longer run this month. Anderson was on the MLB roster between March 29 and April 26. He made nine appearances and allowed 13 runs (11 earned) over 16 2/3 innings. He punched out 12, issued eight walks, and surrendered a trio of homers. Anderson is up to 28 MLB frames in a Halos uniform with a 7.71 ERA since the start of 2025.
The Florida product spent the majority of last season at Triple-A Salt Lake. He worked out of the rotation and allowed just over six earned runs per nine through 24 appearances. He’ll probably stay stretched out as a starter with the Bees.
Shaun Anderson Elects Free Agency
The Angels announced Tuesday that right-hander Shaun Anderson, who was designated for assignment a few days ago, passed through waivers unclaimed. The Halos outrighted Anderson to Triple-A, but he rejected the assignment (which is his right as a player who has previously been outrighted in the past). He’s elected free agency instead.
Anderson tossed 16 2/3 innings out of the Angels’ bullpen this season. The 31-year-old was hit hard, surrendering 13 runs (11 earned) on 17 hits and eight walks with a dozen strikeouts. He also hit a batter and threw a wild pitch.
That’s now parts of seven seasons in the majors for Anderson, although most of his looks in the majors have been fleeting — as evidenced by the fact that he’s accrued only two-plus years of service in those seven partial seasons. The 2016 third-rounder (Red Sox) has a career 6.35 ERA with a subpar 16.7% strikeout rate against a solid but unspectacular 8.8% walk rate. His slider and changeup have both graded as plus pitches at various points in the past, but not much from Anderson’s arsenal has generated positive results in recent seasons.
Anderson had a solid run with the Korea Baseball Organization’s Kia Tigers in 2023 and posted very strong minor league numbers between the Triple-A affiliates for the Rangers and Marlins in 2024 (3.00 ERA, 23.4 K%, 5.9 BB%). He spent the bulk of the 2025 season in the Angels’ Triple-A rotation and was tagged for a 6.02 ERA in 23 starts (plus one bullpen outing). That rough season skewed his career line in Triple-A, but Anderson still carries a 4.35 ERA in 428 2/3 innings at that level, even with last year’s 6.02 mark in 116 2/3 frames.
Angels Designate Jordan Romano For Assignment, Select Joey Lucchesi
The Angels announced a series of moves before Sunday’s matchup against the Royals, the most notable of which was designating closer Jordan Romano for assignment. The club selected left-hander Joey Lucchesi to take his spot. Right-hander Shaun Anderson was also designated for assignment, and righty Jose Fermin was recalled. On the hitting side, catcher Logan O’Hoppe was placed on the 10-day IL with a fractured wrist. Sebastian Rivero had his contract selected to replace O’Hoppe.
Injuries to Ben Joyce, Robert Stephenson, and Kirby Yates thrust Romano into the closer role to begin the year. He initially excelled as the preferred 9th inning option, picking up four saves over six scoreless appearances to open the campaign. Romano permitted just two baserunners during that stretch, both coming via walk.
The wheels came off from there. Romano had a disastrous series against the Yankees that included five earned runs, two blown saves, and only one out recorded. He briefly recovered in two lower-leverage outings, then blew up for four earned runs in a blowout against the Royals on Saturday. Romano was pulled mid-inning for infielder Adam Frazier.
Romano emerged as one of the top closers in the game with the Blue Jays. He piled up 95 saves from 2021 to 2023, earning a pair of All-Star selections. Elbow injuries ruined his 2024 season, and he’s never been the same since then. Romano had an 8.23 ERA for the Phillies last year. He came to the Angels on a modest one-year, $2MM deal. His time with the team is over after just eight innings.
Lucchesi joined the organization in late March after getting released by the Giants. He ended up breaking camp with the Angels. The veteran lefty allowed a pair of earned runs over three appearances. He walked four and struck out two across 2 1/3 innings. Lucchesi was designated for assignment and elected free agency in early April, but returned to the organization on a minor league deal.
Fermin was up and down with the big league club for the majority of 2025. He put together a mid-4.00s ERA with a solid 25.7% strikeout rate across 40 appearances. Fermin has a big fastball, but control has been an issue. The righty posted a hefty 15.1% walk rate in 34 1/3 innings.
Anderson was knocked around for 11 earned runs in nine appearances out of the bullpen. The 31-year-old was similarly ineffective during his time with the club last year. He did not break camp with the team, but was in the majors before the end of March. Lucchesi will likely step into Anderson’s multi-inning role.
O’Hoppe was pulled from Saturday’s contest due to what was initially described as wrist irritation. He took a foul tip off the wrist in the seventh inning, but did stay in to finish the frame. Travis d’Arnaud replaced him in the eighth inning. The veteran d’Arnaud will likely assume the majority of the reps behind the plate, with Rivero backing him up.
Rivero appeared in 11 games for the Angels last season. He’s hit .172 in 107 MLB plate appearances. Before his brief stint with Los Angeles in 2025, Rivero hadn’t been in the big leagues since 2022 with the Royals. Kansas City signed him as an international free agent in 2015. After a slow ascent through the system, he reached the majors as a 22-year-old in 2021. Rivero hasn’t been even a league-average bat since his Rookie ball days, but he’s earned passable marks as a defender in his time as a big leaguer.
Photo courtesy of William Liang, Imagn Images
Angels Select Shaun Anderson
The Angels announced this afternoon that they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Shaun Anderson. In a corresponding move, right-hander Victor Mederos was designated for assignment.
Anderson, 31, is entering what will be his 7th season as a big leaguer. A third-round pick by the Red Sox in 2016, he didn’t make his big league debut until 2019, at which point he was a member of the Giants after being part of the return for the Eduardo Nunez trade. Anderson came up to the majors as a swing man and struggled somewhat, with a lackluster 5.44 ERA in 96 innings of work. He moved to the bullpen full-time after that, and while he pitched to a solid 3.52 ERA in 18 appearances during the abbreviated 2020 season, questionable peripherals left his role uncertain headed into 2021.
Ultimately, Anderson didn’t even make it onto the Giants roster that year. He was traded to the Twins in the LaMonte Wade Jr. deal and spent the rest of the year riding the waiver wire. Ultimately, he split time between the Twins, Orioles, and Padres during the 2021 campaign and pitched to a rough 8.49 ERA across 23 1/3 innings during that rollercoaster year. He’s pitched just 28 2/3 innings total at the big league level since then, splitting time between the Jays, Rangers, Angels, and Marlins to post a 9.42 ERA across 14 outings.
The right-hander doesn’t have the most exciting profile as a big leaguer, to say the least. His career 6.39 ERA in 163 1/3 innings of work is certainly lackluster, and a 4.35 ERA at the Triple-A level for his career doesn’t offer much reason for further excitement. A 14-game stint in the KBO did yield some interesting results, as he pitched to a 3.76 ERA in 14 starts, but that was three years ago now and it’s hard to see that as indicative of future stateside success at this point. Still, he could help contribute to an Angels pitching staff that will need help covering innings with Grayson Rodriguez, Alek Manoah, Kirby Yates, Robert Stephenson, and Ben Joyce all opening the season on the injured list.
Making room for Anderson on the 40-man roster is Mederos. A sixth-round pick by the Angels back in 2022, the club wasted no time in promoting him to the majors, allowing him to make his big league debut the following year. Despite his quick rise to the big leagues, Mederos was never quite able to stick at the level. He has just 25 1/3 innings across 12 appearances in the show, and during that time he’s looked completely over-matched with an 8.52 ERA and a 6.95 FIP. A career 3.96 ERA in 20 career starts at the Triple-A level offers a bit more room for optimism about his long-term prospects, and Mederos won’t turn 25 until June. That wasn’t enough to save his roster spot with the Angels, but perhaps another club will be intrigued enough by his profile to take him on as a more of a long-term project. If Mederos passes through waivers unclaimed, the Angels will have the opportunity to outright him to the minor leagues as non-roster depth for their pitching staff.
Angels Re-Sign Shaun Anderson To Minor League Deal
The Angels re-signed righty Shaun Anderson to a minor league deal (h/t to Matt Eddy of Baseball America). The MiLB.com transaction log indicates the deal was agreed upon shortly before the New Year.
Anderson is back in the organization after bouncing on and off the roster in 2025. He worked out of the rotation at Triple-A Salt Lake for the majority of the season. Anderson took the ball 24 times and tossed 116 2/3 innings of 6.02 ERA ball in the Pacific Coast League. He had a below-average 16.7% strikeout rate but generally avoided walks and did a decent job keeping the ball in the park in the minors.
The Halos called upon the 31-year-old a couple times when they needed an extra arm to work in long relief. Anderson made seven appearances over scattered MLB stints. He was tagged for six homers in 11 1/3 innings, allowing 13 runs in the process.
Anderson has pitched in the big leagues in six of the last seven years. He owns a 6.39 ERA over 163 1/3 frames. He spent the ’23 season in Korea as a member of the Kia Tigers and owns a 4.35 earned run average over parts of seven Triple-A campaigns. He’ll head back to Salt Lake as rotation depth.
Players Entering Minor League Free Agency
Major League free agents became eligible to sign with other teams on Thursday, but the minor league free agent market has technically been open since season’s end. MLBTR has published several posts detailing players who had already elected to become minor free agents, but Baseball America’s Matt Eddy (multiple links) has the full account of all the minor league free agents that officially joined their big league counterparts on the open market on Thursday.
This list details only players who have played in the Major Leagues, and whose minor league free agency hasn’t already been covered on MLBTR in the last month.
Athletics: Aaron Brooks, Carlos Duran, CD Pelham, Bryan Lavastida, Nick Martini, Alejo Lopez
Braves: Ian Anderson, Davis Daniel, Enoli Paredes, Amos Willingham, Brian Moran, Jonathan Ornelas, Chandler Seagle, Matthew Batten, Conner Capel
Orioles: Jakson Reetz, Livan Soto, Thaddeus Ward
Red Sox: John Brebbia, Isaiah Campbell, Mark Kolozsvary, Chadwick Tromp, Seby Zavala, Trayce Thompson
Cubs: Yency Almonte, Zach Pop, Caleb Kilian, Austin Gomber, Forrest Wall, Billy Hamilton, Joe Ross, Tommy Romero, Antonio Santos, Tom Cosgrove, Dixon Machado, Nicky Lopez, Carlos Perez
White Sox: Elvis Peguero, Kyle Tyler, Vinny Capra, Chris Rodriguez, Caleb Freeman, Joe Perez, Owen White, Andre Lipcius
Reds: Tejay Antone, Alan Busenitz, Buck Farmer, Josh Staumont, P.J. Higgins, Eric Yang, Levi Jordan, Edwin Rios, Davis Wendzel, Evan Kravetz, Adam Plutko, Charlie Barnes, Alex Young
Guardians: Riley Pint, Tyler Naquin, Parker Mushinski
Rockies: Xzavion Curry, Sean Bouchard, Owen Miller, Karl Kauffmann,
Tigers: Kevin Newman, Brian Serven, Jordan Balazovic, Nick Margevicius, Blair Calvo
Astros: Jon Singleton, Joe Hudson, Kenedy Corona, Greg Jones, Matt Bowman, Luis Contreras, Tyler Ivey, John Rooney
Royals: John Gant, Spencer Turnbull, Bobby Dalbec, Diego Castillo, Geoff Hartlieb, Jordan Groshans, Nick Pratto, Isan Diaz, Stephen Nogosek, Nick Robertson, Joey Krehbiel, Noah Murdock, Ryan Hendrix
Angels: Shaun Anderson, Brandon Drury, Yolmer Sanchez, Ben Gamel, Evan White, Cavan Biggio, Logan Davidson, Travis Blankenhorn, Oscar Colas, Kelvin Caceres, Dakota Hudson, Chad Stevens, Angel Felipe, Jordan Holloway, Victor Gonzalez
Dodgers: Michael Grove, Luken Baker, Giovanny Gallegos, Kyle Funkhouser, Chris Okey, CJ Alexander, Zach Penrod
Marlins: Jack Winkler, Lane Ramsey
Brewers: Luis Urias, Oliver Dunn, Julian Merryweather, Daz Cameron, Drew Avans, Josh Maciejewski, Jared Oliva
Twins: Jose Miranda, Anthony Misiewicz, Jonah Bride, Thomas Hatch, Daniel Duarte, Connor Gillispie
Mets: Joey Meneses, Jose Azocar, Joe La Sorsa, Gilberto Celestino, Ty Adcock, Bryce Montes de Oca, Yacksel Rios, Oliver Ortega, Luis De Los Santos
Yankees: Kenta Maeda, Jeimer Candelario, Rob Brantly, Andrew Velazquez, Jose Rojas, Joel Kuhnel, Wilking Rodriguez
Phillies: Matt Manning, Adonis Medina, Lucas Sims, Jacob Waguespack, Phil Bickford, Rodolfo Castro, Oscar Mercado, Brewer Hicklen, Christian Arroyo, Payton Henry
Pirates: Brett Sullivan, Nick Solak, Nelson Velazquez, Beau Burrows, Ryder Ryan
Cardinals: Zach Plesac, Anthony Veneziano, Tyler Matzek, Zack Weiss, Drew Rom, Aaron Wilkerson
Padres: Eguy Rosario, Tim Locastro, Reiss Knehr, Nate Mondou
Giants: Sean Hjelle, Miguel Diaz, Max Stassi, Sam Huff, Cole Waites, Drew Ellis, Ethan Small
Mariners: Michael Fulmer, Casey Lawrence, Collin Snider, Jesse Hahn, Nick Anderson, Josh Fleming, Austin Shenton, Jacob Nottingham, Beau Taylor, Cade Marlowe, Jack Lopez, Michael Mariot, Hagen Danner
Rays: Cooper Hummel, Jonathan Hernandez, Jamie Westbrook, Tres Barrera
Rangers: Omar Narvaez, Cal Quantrill, Ty Blach, Alan Trejo, Joe Barlow, Cory Abbott, Michael Plassmeyer, Alex De Goti
Blue Jays: Eloy Jimenez, Buddy Kennedy, Joe Mantiply, Elieser Hernandez, Rene Pinto, Adam Kloffenstein
Nationals: Francisco Mejia, Juan Yepez, Joan Adon, CJ Stubbs, Parker Dunshee, Erick Mejia, Adrian Sampson, Delino DeShields
Angels Re-Sign Shaun Anderson To Minor League Deal
The Angels have re-signed right-hander Shaun Anderson to a minor league deal, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. The veteran righty has been assigned to the Triple-A Salt Lake Bees.
Anderson, 30, has essentially been the 27th man on the Angels’ active roster all season long. This is the fourth minor league deal he has signed with the club in 2025. The first three were all selected to the big league roster. Since Anderson is out of options, he was eventually designated for assignment once he got squeezed off the roster. In each instance, he cleared waivers, elected free agency and re-signed via a new minor league deal.
Presumably, both sides are comfortable with the arrangement. The Angels have an extra arm they can call upon when the rest of the staff is gassed. Anderson, meanwhile, gets occasional spurts of big league pay and service time.
Around the transactions, he has thrown 11 1/3 innings over seven big league appearances. He has allowed 13 earned runs on 20 hits and three walks while striking out 11. He now has a 6.39 earned run average in 163 1/3 innings dating back to his 2019 debut. He has also thrown 81 Triple-A innings this year with a 6.44 ERA in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.
Photo courtesy of Cary Edmondson, Imagn Images
Shaun Anderson Elects Free Agency
The Angels announced that right-hander Shaun Anderson has cleared waivers and elected free agency. The Halos designated him for assignment earlier this week. He has the right to reject the outright assignment because he has a previous career outright.
Anderson, 30, has gone down this road before. The Angels signed him to a minor league deal in the winter. He was selected to the roster in May. He lasted about two weeks before getting bumped off the roster. Since he is out of options, he was designated for assignment. He cleared waivers and elected free agency but then re-signed with the Angels on a new minor league deal. The same sequence of events played out the next month, with Anderson on the roster for a few days in June.
The same script was followed this week, though at a quicker pace. Anderson was added to the roster on Monday. The Halos were leading the Dodgers 7-0 after seven innings. They put in Anderson to try to save their top bullpen arms, but it didn’t work out. Home runs by Shohei Ohtani and Max Muncy led to four runs going on the board, with Anderson only recording two outs.
The next day, he was designated for assignment for the third time this year. Like in the previous two instances, he has cleared waivers and exercised his right to test the open market. It wouldn’t be a surprise if he returns to the Angels on a new deal, as he has before. He has thrown 163 1/3 major league innings with a 6.39 earned run average. His minor league work has been better overall but he hasn’t been putting up great numbers this year. Pitching in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, he has a 6.44 ERA in 81 innings in 2025.
Photo courtesy of Cary Edmondson, Imagn Images
Angels Designate Shaun Anderson For Assignment
The Angels announced that they have recalled infielder Niko Kavadas and right-hander Víctor Mederos from Triple-A Salt Lake. In corresponding moves, they have placed outfielder Gustavo Campero on the 10-day injured list with a left ankle sprain and designated right-hander Shaun Anderson for assignment.
Anderson was just selected to the roster yesterday. On Sunday, starter Jack Kochanowicz had lasted just three innings. Carson Fulmer came in from the bullpen to mop up five innings of long relief. With Fulmer likely unavailable for a few days, the Halos optioned out Kochanowicz and selected Anderson to give them a fresh arm.
In last night’s game against the Dodgers, the Angels had a 7-0 lead through seven. Starter José Soriano had put up six zeroes and then Luis García put up one more. They tried to spare their high-leverage arms by putting Anderson in to pitch the eighth. Unfortunately, he only recorded two outs, allowing four earned runs along the way. That included a solo home run to Shohei Ohtani and a three-run shot to Max Muncy.
That performance has led to Anderson getting bumped off the roster approximately 24 hours after being added. He is out of options, so the Angels had to remove him from the 40-man entirely. With the trade deadline having passed, he’ll be on waivers shortly. He cleared waivers a couple of months back and could do so again. If that comes to pass, he’ll have the right to elect free agency since he has a previous career outright. He has 163 1/3 big league innings under his belt with a 6.39 earned run average.
Mederos is starting for the Halos tonight. As mentioned, Kochanowicz was optioned out. Also, Tyler Anderson has back stiffness, per Sam Blum of The Athletic. It’s unclear if this is just a spot start or if Mederos will having a rotation role for a while. Mederos will be pitching on just three days rest, per Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register. Interim manager Ray Montgomery says he thinks Mederos can still take on a fairly normal workload since he only tossed 52 pitches last time out.
The 24-year-old Mederos has a limited major league track record but is having a decent season in Triple-A. He has tossed 87 2/3 Triple-A innings with a 3.39 ERA, 18.6% strikeout rate, 8.9% walk rate and 40.2% ground ball rate.
Photo courtesy of Cary Edmondson, Imagn Images
Angels Select Shaun Anderson, Designate Scott Kingery For Assignment
The Angels announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Shaun Anderson. Fellow righty Jack Kochanowicz has been optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake in a corresponding active roster move. To open a 40-man spot, infielder Scott Kingery has been designated for assignment.
This is the second time this year Kochanowicz has been optioned down to the minors. The first was just before the All-Star break, reducing the number of actual games he would miss with the 15-day minimal stint. He was recalled in late July and has made three more starts since then. The most recent one was yesterday, which did not go well. He allowed seven runs, six earned, in just three innings against the Tigers.
Long reliever Carson Fulmer came in and tossed five innings to get the Angels through the rest of the game, throwing 85 pitches in the process. Presumably, Fulmer won’t be available for a few days, so they’ve made these moves to get Anderson into the mix. He’s been starting in Triple-A and should be able to absorb some innings out of the bullpen, if the Angels need such a performance while Fulmer is out of action.
Anderson has tossed 10 2/3 innings over six appearances for the Halos this year, allowing nine earned runs on 16 hits and three walks while striking out ten opponents. In his 81 Triple-A innings, he has a 6.44 earned run average, 17.9% strikeout rate and 7.6% walk rate.
The Halos will have to replace Kochanowicz in the rotation but not immediately. José Soriano, Tyler Anderson and Kyle Hendricks are slated to start the next three games. The club is off on Thursday and could go with Yusei Kikuchi on Friday, followed by Soriano, Anderson and Hendricks on normal rest. That means the Angels could postpone the decision on a fifth starter/spot starter for about a week.
They are also off on the two following Thursdays, so perhaps they could survive for a while with a four-man rotation and occasional bullpen days. They also have guys like Caden Dana and Víctor Mederos on the 40-man and starting in Triple-A, so calling one of them up for a spot start or two is a possibility.
Kingery, 31, has mostly been in a depth role for the Angels this year. He has appeared in 14 big league games, producing a .160/.222/.200 line in 27 plate appearances. His minor league work has been better but still subpar. His .271/.337/.452 line at Triple-A this year looks nice but actually translates to a 91 wRC+ in the context of the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.
Once a notable prospect with the Phillies, Kingery signed a pre-debut extension with that club, though he never developed into the regular player the Phils were hoping for. That deal has since expired. The Halos acquired him ahead of this season and agreed to a $770K salary to avoid arbitration. Kingery has more than three years of service time but less than five. That means he has the right to reject an outright assignment but has to forfeit his remaining salary commitments in order to do so.
Back in March, Kingery cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A Salt Lake. He accepted that assignment, which allowed him to get selected back to the roster in May. It’s possible the same sequence of events plays out in the coming days, which would allow the Angels to keep him as non-roster depth for the rest of the season.
Photo courtesy of Cary Edmondson, Imagn Images