For a team that won only 73 games last season, the Angels have a surprising number of players rival clubs want in trades. Whether the club actually deals some of those players hinges on the offers it receives, and perhaps on how much owner Arte Moreno is willing to spend on replacements in free agency.
As active as the Angels are in the trade market, it behooves them to check in on most of the top remaining free agents, and they are doing that, from left-hander Blake Snell to outfielder Teoscar Hernández. The Angels’ own players drawing interest, according to major-league sources briefed on their discussions, include:
• Infielder Luis Rengifo. A switch-hitter who played six different positions last season, Rengifo’s .960 OPS after the All-Star Game was the 17th-highest in the majors. He will play next season at 27, and is under club control for two more years.
• Outfielder Taylor Ward. Hit in the face by an Alek Manoah fastball on July 29, Ward missed the rest of the season with facial fractures. His offensive numbers declined some from his 2022 breakout, but teams covet his three years of control.
• Outfielder Mickey Moniak. The value of a left-handed hitter who can play center field was demonstrated by the Giants’ recent signing of free agent Jung Hoo Lee to a six-year, $113 million deal. Moniak, who had 14 homers and an .802 OPS in 323 plate appearances last season, is under control for four more seasons.
• Catcher Matt Thaiss. Catchers always are in demand. Thaiss, under club control for four more seasons, is a left-handed hitter who had a .745 OPS before the All-Star Game last season before falling off to .504 after it.
• Left-hander José Suarez. The Angels ranked sixth in rotation ERA before falling to 19th last season, but most of their starters are young and talented enough to still pique the interest of rival clubs. Suárez, 26, had a 3.86 ERA in 207 1/3 innings in 2021-22 before missing more than four months with a strained shoulder last season. He is under club control for three more years.
The Angels, mind you, do not need to trade any of those players. With better health and full seasons from younger players such as catcher Logan O’Hoppe, shortstop Zach Neto and Nolan Schanuel — assuming none are traded — the team might improve without doing much of anything. But with so much under discussion, it’s doubtful the Angels stand pat.
• The Red Sox are another club showing interest in Teoscar Hernández, who has averaged 26 homers in his last five full seasons and boasts a career OPS+ 18 percent above league average.
The Red Sox’s biggest need is a top-of-the-rotation starter, but Hernández would appear a logical fit. The outfielders on the team’s 40-man roster are Wilyer Abreu, Jarren Duran, Tyler O’Neill, Ceddanne Rafaela, Rob Refsnyder and Masataka Yoshida.
• The Rangers likely will be without three of their starting pitchers — Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer and Tyler Mahle — for at least the first half of the season. But that isn’t deterring them from continuing their pursuit of another accomplished starter recovering from injury, free-agent left-hander Clayton Kershaw.
The other option for Kershaw is a return to the Dodgers, who, even after acquiring Tyler Glasnow and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, want to add depth to their rotation. Kershaw, 35, underwent shoulder surgery in early November to repair the glenohumeral ligaments and shoulder capsule. In a statement, he said, “I am hopeful to return to play at some point next summer.”
• The Padres discussed infielder Jake Cronenworth with the Blue Jays and other clubs before sending outfielders Juan Soto and Trent Grisham to the Yankees. A trade of Cronenworth now appears less likely, in part because the Padres do not want to subtract a third left-handed hitter.
Cronenworth, who turns 30 next month, signed a seven-year, $80 million extension last April. The deal included a $2 million signing bonus, but the rest of the money has yet to be paid. Cronenworth is guaranteed $7 million in 2024, $11 million in ’25 and $12 million each season from ’26 to ’30.
(Top photo of Clayton Kershaw: Harry How / Getty Images)
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