The Los Angeles Angels traded starting pitcher Noah Syndergaard to the Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for former No. 1 overall pick Mickey Moniak and outfield prospect Jadiel Sanchez. A Syndergaard trade had long been expected, and the Angels and Phillies teamed up on their second trade of the day.
The Phillies are reportedly eating the remainder of Syndergaard’s $21 million contract — around $7 million — as part of the deal. And because of that, the Angels took a lesser prospect haul, clearing salary from a team that will not be participating in this year’s playoffs.
Syndergaard had a solid season for the Angels after signing a one-year, $21 million contract this offseason. In 80.0 innings over 15 starts, Syndergaard posted a 3.83 ERA and 1.213 WHIP. His velocity and strikeout numbers were significantly lower than they were before his Tommy John surgery in 2020.
Throughout the season, Syndergaard showed that he was no longer the flame-throwing arm from 2015-18, but he can be commended for adjusting his game and still being an impactful arm. The Phillies land a pitcher that can provide depth towards a postseason push.
On the Angels side, the prospect return does not match what they got for Andrew Heaney last offseason. However, there is still some intrigue with Moniak, an outfielder who was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 MLB Draft.
Moniak has been unable to string together anything at the Major League level, though. In 47 games over three seasons, Moniak has a measly .129 batting average and .386 OPS. He has struck out 41 times compared to just 12 hits and 10 walks. And he’s hit just one home run in 105 plate appearances.
Moniak will likely start his Angels career in Triple-A, as he has been raking at all three Minor League levels this season. He has a .859 OPS in Triple-A, a 1.052 OPS in Double-A, and a 1.162 OPS in High-A, and is still just 24 years old, hence the slight potential for a rebound in the Majors.
As for Sanchez, he is a lower-tier outfield prospect that was in High-A for the Phillies at the time of this trade. This season, he was batting .236 with a .714 OPS over 38 games. He is just 21 years old, and has not yet been assigned within the Angels organization.
For the Angels, this trade was about getting what they could without having to pay the remainder of Syndergaard’s 2022 salary. Now, they can re-shuffle the deck as they prepare to put together a contender around Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani in 2023.
Marsh also headed to Phillies
The Angels also paired with the Phillies to send Brandon Marsh to the City of Brotherly Love in exchange for top catching prospect Logan O’Hoppe. While the move is surprising given Marsh is just 24 and a strong defensive outfielder, O’Hoppe instantly becomes the Angels top prospect according to MLB Pipeline.
