The MLB trade deadline is rapidly approaching. By Tuesday at 3:00 p.m. PT, all the questions will be answered of which players around the league will be dealt and which teams are officially selling and buying. The Los Angeles Angels, to this point, have not made any moves, but are expected to be very active in the coming days.
They have three players, specifically, that have garnered a strong market and are considered likely to be dealt. Starting pitcher Tyler Anderson — fresh off the heels of his second All-Star selection — infielder Luis Rengifo leading a weak market and closer Carlos Estévez being widely sought after. If the Angels deal all three, they could begin to replenish a league-worst farm system easily.
It’s Anderson, though, that is seen as one of the best pitchers available on the market this summer, and that could drive up his price alongside the other two Angels’ pieces, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN:
The other most desirable starting arm comes from a team holding several deadline chips: the Los Angeles Angels. The left-handed Anderson, who lowered his ERA to 2.91 in his most recent start, is under contract for $13 million, a relative bargain, next season. In Rengifo, the Angels have a .300-plus-hitting infielder who’s not a free agent until after 2025 at a reasonable salary ($4.4 million) in a market with next to no starting infielders and a half-dozen teams seeking infield help.
What sort of return they get for Estevez, an impending free agent, will be a bellwether for how much of a subtractors’ market this really is. Typically, soon-to-be-free-agent relievers don’t bring massive returns, though Estevez and Scott, the Marlins’ left-handed closer, may be the exceptions.
All of this information bodes extremely well for the Angels. They have a real opportunity to turn their farm system around in just a few days, as they hold the most desired pieces at three different positions. Having the best starter, reliever and infielder on the trade market is a high-leverage place to be.
The shoe will eventually drop on one of these players, and once the first deal goes through, it shouldn’t be too long for the others to get swept up as well.
Griffin Canning leads Angels to sweep
Griffin Canning did not fare well in his most recent start prior to Wednesday night against the Seattle Mariners. He left the game early with elbow irritation and gave up six runs in 3.1 innings of work. But he didn’t let that get to him, turning it around for the Angels in their series finale against Seattle.
He gave up only one earned run — a Mitch Haniger solo homer — on four hits with six strikeouts in five innings. He exited the game with what would have been a loss on the record books, until Brandon Drury’s game-winning RBI in the eighth inning solidified an Angels sweep and their fourth consecutive victory.