The Los Angeles Angels did it again, like clockwork. That front office has money to burn and a desire to win games, but without fail, season after season, Mike Trout arrives in October with a simple mandate: go home and don't get hurt. The Angels are once again out of the postseason mix with significant questions to answer in the winter months ahead.
In a perfect world, Trout would be outta there. Los Angeles would find a taker on the trade market, even if it means absorbing a hefty chunk of his remaining contract, and send the former MVP to a better home. Trout deserves to play for a winner. It's been too close to a decade since Trout sniffed the playoffs. He spent six years next to Shohei Ohtani, yet somehow the Angels weren't good enough to crack the postseason with quite literally the two greatest players of their generation.
Even this season, amid more injury scares and a long-overdue switch to DH, Trout has done plenty of Mike Trout things. He's not the generational superstar of yesteryear, but with a .768 OPS and 22 home runs, the 34-year-old can still ratchet up the power and flash all five tools. He's a winning player in need of a winning situation.
Unfortunately that contract — $37.1 million annually through 2030, his age-38 season — is basically unmovable given Trout's injury history. So he will stick around while the Angels undergo more roster turnover and attempt, almost certainly in vain, to improve the roster and make up ground in the AL West.
Here are a few teammates who won't be teammates for long.
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Angels free agents who are already halfway out the door
LHP Tyler Anderson
Tyler Anderson was an All-Star in 2022 and 2024, but the 35-year-old has come across much tougher sledding this season. He has a 4.56 ERA and 1.41 WHIP with 104 strikeouts in 136.1 innings. Still, the veteran southpaw is a worthy back-end rotation cog with valuable experience and a knack for pitching to soft contact.
The hope would be that he can turn back the clock a little bit in a new situation. He's a free agent, so after three long years in Anaheim, he gets the opportunity to hand-pick his next destination. Anderson has spent almost his entire career on the west coast between Colorado and L.A. (both the Dodgers and the Angels), with brief pit stops in Seattle and Pittsburgh back in 2021. The Vegas native probably enjoys being close to home, but there are plenty of contenders in need of pitching depth on that side of the country.
Los Angeles undoubtedly appreciates what Anderson has given them just in terms of durability, but there's no reason to bring back a declining veteran when in-house prospects and more dynamic free agents are on the table. His Angels tenure is coming to an end.
RHP Luis García
Luis García has bounced around this season. It began on uneven ground with the Dodgers, but he has since put together fantastic stints in Washington and Anaheim, bringing his season ERA down to 3.48 with 48 strikeouts in 54.1 innings. He has a 2.12 ERA and 1.35 WHIP in 19 games (17.0 innings) since joining the Angels.
The 38-year-old has a long and mostly uneven career, but he's still capable of delivering solid results, especially if he's not foisted into a burdensome high-leverage role. The Angels need to find ways to round out the bullpen, but stringing along a historically inconsistent veteran like García won't accomplish that goal. Meanwhile, García no doubt wants to spend what little is left of his career in a winning situation, not just pitching to earn a paycheck. You can chalk him up to #gone.
RHP Kenley Jansen
Kenley Jansen spent the first 12 seasons of his MLB career as a dominant closer for the Dodgers. After pit stops in Atlanta and Boston, he made his way back to L.A. this season to pitch for the Angels, and folks: the 37-year-old's still got it. Jansen is quite as bulletproof as he once was, but it's difficult to poke holes in a 2.68 ERA and 0.98 WHIP through 57.0 innings.
The whole MLB is starved for high-leverage relievers. Jansen will get some hefty one-year contract offers this winter, perhaps even from the Angels, but one has to think he prefers to pitch in high-leverage spots for an actual winning team. Jansen clearly has an affinity for L.A., but hell, a return to the Dodgers might be on the table. Lord knows how badly the Angels' cross-town rivals need extra horsepower in the bullpen.
Jansen's longevity is a singular feat and a testament to his unshakable work ethic. The Angels should probably want him back as a leader, not to mention a player, but Jansen doesn't have enough time left to waste it floating aimlessly near the bottom of the standings in Anaheim.
Angels trade candidates who are as good as gone
OF Jorge Soler
Los Angeles inked Jorge Soler to a two-year, $32 million contract last offseason in an effort to boost the offense. That signing took a complicated turn when Trout was moved to the DH role for health reasons, as Soler hasn't been a regular outfielder in a hot minute. He is, unsurprisingly, not a very good defender and would probably reclaim DH duties with a new team.
This has been an underwhelming campaign at the plate for Soler, who boasts a .680 OPS with 12 home runs in 82 games. Injuries have bit him bad this season, however, and there's such a strong track record of above-average slug that another team ought to take interest in his expiring contract. Not every team is in the market for a DH-exclusive veteran with injury concerns, but Soler — a two-time World Series champ and 2023 All-Star who has bounced between four teams in three years — clearly has broad enough appeal to net the Angels a worthwhile return.
C Travis d'Arnaud
Travis d'Arnaud was beset by injuries this season and he never really found his swing, posting a .598 OPS with six home runs in 213 at-bats. He was brought in to platoon with Logan O'Hoppe and maybe even snag a few DH reps, but with Trout taking the full-time non-fielding gig and d'Arnaud failing to live up to a (well-earned) reputation, it feels like his Angels tenure will be short-lived.
He's only on the hook for $6 million next season and catcher is a notoriously thin position when it comes to even passable hitters, so the market for d'Arnaud might not be as dry as one expects. He's not the greatest backstop behind home plate, but just last season with Atlanta he was posting a .739 OPS with 15 home runs in 99 games. There is real slug there, and d'Arnaud has postseason pedigree that few others at his position can claim.
An ex-All-Star and Silver Slugger, the pedigree is there for d'Arnaud to overcome a down season, even at 36 years old. If the Angels settle on O'Hoppe as their long-term catcher, they can find a cheaper backup elsewhere and see what the market spits out for d'Arnaud.