The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim aren't often praised for their transactions.
This one, though, a trade for Grayson Rodriguez that went through overnight Tuesday into Wednesday? It certainly looks like a massive win.
The Angels had to send Taylor Ward to the Baltimore Orioles. Ward has been a good home run hitter for the Angels, but his contract expires after the 2026 season.
Rodriguez will be under club control through the 2029 campaign.
The one risk with Rodriguez is that he's coming off a 2025 season in which he didn't pitch and just underwent some elbow cleanup procedures.
But as long as Rodriguez gets back onto the mound, this feels like a W for the Angels.
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Rodriguez just turned 26 a few days ago. He has started 43 games at the MLB level and struck out more than a batter an inning.
He was also one of the top prospects in baseball. Before the 2022 and 2023 seasons both, Rodriguez was a consensus top-10 prospect in the sport.
He mostly showed that ability when pitching in the major leagues, too. The only reason at all to have any doubt here is the injuries.
If Rodriguez is healthy, he can be a front-line starting pitcher. And the Angels just got him for a player they likely wouldn't have signed back after 2026.
The Angels have a mixture of older and younger players that makes it hard to know exactly what kind of contention timeline they're on. But it's never a bad idea to acquire young, controllable talent that can help both now and in the future.
That's what Rodriguez is, and LAA did a great job to add him to their club.
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