The Los Angeles Angels have been pretty bad in their two years post-Shohei Ohtani, and now they seem to finally be trying to rebuild a contending team. However, they are one superstar away from really competing in the AL West.
There may be an easy solution for them, however. According to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, the Halos are the favorites to make a blockbuster trade for eight-time All-Star Nolan Arenado.
“Arenado, meanwhile, is a possibility for the Los Angeles Angels, who are negotiating a buyout agreement with third baseman Anthony Rendon. No trade is imminent, however. The market for Arenado will become better defined after Bregman and Eugenio Suárez sign their free-agent deals,” Rosenthal wrote.
Fansided’s Cody Williams revealed his thoughts on this as well, stating that this could be a good and bad move by the Angels.
“On one hand, getting any kind of production from third base after the disastrous Rendon contract would be an upgrade for the Halos. At the same time, Arenado's decline has been evident and he comes with two years remaining on his deal at 35 years old. That seems like a move to get more name-power on the roster, but not one to meaningfully improve the Angels in ways that fans have been begging for. Perhaps I'm wrong, there, but it's not something that would excite me all too much if I was an Angels fan,” Williams stated.
This past season, Arenado slashed.237/.289/.377/.666 with 18 doubles, 12 home runs, and 52 RBI in 107 games played. He’ll be a sure upgrade over Rendon even if he’s injury-prone, but if he can stay healthy, he’d definitely prove his worth.
Hopefully the Angels can find someone better, but with the market dwindling, this may be the move they’re forced to make.
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