The Los Angeles Angels are currently the fifth team out of the wild card with a record of 67 wins and 76 losses. Despite the season not being over yet, barring a miracle, the Angels are destined to fall short of the postseason once again for the eleventh consecutive year.
While some may say all press is good press, sporting the longest active playoff drought in the MLB is hardly good coverage. Here are three things the Angels can do this offseason to get out of their slump and finally reach a postseason.
1. Arte Moreno needs to sell the team
Moreno purchased the Angels in 2003 from The Walt Disney Company, which marked the beginning of the team’s continued struggles. At the time of Moreno’s purchase, the team was fresh off of a World Series win in the year prior but since then, the Angels only made it to the post season six times between 2003 and 2014, and zero times in the last 11 years.
One reason for this is Moreno authorizing signings of MLB talents well past their prime such as Josh Hamilton, Anthony Rendon, Albert Pujols, Andrelton Simmons, and Noah Syndergaard. This led to the Angels continuously spending big bucks on flashy, but ineffective purchases instead of taking that money and working on growing a championship team that could actually win one.
Moreno considered selling the team in 2022 but ultimately decided to keep it. After 22 years of mediocre performance and poor management decisions it is time the team resets and gets new ownership.
2. Deal with Anthony Rendon
Rendon’s 2019 signing with Los Angeles has been disastrous for the Angels. Originally, his seven-year, $245 million contract sparked hope for the team to reach the playoffs and get the job done.
Unfortunately, the result was far from that fantasy. The third baseman has dealt with multiple injuries over his stay with the Angels, and when he’s played, he’s been underwhelming. Although he hasn’t been awful, his production is nowhere near a level worth what they pay for him, and his averages are severely below what they were with the Washington Nationals.
His contract is up after the 2026 season, and there will be a lot of eyes on how they deal with the situation given how his salary is the second highest on the Angels, only behind Mike Trout. By ditching this salary, they can use the money on other new prospects and bolster the roster.
3. Fix the Pitching Situation
The Angels’ pitching staff needs serious revamping. As of now, the team’s bullpen is 28th in the league in ERA (4.84), 29th in WHIP (1.44), and 27th in BAA (2.61). This can be linked to the various issues with the team’s farm system. They prioritize bringing pitchers to the MLB far too quickly—many before they are ready to be there.
Some recent examples are 2024 2nd round pick Ryan Johnson and 2021 draft prospect Chase Silseth. These two players had great potential entering the minor leagues, but being thrown in the majors too fast caused them to suffer severely. Johnson sported a 7.36 ERA in just 14 games played last year, and Silseth had a 6.59 ERA when he made the jump in 2022. The staff neglects developing prospects in depth before having them take that leap, which doesn’t work.
This goes hand in hand with bad scouting— a long standing issue for the Angels. For this team to be a contender, or at least make the postseason, they need to prioritize pitching. Whether it is through fixing their farm system through new coaches and scouts, adjusting how they develop new prospects or making a few trades to get pitchers who will get the job done, something must change.
If the Angels can get these three points done this offseason, they will significantly improve and finally make the playoffs, giving the fanbase something to root for once again.