The Angels’ offseason work is about to begin at full intensity.
Although the Angels haven’t played a game in more than a month, up until now much of their work has been finding a manager and a coaching staff and laying the groundwork for the roster moves to come.
The free agent markets officially opened last week, and the GM meetings this week in Las Vegas will mark the unofficial start to the wheeling and dealing for Angels general manager Perry Minasian and his counterparts.
With one year to go on his contract, Minasian obviously faces some urgency to get the Angels to the next level. Their 72-90 record in 2025 marked a nine-game improvement from 2024. Still, they haven’t had a winning season since 2015 and they haven’t been to the playoffs since 2014.
Ending those droughts won’t be easy. The Angels have plenty of holes.
Unless owner Arte Moreno decides to open the checkbook significantly more than he did last season – which no one expects – the Angels aren’t going to have much money to use for improvements.
While they are losing some free agents, the arbitration class – led by outfielders Taylor Ward and Jo Adell, starting pitcher José Soriano and shortstop Zach Neto – is going to merit significant raises that will eat up much of the savings.
According to FanGraphs, the Angels’ current commitments for 2026 come in just about $40 million below their 2025 payroll. So you can expect them to avoid the top of the market.
Here’s a look at the Angels’ most pressing needs as the GM meetings get underway.
Pitching
The Angels are set to have left-hander Yusei Kikuchi and right-hander Soriano in the rotation. Minasian said last month that left-hander Reid Detmers will also get a shot to return to the rotation after a successful season as a reliever.
Beyond that, it’s a blank slate. The Angels aren’t going to count on any of their young pitchers – Jack Kochanowicz, Caden Dana, George Klassen and Tyler Bremner – but they’d certainly be open to one or more of them forcing the issue.
In the meantime, they are expected to shop for veteran starters. The top of the market isn’t great this winter, so the middle is even less exciting. Pitchers like Merrill Kelly, Zac Gallen and Tyler Mahle would be in the Angels’ wheelhouse.
On the trade market, the Angels could be positioned to swing a deal for someone like Minnesota’s Joe Ryan, Miami’s Edward Cabrera, the Athletics’ Luis Severino or St. Louis’ Sonny Gray.
The Angels are going to need relievers too. There are typically so many relievers on the market that it’s impossible to predict which ones the Angels could target.
Outfield
A few things became clear with the Angels’ outfield in 2025, and they don’t all fit together going forward.
Adell is an everyday player, and he’s not a center fielder. Mike Trout is not likely to ever again be a regular in the outfield. Jorge Soler’s body can’t withstand so much time in the field.
Given all that, the Angels first need a center fielder. Free agents Trent Grisham, Cody Bellinger, Harrison Bader and Cedric Mullins could all be fits. However, Bellinger could be out of the Angels’ price range. Grisham might end up being over-priced after a career year – another Brandon Drury – and Mullins is declining.
The Angels are also likely to consider trading either Ward or Adell, which could help them fill one of their other holes.
Infield
Yes, third baseman Anthony Rendon is under contract for one more season. It’s safe to say that the Angels aren’t counting on him for anything after he missed all of 2025 recovering from hip surgery. There’s still some small chance the Angels simply release him over the winter.
The Angels also aren’t set at second, because Christian Moore might not be ready for the everyday job.
Ideally, the Angels would find a left-handed hitter who could play second or third, like free agent switch-hitter Jorge Polanco. They could also trade for someone like the Yankees’ Ryan McMahon (a product of Mater Dei High) or Cincinnati’s Gavin Lux.
The Angels could trade for someone like the Phillies’ Alec Bohm, although he’s another right-handed hitter.