Angels News: Halos Among MLB's 'Most Improved Teams' This Offseason
The Angels have had quite the productive offseason this winter. They entered it with tons of needs, and filled just about every single one of them on their way to a very impressive offseason.
Yes, they still have a few holes they’d like to shore up. One member of the front office pointed to three positions the team is still looking to upgrade ahead of next season. However, even before they fill those needs, they’re still being praised for their moves this winter. Bleacher Report ranked the 10 MLB teams who have improved the most this offseason, and put the Angels at No. 7. Here's a part of what they said:
"Somewhat quietly, Angels starters ranked second in the league in fWAR in the second half of last season. It'll be the same Shohei Ohtani-led gang next year, except now featuring Anderson—as in, the guy who fell in love with his changeup amid an All-Star season that ended with him posting a 2.57 ERA over 178.2 innings.
"Meanwhile, the trio of Drury, Renfroe and Urshela gives the Angels additional right-handed thump. It's something they needed, as they got only 46 home runs from righty batters not named Mike Trout or Taylor Ward.
"For his part, Estévez was always a sneaky-good candidate to close for someone. The former Colorado Rockie got his fastball as high as 101 mph in 2022, while both his slider and his changeup should benefit from getting out of Denver's thin air."
The Angels seemed to find all the best deals this offseason, and upgraded their roster without breaking the bank — they remain under the luxury tax right now, but did say they could exceed it for the right deal.
But still, getting Tyler Anderson at three years and $39 million is arguably the steal of the offseason, while Brandon Drury’s two-year, $17 million pact isn’t too shabby, either.
If Carlos Estevez works his way up to a full-time closer role, his two-year, $13.5 million contract will feel like pocket change.
And finally, between the trades of Gio Urshela and Hunter Renfroe, the Angels only had to give up four minor league pitchers.
The Angels deserve a lot of credit for what they were able to do this offseason. And if they’re able to fill their remaining needs, they could move even higher up this list before Opening Day.
