Angels Rumors: Three Free Agents Who Could Fill the Sixth Starter Spot, According to Insider
The Angels are still looking to fill their sixth spot in the starting rotation. They've reportedly showed interest in Japenese star Kodai Senga, but he has a ton of suitors, and should go for a pretty high price.
The Angels, of course, have internal options with Chase Silseth and Griffin Canning, but it does sound like they're at least showing some interest in filling that spot externally. So, Jeff Fletcher of the OC Register gave some free agents who could fill that role, who would come at less of a cost than the top free agents, and the extremely high starter market right now.
"It seems unlikely they’d be able to afford a pitcher at the top of the free agent market, but perhaps they could sign someone like Chris Bassitt, Nathan Eovaldi, Jameson Taillon or Taijuan Walker. All are right-handed, which could complement the four lefties currently in the Angels rotation. The Angels also could bring back right-hander Michael Lorenzen."
Of the five options he gave heading into the Winter Meetings, two have already signed in Taijuan Walker and Jameson Taillon. However, that does give us a good range of the value they're getting — and it is high.
Walker signed with the Mets for four years and $72 million, while Taillon signed with the Cubs for four years and $68 million. Clearly, the starting pitcher market is not cheap. So props to GM Perry Minasian for getting ahead of that with the Tyler Anderson deal.
As for the pitchers that are still available, Walker's teammate Chris Bassitt had a great season last year in New York. He went 15-9 with a 3.42 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP in 181.2 innings. Over the last three seasons, he's been among the best pitchers in all of baseball. In 2020, he finished with a 2.29 ERA in 63 innings. Last year, he had a 3.15 ERA in 157.1 innings. He's going to be the most expensive of this bunch, but the 33-year-old would be a huge addition to the rotation.
Nathan Eovaldi is another guy who has been brought up before as a potential target for the Angels. He was an All-Star in 2021, and finished fourth in the Cy Young voting. Last year, he had a 3.87 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP in 20 starts.
Finally, the Angels could reunite with Michael Lorenzen. He had a 4.24 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP in 97.2 innings last year, but the familiarly with the two sides could allow him another chance to have a bounce back season.
The Angels have their options if they want to sign another starting pitcher. It'll be interesting to see which way they decide to go.
