Angels, Yankees, Giants Reportedly All Pursuing Superstar Free Agent
The Los Angeles Angels could use a new No. 1 starter.
Shohei Ohtani no longer plays for the Angels and the club has a hole in the starting rotation. Luckily for the Angels, they could fill the hole with just one signing.
Two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell is still available and could go a long way in improving the Angels' chances of competing for an American League Wild Card spot.
Los Angeles reportedly has shown interest in a possible deal, but the club has some competition. Both the New York Yankees and San Francisco Giants have been linked to Snell, as well.
While this is the case, Los Angeles and San Francisco are seen as the two most likely landing spots for Snell, according to NJ.com's Bob Klapisch.
"(Hal Steinbrenner) won’t bend on the 110 percent luxury tax surcharge that would force him to pay Snell upwards of $60 million in 2024," Klapisch said. "The young Boss has repeatedly told (Scott Boras), no thanks. Instead of the Yankees, the Angels and (San Francisco Giants) are more likely to land Snell. If so, the Bombers will say goodbye without regrets. They weren’t the ones who let Snell slip through their fingers. It was the other way around. Boras refused to soften his demand for $30 million per year. That miscalculation closed the window of opportunity with the Yankees, who’ve turned their gaze to (Clarke Schmidt)."
New York has been linked to Snell but would face heavy tax implications if it were to sign him. Los Angeles and San Francisco both have more financial wiggle room and are looking for rotation help.
Snell would be the perfect player to help out the Angels, but they'll have to open up their checkbooks to make a deal happen. It remains to be seen if Arte Moreno will do that.
