Los Angeles Angels Rebuild: Why Perry Minasian's Scouting History Is a Concern

Yet another trade deadline looms and yet again the Angels are so far out of contention they will be one of the most obvious sellers on the market. Considering the large chasm between the Angels and contending teams, a full scale rebuild could make a lot of sense for the club.

Currently the club is seemingly without a clear direction. On the one hand they slashed payroll by $80 million this season but on the other they have not made a significant trade for prospects in many years. When a team owner states he does not believe in rebuilding it makes it tough to rebuild. When that same owner says fans don't care about winning, it takes the need for a rebuild off the table.

But the Angels rebuilding even if they do not admit it. They just are not going all in on the effort.

Young faces like Oswald Peraza and Denzer Guzman are getting starts while veterans like Adam Frazier sit. So, why not do a full scale rebuild and make some significant MLB talent for prospects trades?

A big reason might by Perry Minasian and his inability to scout talent.

Jo Adell and Mike Trout are the only players on the 2026 Angels who were on the team when Perry Minasian took over as general manager. This current Angels team, which is on track to set a franchise record for losses, is Perry's baby. Yes, Arte Moreno can be a meddlesome owner and blow the budget on free agent busts, but the drafts and trades are all on Perry.

The Angels bullpen has been bad because Perry failed to build a decent bullpen in the last six years. An all pitcher draft in 2021 has finally led to Sam Bachman and Chase Silseth in the bullpen and Samy Natera Jr. has finally joined the unit.

That's it as far as homegrown pitching help out of five dozen pitchers drafted in five drafts.

Taking a look at the bats, Minasian has done even worse. Zach Neto has had his moments and stands out as the one plus bat brought in by Perry. Nolan Schanuel is the second best and then there really is nobody.

Perry has yet to draft an upper tier prospect or quality outfielder. Can he identify good talent in the minor leagues that will make a trade of Jose Soriano or Reid Detmers pan out down the road? The evidence suggests not.

Perry Minasian's trade history is underwhelming but with context.

The Brandon Marsh for Logan O'Hoppe trade is likely the most significant trade of Perry Minasian's tenure when it comes to a rebuild. At the time, this looked like a good trade for both sides. Now it looks like a huge win for the Phillies.

Yes, credit Minasian for plucking Oswald Peraza from the Yankees for a lower level outfielder, but that kid is crushing it in rookie ball so the jury is still out on that deal. Plus, in that case Perry was trading for an MLB level player not the other way around.

Granted, Minasian has never been blessed with top tier trade chips. And even when he did have a notable player like Raisel Iglesias his returns were limited by Arte Moreno's refusal to eat some salary. But even then the returns have been modest at best.

Ryan Zeferjahn for Luis Garcia stands out as one of Minasian's better trades. Zeferjahn has put up 0.5 bWAR in back to back seasons and looks better of late but is at -0.3 bWAR this year. When a guy who puts up 0.7 bWAR across 2.5 years is a feather in your cap, that shows the rest of your trades did not work out too well.

So where does this leave the Angels?

Stuck in the same rut in which they will continue as long as Arte Moreno owns the team: with a few good players but not enough. Yes, the farm system is gradually improving but that is primarily the result of no longer trading the few decent prospects for a doomed playoff push. The farm rankings at the beginning of the year were yet another indictment of the Angels draft selections in recent years.

The farm is barren of bats and littered with pitchers who profile more as relievers than starters. Most organizations take a starter in later rounds that flames out and becomes a reliever. Minasian takes relievers in the early rounds and prays he can stretch them into starters.

Here in lies the dilema. The Angels need a rebuild because Minasian has failed to produce young talent. But the guy who would be in charge of the rebuild fails to identify young talent.

And, of course, the Angels GM is not very good because Arte Moreno is not good at identifying front office talent. The fish rots from the head down, after all.

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