LA Angels: Ranking the Five Worst Contracts of the Last Decade

The LA Angels have come to be known for awful free agency deals. Over the past decade, it seems as if every contract they’ve given out has been poor.

Now, we rank the LA Angels worst financial decisions since 2010. This is not a list I will enjoy writing, but hey, someone has to do it.

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5.) Joe Blanton

In 2012, the Angels were desperate for starting pitching alongside Jered Weaver and CJ Wilson (more on him later), and brought in Joe Blanton on a two-year, $15 million deal. While that AAV is not awful, Blanton did nothing but hurt the Halos in 2013 before being cut without pitching a game in 2014. He posted a 6.04 ERA and piled up 14 losses, having career-worst numbers across the board. The Angels cut him in March of 2014, eating the rest of the contract.

4.) CJ Wilson

The CJ Wilson deal of five-years $77.5 million was apart of the biggest offseason spending in Angels’ history. And of the two major deals the Halos handed out that offseason, Wilson’s was much more successful. Wilson was by no means great in the four years he spent in Anaheim, but a 3.87 ERA is a solid number, especially in the American League.

3.) Vernon Wells

The Angels have given out so many bad contracts, nobody even mentions Vernon Wells’ embarrassment in Anaheim. While the Angels did not actually sign Wells to his 7-year, $126 million deal, the team traded away Mike Napoli (ouch) and Juan Rivera to take on the deal, only to later trade him to the Yankees two years later. Oh, and the Yankees only paid a small fraction of Wells’ contract, as the Angels had to swallow most of the money just to get him off their roster.

2.) Albert Pujols

Albert Pujols was probably who most of you thought of as soon as you read the headline for this piece, and rightfully so.  Ten years and $240 million for someone who may or not have been 30 years old is ridiculous, and one of the main examples teams are using to avoid paying stars in recent offseasons. The reason Pujols does not rank first is that he has brought some value to the Angels. When the Halos have been out of postseason contention, watching Pujols climb all-time leaderboards served as an extra storyline. And even if his role is changing in 2019, Pujols has given fans a handful of positive moments.

1.) Josh Hamilton

This one is hard to write about considering everything that surrounded Josh Hamilton. His contract with the Angels of $125 million over a five-year span was risky considering his history with drug addiction. At times, Hamilton looked like he was worth the risk, however, those moments were in the minority. While injuries and a relapse with addiction led to his early retirement, Hamilton went down as one of the worst contracts in the history of baseball.