LA Angels: For Gerrit Cole, the Road Ends in Anaheim

Following the Houston Astros’ loss in the World Series, LA Angels fans were met with even more good news.

As, well, everyone knows at this point the LA Angels and free agents Gerrit Cole have been linked together for what seems like the better part of a year.

Following the Astros’ Game 7 loss, a game in which Gerrit Cole watched from the bullpen awaiting an appearance that never came, Cole appeared shortly after the game and declared himself no longer an employee of the Astros. He seemed very bothered by manager AJ Hinch’s decision to leave Cole in the bullpen.

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Ultimately, the marriage between Gerrit Cole and the Houston Astros seems over, and Cole will find himself on the open road soon.

And that road ends in Anaheim.

Let’s really take a look at things. Cole was an Angels’ fan, living less than ten minutes away from The Big A as a kid. He has openly admired the Angels, their stadium, and the players such as Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani. Gerrit Cole has also talked about how awesome it would be for him to pitch near home.

With the Astros’ Game 7 debacle and following Cole press conference, the Angels’ pathway to signing the best pitcher in baseball has never been clearer. Sure, the Yankees, Phillies, and Dodgers will all make strong cases to employ Cole, but none of those teams has a greater need for him than the Angels.

It just matches up perfectly. A sour ending in Houston, why not go to their division rival and shove against them for the next seven years?

Speaking of seven years, I honestly believe that Gerrit Cole will be looking for a team to offer him an eight-year deal. If a team does, that could 100% be the dividing factor for Cole.

For Arte Moreno, Billy Eppler, and the Angels, the time for excuses is over. For nearly a decade now the Halos will have gone without a true ace of a starting pitcher. They’ve tried developing aces from within and it just hasn’t worked. They need to be ready to fork over as much money as desired by Cole to don the red and white.

The road in Houston has gone off a cliff. Gerrit Cole’s new path ends in Anaheim.