Angels: 4 players predicted to sign with LA this offseason

This should be a very busy offseason for the Angels as they have a lot of work to do in terms of a roster makeover. They can use help in the bullpen, at shortstop, and most importantly with their starting rotation. While the starting pitching market might not be the most headline grabbing of those in recent years, the bullpen market is shaping up to be an electric one. This bodes well for the Halos going forward if Arte Moreno and his new GM find common ground to help build this team back into a contender.

In a recent column by MLB Trade Rumors, four free agents have been predicted to be heading to the Halos in 2021. While these are just predictions at the end of the day, all four players pitted to head to Anaheim by the site all make sense. They are all worth talking about for various reasons.

The Angels are currently projected to have about $34 million under the luxury tax threshold, giving them ample flexibility to upgrade the roster without concern. Also, given that Albert Pujols and his $30 million per year contract comes to an end in 2021, the Angels have the room to be able to pursue the big fish.

According to MLB Trade Rumors, the Angels will look to add two starting pitchers, a shortstop replacement for Andrelton Simmons, and a back-end bullpen arm. MLB Trade Rumors has historically had an excellent feel for the trade market and their predictions on contract values and landing spots has been very accurate in past seasons. While Trevor Bauer isn’t being predicted to be heading to the Angels, some excellent pieces are. Let’s talk about them.

Marcus Stroman

Halo Hangout contributor Justin Gideon recently wrote a piece regarding the Bauer and Stroman dilemma, questioning who the better fit is for the Angels. While Trevor Bauer is undoubtedly the superior pitcher, Stroman represents an excellent clubhouse figure that will mesh well with the stars already on the team.

MLBTR has the Angels giving a four-year, $68 million deal to Marcus Stroman this winter. This is an overpay for a pitcher who is a 3-starter on a contender at best, but the Angels need to be looking to get stupid with their money. Upgrades need to come in bunches and they need to come quickly.

$17 million per year is not a contract figure that makes you wince, but it’s still a large sum of money and represents about half of the remaining space the Halos have under the luxury tax threshold. At just 29 years old, Stroman could be entering the beginning of his prime and the Halos might be best suited to try and buy on for his best years. Stroman holds a career 3.76 ERA, but has only pitched three full seasons since he broke into the league back in 2014.

Stroman did not pitch in 2020 for multiple reasons, but he still should command a decent contract given the lack of true impact starting pitching on the market. He would likely slot in behind Shohei Ohtani and Dylan Bundy in the rotation.

Marcus Semien

With the Angels likely to see long-time defensive wizard Andrelton Simmons leaving the team, the Halos need to find a steady replacement for him at shortstop. While moving David Fletcher to shortstop full-time is certainly an option, the Angels would be better suited bringing in a short-term guy to fill the void. Enter another Marcus S. in Marcus Semien.

After a career year in 2019, Semien fell off a bit in 2020. His 2019 included an elite 7.6 WAR to go with a 137 wRC+, 33 home runs, and 10 stolen bases. He was one of the best hitters in the sport just two seasons ago. While nobody can truly replace Simmons’ defensive production holistically, Semien is an excellent defender in his own right. He combined for 26 defensive runs saved from 2018 to 2019. For comparison, Andrelton Simmons posted 35 defensive runs saved in that same time span.

While Semien has been the definition of a league-average hitter across his major league career, there is some hope he could regain his 2019 form while providing extraordinary defense.

MLBTR projects Semien to receive a one-year, $14 million deal from the Halos this winter, a very fair valuation.

We will see what direction the Angels go in, but going with a pair of Marcus’s could be the move.

Trevor Rosenthal

Trevor Rosenthal was once one of the most feared ninth inning presences in the game. As the former closer for the St. Louis Cardinals, he has now moved on to the San Diego Padres who have seemed to revitalize his career a bit. Rosenthal posted a 1.90 ERA this season for the Friars, striking out 38 batters in 23 2/3 innings and showcasing his signature triple digit heat.

Rosenthal is not quite the safest bet to be a contributor considering his up and down career to this point, but it seems the Padres have him back to his old self at the age of 30. He still has a lot left in the tank and pairing him with Hansel Robles in the back end of the bullpen could help extract that.

The right hander has thrown 364 innings in his big league career and has actually fared well on the whole, posting a 2.75 FIP in that span. Even if he is not who he was in 2020, Rosenthal could be a very key piece to the bullpen puzzle for the Halos and according to MLBTR, he should not cost much. The current projection for his contract is two years, $14 million. That’s very doable considering the Angels figure to have other needs they want to address this winter.