5 Angels players in danger of losing their roster spots in June

Throughout the 2025 season, the Angels have found themselves doing a lot of tinkering at the fringes of their roster. From calling up top prospects, to cycling through waiver claims and minor league free agents, the club is trying to get a grip on what the best collection of 26 men might look like.

For all the shuffling, the Angels have been much better than some had predicted, though they've struggled to get over the .500 hump since April, the club has been far better than the bottom feeder status many thought they would have in the leadup to the season.

Nothing has proven thus far that the Halos can't achieve their goal of playing competitive baseball, and the constant work being done at the bottom of the roster highlights just how hard they're fighting to make it work.

Many teams who were pegged as rebuilding clubs, would've embraced their fate and peppered the roster with young players, struggles be damned. The Angels, however, have not done that and instead worked through a mix of promising youngsters alongside rebound candidate veterans like Chris Taylor and the recently acquired LaMonte Wade Jr. as they try to find a balance.

Still, there are some glaring weaknesses, particularly in the bullpen and the infield, that need to be addressed. The return of some reinforcements from the IL in the coming days and weeks will also play a role as the churn continues. These five players currently find themselves in the danger zone, likely marked as the next casualties unless they can produce a dramatic rebound soon.

The pressure is on these five Angels who are in danger of losing their roster spot in June

Reliever Hector Neris

When veteran setup man Hector Neris got the call from the Angels in early May, it looked like the club was finally getting serious about fixing its then-league-worst bullpen. Neris had a lengthy career that included a career-best 1.71 ERA in 2023 and an acceptable albeit a step back, 4.10 mark in 2024.

Since then, Neris has made 16 appearances through June 8, logging 10 innings and coughing up runs left and right. While he's striking out a ton of hitters with a K/9 mark of 11.70, he's also walking way too many, surrendering 5.40 BB/9, while also giving up an astronomical 2.70 HR/9.

That performance has been good for a putrid 9.90 ERA, coming at a time when the rest of the Angels' bullpen has settled down. In the month of June (through June 8), the Halo pen has the sixth-best ERA in all of baseball at 1.42.

Even with Garrett McDaniels being DFA'd upon his return from the IL, Neris will need to turn it around quickly to save his roster spot. If he continues to underperform, the Angels may decide it's worth more to roll the dice on a younger arm who can be part of the future, rather than keep trotting out a veteran in the twilight of his career.

Versatile infielders Chris Taylor, Scott Kingery, Kevin Newman, and Luis Rengifo all find themselves in the same boat

This contingent of players all find themselves in a similar position, their futures linked to the impending return of third baseman Yoan Moncada from the injured list.

All four carry the same calling card, versatility, with Chris Taylor and Scott Kingery being proficient defensively both in the infield and the outfield, Newman covering all four infield spots, and Rengifo primarily splitting his time between second and third.

The thing is, none of these guys have hit this season. Taylor came over after being let go from the Dodgers, posting a woeful .457 OPS across town, and still failing to hit his stride in Anaheim.

Kingery is back in the bigs for the first time since 2022, but with a strikeout rate of 33.3% and a wRC+ of 13, his career resurrection may come to an abrupt end.

Meanwhile, Newman was a free agent whom the Angels targeted early in the offseason. While he didn't get a big money deal, the club does have an option to bring the 31-year-old utility infielder back in 2026. There were some hopes that he'd stabilize the depth chart after slashing .278/.311/.375 last year with solid glove work, but this year he's regressed mightily with the bat, batting just .177/.190/.210.

Lastly, it's impossible to overstate just how bad Luis Rengifo has been this season. In his final year of arbitration, he's been a butcher in the field and a zero at the plate, slashing .206/.242/.252 with a lone home run. After a season in 2024 when he hit .300, the drop-off has been stark. His -1.3 fWAR is the worst among all qualified hitters.

While Moncada's eventual return is putting pressure on this quartet so to is the performance ot top prospect Christian Moore down at Triple-A Salt Lake. While Moore started off slow for the Double-A Trash Pandas, he turned it on as the season progressed earning a promotion to Triple-A. Since arriving in Salt Lake he's gone on a tear, slashing .333/.410/.500 with two dingers.

Moore will force his way onto the big club at some point this season, and that arrival may happen sooner rather than later. As many as two of the four players listed here, who round out the infield and the bench, may find themselves with one-way tickets out of Anaheim once Moncada is activated and Moore is called up.

A guy like Rengifo may still have some trade value, as his recent track record pre-2025 suggests he can still be resurrected, similar to how the Angels just bought in on a LaMonte Wade bounce-back. For Newman, the Angels could decide to cut bait. Lastly, for Taylor and Kingery, this could be the end of the line.

It would not surprise at all to see at least one, if not more, of these guys lose their roster spots before the calendar flips to July, and they'll be in direct competition with each other to decide who stays and who is shown the exit.

More LA Angels News from Halo Hangout