5 best frontline starters available for Angels to trade for after Sonny Gray deal

With the Angels trading for Grayson Rodriguez, they acquired a pitcher who has legitimate potential to one day be the ace of their staff in Anaheim. However, it is clear that the Angels' search for starting pitching is far from over. They missed out on Sonny Gray, as the St. Louis Cardinals sent the durable veteran to the Boston Red Sox in return for two solid pitching prospects. Nevertheless, there are still plenty of starters left on the trade market, and these five are the best bets the Angels could make on adding an ace to the top of their rotation alongside Yusei Kikuchi and Jose Soriano.

5 best starting pitchers left on trade market for Angels

Washington Nationals' LHP Mackenzie Gore

The absolute cream of the crop this offseason, Mackenzie Gore is arguably the best overall player available (unless Tarik Skubal genuinely does become available) either in trade or free agency. His 4.19 ERA is good-not-great, but most of that can be accredited to a four game stretch where Gore allowed 23 runs. He spent the first half of 2025 as a Cy Young frontrunner, and earned his first All Star nod. His advanced metrics and strikeout rate range from great to elite, and Gore has two years of control left. The trade package for Gore would be huge, but could finally land the Angels' their ace.

Minnesota Twins' RHP Joe Ryan and RHP Pablo Lopez

The Minnesota Twins have a real chance to jump start their rebuild this offseason if they trade one or both of Joe Ryan and Pablo Lopez. Both of the pitchers have two seasons of team control left, with Ryan going into arbitration (projected for $5.8 million in 2026) and Lopez finishing the final years of his four-year, $73.5 million deal.

Ryan is both the better, younger, and cheaper pitcher, putting him closer to the class of pitchers Gore is in. Lopez has more mileage on his arm, but has been an effective starter throughout his eight years in the big leagues. These two offer a bit of range for return packages, though both would hard to pry away from the Twins, who elected to keep both past the trade deadline this past season despite strong offers from contenders.

Milwuakee Brewers' RHP Freddy Peralta

With Brandon Woodruff accepting his qualifying offer, Freddy Peralta instantly becomes more likely to be dealt this offseason by the Brewers. He has been one of the best starters in all of baseball over the past three seasons, rarely missing starts and always providing exceptional pitching. Peralta has one year left of his contract, making him a hair cheaper than the aforementioned options. And with Anthony Rendon coming off the books a year from now, extending Peralta will be easily done.

Miami Marlins' RHP Sandy Alcantara

The upside swing of all upside swings, Sandy Alcantara has been a far worse pitcher since his Cy Young campaign in 2022. 2023 was bad, then Tommy John surgery, and then a 2025 that on the surface shows Alcantara is further away from the dominance he displayed at the beginning of the decade than ever. However, the final eight starts of his 2025 season showed he can still be the ace of a staff in the big leagues. Alcantara is due $19 million next season, with a club option for $21 million after that. If Alcantara continues his end-of-season dominance into 2026, the Angels would have the ace of their organization for 2026 and 2027. If he does not, they have the option to decline his option and go into next year's free agency with money to spend as they look elsewhere for an ace.