After failing to land Jack Flaherty should the Angels pivot to Nick Pivetta?

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It remains unclear whether the Angels were ever engaged in contract negotiations with starting pitcher Jack Flaherty, despite many insiders and writers saying he would mesh perfectly with the roster. He is heading back to the Detroit Tigers, and the Angels are still left with a hole at the front of their rotation. It's incredibly apparent that the Angels need another front-line starter to pair with Yusei Kikuchi, and there is only one free agent starter left that fits the bill -- Nick Pivetta. He is well worth the risk, even for a team coming off a 99-loss season.

Pivetta is a fiery competitor with a one-of-one four-seamer. His North-South arsenal between his high-riding four-seam and gigantic curveball is astounding to watch. He peppers in a frisbee sweeper as well, which is his put-away pitch that generates a whopping 35% whiff rate. His strikeout: walk numbers last season were impeccable, and his overall results could potentially benefit from moving out of the incredibly hitter-friendly Fenway Park. Despite entering his age-32 season, he is showing no signs of slowing down and has been a work-horse starter his whole career.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic succinctly laid out the argument that signing Pivetta and losing a compensatory draft pick due to the attached qualifying offer would really not be that big of a deal. If the Angels are true to their word, they should want to add a clear upgrade like Pivetta at the cost of losing the 47th pick in the 2025 MLB Draft and $500,000 from their international signing pool. Given that Flaherty signed for two-years, $35 million with a player option after the first year, which was far less than anybody antipated in total value, the Angels could position themselves atop the Pivetta market with a deal in the same vein. Perhaps a guaranteed two-year deal, $45 million contract ($15 million AAV) with a player option for the third year? A guaranteed two-year deal for Pivetta justifies losing the draft pick and international money

Projection systems show that the Angels need an infusion of quality pitchers, and Pivetta is exactly that. Adding him as the no. 2 starter behind Kikuchi would allow them to slot down the rest of their starters into more realistic roles. He would also continue the Angels' penchant for signing veteran players to increase the "professionality" in the locker room, and set the tone for the younger players. Caden Dana certainly appears like he could turn into a Pivetta-type down-the-road and could benefit from having him in-house while he continues to refine his game. The Red Sox are likely out on Pivetta. Another logical destination for Pivetta would be the Mets, but they are likely to re-sign Pete Alonso and have already addressed their rotation multiple times this offseason. Signing Pivetta makes a ton of sense for both sides, and needs to happen.

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