Angels are running out of reasons to keep playing Yoan Moncada

The Los Angeles Angels have reached the point of their season that was always inevitable. The Angels enter Sunday 14 games under .500, and on pace for a 100-loss season. It would seem that Perry Minasian and Co. are feeling the pressure of jobs being at stake, considering there's no other way to describe the team's urgency in rushing Logan O'Hoppe back from injury only for him to get hurt again. As long as Minasian is reeking of desperation, there's a long-overdue move he needs to make with Yoán Moncada.

If we're being honest, the Angels should have chalked last season's experiment with Moncada as a victory. He posted a 117 wRC+ through 289 plate appearances and was a fine option at third base to bridge a gap. Having said that, he only played 84 games, and whether it was giving Christian Moore a runway at the hot corner or an external upgrade, LA had better options available last offseason.

Instead, they brought back Moncada at $4 million. While it was an affordable deal, it felt like one that didn't need to be made. Through the first two months of the 2026 season, Moncada is lending credence to that doubt.

Yoán Moncada is leaving the Angels with no choice

Through his first 123 plate appearances this season, Moncada is slashing .190/.309/.305 with a wRC+ of 79. The power has all but been zapped from his profile, having only three home runs this year and an ISO of .114. Making things even worse, Moncada is striking out 35% of the time this season.

Moncada's bat has always been the reason for his presence in any starting lineup that he's in, considering his defense at third base has rarely graded out with positive metrics. With the bat struggling and defense what it is, there's no real justification for the Angels to keep Moncada in the starting lineup.

If this were an instance where Moncada is producing, the argument would be to keep him in the lineup and showcase him for a potential trade. No contender's going to come calling for Moncada this season, just like they didn't last summer when he was producing.

As long as the Angels' front office is going to be urgent with each lever they pull, it's time to give Moore an extended runway at third base. For where their season is headed, if they can identify their former first-round pick as a long-term building block at third base, that would be a victory in itself.

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