Angels shockingly sidestep contract drama plaguing World Baseball Classic stars

Major League Baseball players declaring their participation in the World Baseball Classic had been somewhat of a formality in recent years, but that hasn't been the case this offseason. Rosters will be revealed later this week, but several teams have stepped in the way of their players participating, declaring that the contracts of said players would not be insured. Shockingly, the Los Angeles Angels don't appear to be one of those teams.

Fresh off signing a one-year contract worth $4 million to return to the Angels, Yoan Moncada will be playing in the World Baseball Classic with Team Cuba next month.

Angels quietly avoid contract storm triggered by World Baseball Classic

To be clear, a team can't specifically block a player from participating. They can voice their objections, but that doesn't forbid a player from actually playing in the event. Where things get tricky is with the potential for injury.

This offseason has put a spotlight on the fact that teams have to provide contract insurance for the players participating. In other words, if a player gets injured while playing in the World Baseball Classic, their team will still pay them for any games missed during the regular season. Without the insurance, players risk losing money in the event of an injury.

There have been some notable occurrences this offseason of teams refusing to provide insurance. For both Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa, the Houston Astros decided against providing insurance. The Los Angeles Dodgers did the same for veteran infielder Miguel Rojas. Ditto for the New York Mets and Francisco Lindor.

It has reached the point where Team Puerto Rico is considering not participating in the event, considering the number of players who were denied insurance.

Along those lines, it's...surprising that the Angels are the team being the exception. The Angels are never in a hurry to spend money, so it's against the trend to see Arte Moreno and Co. willing to be on the hook for paying a player if they get hurt during the World Baseball Classic. Especially when that player is Moncada, considering his career has been defined by one injury after another.

Kudos to the Angels for going against the trend, not that it will change their outlook for the 2026 season.