Angels trading Taylor Ward is looking worse after latest Mike Trout news

When the Los Angeles Angels began the offseason off by trading Taylor Ward to the Baltimore Orioles for starting pitcher Grayson Rodriguez, it was widely regarded as a win.

Trading Ward was seen as a move the team had to make, and walking away with a former top prospect who still has four years of team control was seen as a huge victory for Perry Minasian. With the latest development involving the Angels' outfield, this trade is looking more questionable.

Latest Mike Trout news makes Angels' trade of Taylor Ward look worse

Going into the offseason, the general consensus inside of Anaheim was that the Angels had three corner outfielders in Trout, Ward, and Jo Adell. The thinking was that Trout's injuries would keep him in right fiel. Adell had proven he couldn't handle center field, and Ward was a below-average left fielder. One of them had to be moved, or so we thought.

The Angels traded Ward — a move that could arguably save Perry Minasian's job in Anaheim if Rodriguez can reach his ace-level ceiling. Saving $12 million in a trade everyone knew the Angels had to make was a massive win to start the offseason.

But now the "problem" that forced the Ward trade is no longer. Trout is going to play center field after all. So instead of running out an elite offensive trio of Ward, Trout, and Adell in their outfield, it'll be newly acquired Josh Lowe filling in out in left field. Lowe had an exceptional season in 2023, but has been subpar since then and far from the bat that Ward was able to provide.

While Rodriguez is still an exciting arm to add, the money the Angels saved went to veteran free agents on cheap deals. The savings after moving Ward and restructuring Anthony Rendon's contract gave fans hope that a new star was coming to Anaheim. Instead, all they got was Yoan Moncada.

Trading Ward for Rodriguez is still a good deal. However, the extra reasons the team made the deal — financials, too many corner outfielders, etc. — wound up to not be true with this at all. While Rodriguez could lead this Angels' rotation in the long run, Ward had turned himself into one of the best right-handed hitting outfielders in baseball, and the Angels' lineup looks a lot worse without him.