Former Angels slugger designated for assignment after rough stretch with Royals

The Angels used to have two versions of Mike Trout in their outfield a couple years ago, and now both are unable to stay on the field. The Angels' future first ballot Hall of Famer has experienced a litany of injury issues, and his twin/former teammate/fellow outfielder has been injured himself and not effective when he has played the last couple seasons.

Former Angels slugger designated for assignment after rough stretch with Royals

Hunter Renfroe, who is a spitting image of Mike Trout, was just designated for assignment by the Kansas City Royals per FanSided's Robert Murray. The Angels traded Janson Junk and Elvis Peguero to the Brewers after the 2022 season in exchange for Renfroe's services, and of course Peguero immediately became a reliable, late-inning reliever for the Brew Crew during their playoff run in '23. After the 2023 season, Renfroe picked up with the Royals on a two-year, $13 million deal that he will not be able to finish out now.

Renfroe was one of many cap casualties in 2023 when the Angels desperately waived players to get under the luxury tax threshold. Alongside Renfroe, the Angels cut ties with Lucas Giolito, Matt Moore, Reynaldo López, Randal Grichuk and Dominic Leone. Renfroe picked up with the Cincinnati Reds after he was sent off and he was just terrible for them and lasted only 14 games. The past two seasons with the Royals he has only been able to slash .219/.286/.362/.647.

This might be the first time you ever heard this: A player came to the Angels and he immediately stopped playing well and his career was irreparably altered. The Angels were trying to catch Renfroe at a great point in his career, as he was a proven power-hitting corner outfielder who was an integral part of the Red Sox and Brewers' postseason berths. With the Red Sox, the outfielder slashed .259/.315/.501/.816. With the Brewers, he slashed .255/.315/.492/.807. With the Angels in 2023, he slashed .242/.304/.434/.737. So classic!

It's looking likely that Renfroe is on his last legs in The Show, as his career has nose-dived ever since he joined the Angels. His defense has always been suspect, despite a cannon for an arm, but he is looking like a full-time designated hitter who cannot even hit that well anymore. He will for sure pick up somewhere after he clears waivers, it's just unclear whether it will be a major or minor league deal.

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