Angels must be first team to call on suddenly available Brewers' ace

The Angels and every other MLB team is on red alert today as two major events are going on across the league. 40-man roster decisions need to be made by teams while pending free agents have to accept or decline their qualifying offers for the 2026 seasons. These are both huge moments every year during the offseason in MLB, as they are typically when dominoes begin to fall across the league. And the first one has fallen in Milwuakee.

The Milwaukee Brewers have become synonymous with the analytical wave in the big leagues. While they are not the cheapest team in baseball, they invest heavily in development rather than paying up for big time players. This usually winds up with them trading away star pitchers at their most valuable, which is why Freddy Peralta is now one of the best players in baseball likely to be dealt this offseason.

The Brewers offered Brandon Woodruff (their other ace) the qualifying offer worth $22 million. ESPN's Jeff Passan explained the domino effect of this, writing, "If Brandon Woodruff accepts a qualifying offer, it drastically increases the chances of a Peralta trade. If Woodruff hits free agency, Peralta almost certainly will stay." Woodruff accepted his qualifying offer ,going back to Milwuakee. So the Brewers are open for business on the Peralta front.

Angels need to be first team calling for ace Freddy Peralta

In 2025, Freddy Peralta was one of the best pitchers in all of baseball. With 33 starts, he posted a 2.70 ERA and struck out 204 hitters, his third consecutive season hitting the 200-strikeout mark. After finsihing fifth in Cy Young voting this season, Peralta is lined up for a massive payday next offseason when he hits free agency... or when a team trades for him this offseason.

The Angels make a ton of sense for Peralta. They have a solid trio of starters in Jose Soriano, Yusei Kikuchi, and Reid Detmers, but lack a true ace for their staff. Peralta would be the best starting pitcher they have had in over a decade (outside of Shohei Ohtani), and the Angels are set up to spend big next offseason (even if the jury is out for this offseason). With the Anthony Rendon Era ending one way or another soon, the Halos will finally be free of the worst contract in MLB history. So if they do scrounge up enough to get Peralta to Anaheim, they can pay up either this offseason or next knowing they have the flexibility to pay Peralta and be a contender. The first thing they need to do, though, is pick up the phone and call Milwuakee.