Kenley Jansen's addition highlights the disjointed nature of the Angels' strategy

The Angels are a better team now than they were at the start of the week. Signing Kenley Jansen, one of the best closers of his generation, to a one-year $10 million deal upgraded a unit that was full of question marks. The team is finally making good on its promise to compete in 2025, after a long period of hibernation that made fans wonder if they were serious when they made those claims.

The floodgates were opened once more last week when the team finally decided to do something about Anthony Rendon being the projected opening-day third baseman by signing the equally injury-prone Yoán Moncada to a one-year $5 million deal.

Moncada is a stop-gap signing, but his talent and past track record are enough to make him an X-factor and a potential catalyst that can help change the team's fortunes in 2025.

Jansen, too, is a floor raiser. He'll provide more security at the end of games over 24-year-old flamethrower Ben Joyce who has never closed full-time. Moreover, by moving Joyce down a rung in the pecking order the Angels now have a one-two punch in the back end of their bullpen to shorten games.

The manner in which the Angels navigated free agency leaves something to be desired

It's hard to sit here and say that the Halos aren't better today than the 63-99 version of the team we saw last year. That wasn't a high bar to clear. Yet here we are with pitchers and catchers having already reported to Arizona and the team still has money left to spend and few options worthy of investment left on the market.

It makes sense to look at free agency as a series of tiers. You've got the top tier of players who are going to sign mega-deals. Those contracts don't happen quickly, as every detail such as no-trade clauses, opt-outs, bonuses, etc is so crucial to the process. Those players don't linger on the market forever, but they do take some time to sign.

You also have a tier of players who are going to take the best offer when it's presented to them. These are players who are good, but not good enough to hold out for more. If a team presents them with a fair offer, they'll come off the board relatively early. Yusei Kikuchi is the poster boy for this tier.

Another tier are the depth players. These are guys who know what their role is and want to find security as soon as possible. They're not going to get paid a ton, but they also know they'll have a roster spot secured because of the unique value they provide. These guys also often sign early as there's never really a bidding war for their services. Examples are Kevin Newman, Travis d'Arnaud, and Kyle Hendricks.

Three more tiers exist. One of which is the reclamation projects. These are players who have the talent to get larger deals, yet injuries or some other factor have held them back from fulfilling their potential. These guys often come on cheap, short-term deals, but linger because they look to find the best landing spot to rebuild their value. Yoán Moncada fits the bill here.

The next tier that typically waits to sign is the veterans in the twilight of their careers. These guys may have several different objectives such as scoring one last payday, reaching personal milestones to complete their resume, or chasing a ring. Kenley Jansen is a prime example as he chases 500 career saves.

Last is the tier of near-elites. These are players who are almost at the top of the market but are held back for some reason or another. These players typically overplay their hands and wind up signing high AAV short-term deals in order to answer lingering questions and have another bite at the apple sooner rather than later. Players like Pete Alonso, Jack Flaherty, Anthony Santander, and Alex Bregman fall into this bucket. These guys sign later in the process because they overestimated their market. This is a tier that the Angels should have played in, especially considering that they were never going to be in on the elite free agents.

So while additions like Jansen and Moncada are nice and the Halos still have some money left to make a signing or two, their mid-free-agency inactivity caused them to miss the boat on talented players who could've been significantly more impactful.

In the end, they've upgraded the bullpen and infield depth which are worthwhile pursuits, yet those upgrades are largely negated by the lack of offensive firepower and top-of-the-rotation arms that the roster desperately needs.

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