2 Angels players who should see a larger role in 2025, and 2 who should not

LA Angels should regress the roles of these 2 players

If the Angels decide to re-sign Taylor Ward next season, it should only be for using him as a backup in the outfield. Entering Sept. 6, the 30-year-old has only produced a 1.6 bWAR in 562 plate appearances this year with 143 strikeouts. His defensive metrics are constantly in the negatives, and his walk rate has gone down in each of the last three seasons.

The Angels' outfield in 2025 will hopefully see Mike Trout playing every day alongside Mickey Moniak and Jo Adell, leaving Ward to play a couple times each week.

The other player who should not see a larger role in 2025 for Los Angeles is Carson Fulmer. The Angels signed Fulmer to a Minor League contract in May 2023 after his release from the Mariners AAA team. At 30 years old, Fulmer finally started etching out a full season in 2024 before landing on the IL in late August with right elbow inflammation. He fired far too many walks, registering a WHIP over 1.30 in 80.1 innings pitched.

Those are too many innings to give Fulmer, who had a forgettable August. He surrendered 13 runs last month across five outings, which isn't enough for the Angels to feel confident about when he returns to full health. His role with the team has been back-and-forth as well, starting in eight games while appearing in 32 total contests. Los Angeles has other pitchers to consider before handing Fulmer more innings.

Current relievers Ben Joyce, Roansy Contreras, Robert Stephenson, and maybe even Hunter Strickland should highlight the relief core going into 2025. The Angels need to shop for some relief arms, but starting with these four pitchers is a good start with Fulmer partially in mind.