2 trades the Angels should have made, 1 we are glad they didn't

The Los Angeles Angels were among the league's most active teams around the deadline, acquiring Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez, Randal Grichuk, C.J. Cron, and Dominic Leone in exchange for a slew of prospects. This doesn't even include the trades they made to acquire Mike Moustakas and Eduardo Escobar in June.

The goal was very clear from the start of this deadline process. Win now. Stop at nothing to do so. The farm system took a big hit, but the team also did improve. Whether the goal of making it back to the postseason for the first time since 2014 will be reached or not remains to be seen, but the Angels seem to have done whatever they could to give them the best shot which is all you can really ask for.

As much as we'd like for the Angels to have traded for Justin Verlander or Max Scherzer, the team didn't have the prospects or money to make that happen. There were, however, players they seemed to have the ability to get but didn't. Now that the deadline has passed, let's look back at some players we wish the Halos acquired while also looking at two we're glad they didn't.

David Robertson would've been an outstanding fit at the back of the LA Angels bullpen

David Robertson was, in my opinion, the best reliever traded at the deadline. That's no disrespect to Reynaldo Lopez who has looked unbelievable as an Angel, but what if, instead of trading for Dominic Leone, the Angels traded for a different Mets reliever in David Robertson.

It's important to point out Robertson was moved four days before the trade deadline. That means the Mets got a package they clearly couldn't refuse. Whether the Angels could've topped it or not without using Edgar Quero or Ky Bush I have no idea, but it certainly would've been nice to see them try.

Robertson is as experienced as they come. He's succeeded in any role in the bullpen whether he's closing or setting up, and has a ton of postseason experience. He's even won a World Series, something very few Angels can say.

He wouldn't have come cheap, but with the Angels trying to put their best foot forward for the 2023 season, it makes too much sense. A late-game tandem of Reynaldo Lopez, Matt Moore, David Robertson, and Carlos Estevez would've been electric.

It would've been nice to steal Jordan Montgomery away from the rival Rangers

The Rangers made one of the two major blockbuster moves with their Max Scherzer acquisition, but they also added Jordan Montgomery to an already solid rotation. Montgomery has been one of the best left-handers in baseball since being traded to the Cardinals last trade deadline and would've been a nice fit on the Angels.

Now, did the Angels really need another starter after they had already acquired Lucas Giolito? Not necessarily. However, it sure would've been nice to have him knowing that Griffin Canning would land on the IL on the day of the deadline. Chase Silseth has been good, but can't go deep into games and hasn't been reliable throughout his MLB opportunities.

Montgomery on the other hand, is Mr. Reliable himself. He has a 3.42 ERA in 21 starts and 121 innings pitched. He's allowed three runs or fewer in 17 of the 21 starts. He's gone at least six innings 13 times, and at least five innings 18 times. The Angels lack the consistency Montgomery provides.

I would shy away from saying Montgomery has the ceiling Lucas Giolito has, but his floor is also higher as we saw from Giolito's blow-up in Atlanta. The cost to get Montgomery was significantly cheaper than the cost to acquire Giolito even though they're both rentals. The Angels could've had both, and would've even been justified choosing Montgomery over Giolito. The fact that they have to watch him pitch for their division rival makes it hard to swallow.