3 free agents not named Justin Verlander the Angels can sign from their division rivals

The Los Angeles Angels made a big move by signing Tyler Anderson away from their crosstown rivals to a pretty cheap three-year deal. Anderson gives them an arm to place at the top of their rotation behind Shohei Ohtani.

Now that they got a player from their crosstown rivals, what about the division? The Angels finished third in the AL West this past season with a 73-89 record. There are players they can target from within the division to maybe make the jump in what's become a very top-heavy AL West.

Justin Verlander is the obvious big name in this division to hit free agency, but he's an unrealistic target as of now. Here are three more realistic names the Angels can consider.

1) The Angels can sign Matt Moore away from the Texas Rangers

Matt Moore's career looked like it was finished. The southpaw was at one time one of the young stars in the game, seen as the future ace in the Rays rotation.

Since making his lone all-star appearance and finishing ninth in the AL Cy Young balloting in 2013, Moore has struggled to produce and has struggled to stay healthy.

He went to Japan for the 2020 season and was solid, earning another chance in the MLB for 2021 with the Phillies.

Moore was dreadful in Philadelphia, posting a 6.29 ERA. He signed a minor league deal with the Rangers in March of this year and found his way onto the big league club in mid-April. Once he got the call, he was dominant in his new role.

Moore was a starter for most of his career. He found a home in the back-end of the Rangers bullpen in 2022.

The southpaw went 5-2 with a 1.95 ERA in 63 appearances. As a starter in the past, he was able to go more than one inning at times, which makes him a valuable asset as well. He posted a 10.1 K/9 which was the highest of his career since his rookie year when he made just three appearances. He also allowed just three home runs in 74 innings of work (0.4 HR/9).

Moore's big flaw in his career is his lack of command at times, and it showed this season as well as he walked 4.6 batters per nine. While that's annoying, he didn't let the home run ball beat him, so the walks didn't come back to haunt him more often than not.

The Angels do have a left hander in their bullpen in Aaron Loup and have another southpaw who will probably be on the team in Jose Quijada. What I really like about Moore is he isn't just a lefty specialist. In fact, he was even better against righties than lefties in 2022.

Right handed hitters slashed .165/.282/.255 against him in 220 plate appearances. This means the Angels could put him in just about any situation and feel comfortable with him recording outs.

Will Moore be as good as he was in 2022? Probably not, but he'd most definitely be an upgrade over much of what the Angels have right now in their bullpen.

2) The Angels can sign Michael Brantley away from the Houston Astros

Mitch Haniger is a player I've talked a lot about, so let's talk about a different outfielder the Angels can sign.

The fit with Michael Brantley might not be the best one. At 35 years old coming off season-ending shoulder surgery, Brantley might be better suited to be a DH.

The Angels, of course, already have their DH in Shohei Ohtani. If Brantley decides he wants to play the field, the fit makes a lot of sense.

Brantley split time between left field and DH this past season in the 64 games he played. He actually had 2 DRS out in left field which was better than Jo Adell's -1 DRS.

What the Angels really could use is Brantley's bat. He doesn't hit for as much power as he did a few years ago, but he's a contact hitter who gets on base at an elite clip.

The Angels can place Brantley anywhere in their lineup and expect him to produce offensively. He can be expected to hit between .280 and .300 with a .350+ OBP. The Angels weren't 25th in runs scored because of their lack of power.

Mike Trout had 40 home runs and 80 RBI. Do you know how hard that is to do? Imagine if he had someone like Michael Brantley getting on base in front of him.

I know the defense is a huge question mark and signing a 35-year-old after a season-ending injury isn't the most ideal situation, but Michael Brantley's bat would be such a good fit in the Angels lineup.