4 free agents the Angels should not bother getting into a bidding war over

2) Cody Bellinger

If the Angels get the 2019 version of Cody Bellinger, the deal they'd sign him on would be an absolute steal. If they got the 2023 version of Cody Bellinger, the deal they'd sign him on would be an absolute steal. If they got the 2020-2022 version, well, that'd be a massive issue. That makes it hard to engage in a real bidding war for Bellinger.

Bellinger at his best is an MVP-caliber player. He won it in 2019 and played like it for much of 2023. At his worst, he's not even close to a league-average hitter. That kind of volatility is a problem, and one the Angels might be better off avoiding.

From 2020-2022, Bellinger had just a .646 OPS and a 76 OPS+. He was so bad to the point where the Dodgers opted to non-tender him ahead of the 2023 season. Bellinger did rediscover his swing in 2023 and put up a monster year, but he also did so in a contract year. Believing in that resurgence when the previous three years were so dreadful could come back to bite the Angels, especially when they'd have to give him such a monstrous contract.

Outside of Shohei Ohtani, Bellinger is very clearly the most valuable position player on the market. This will only raise his value, especially once Shohei is off the market. Teams that missed out on Ohtani might need a bat and might want to make a big splash. The Angels would know what they'd get in the field, and when right he can come somewhat close to Ohtani offensively, but it's such a risk. The Angels should offer something, but proceed with caution.