5 trade candidates LA Angels need to sell high on right now after Marlins-Padres deal

Apparently, teams aren't waiting until July to start trading players this season. Over the weekend, the San Diego Padres and Miami Marlins pulled off a blockbuster trade that sent two-time batting champion Luis Arráez to southern California.

The Padres packaged three prospects and a reliever and shipped them off to South Beach in exchange for the two-time All-Star. Miami will also pay Arráez's 2024 salary. The Marlins have effectively ended any hopes their fanbase may have had of competing this season. Is it time for the Los Angeles Angels to do the same thing?

Of course Angels' fans don't want to hear that the ship has already sailed barely one month into the 2024 campaign, but with Shohei Ohtani off to the Los Angeles Dodgers, Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon on the injured list, and a last-place record in the AL West, should the Halos begin their fire sale while some of their players haven't thrown in the towel?

5 trade candidates LA Angels need to sell high on right now after Marlins-Padres deal

The Marlins received a decent return on Arráez, and in doing so, Miami basically put an "open for business" sign on the door to their front office. The Marlins and the Chicago White Sox will be sellers this summer. Given the current state of the Angels, Perry Minasian should start fielding trade offers as well. But who could be on the trade block?

Tyler Anderson, LA Angels LHP

If any team called the Angels looking to trade for Tyler Anderson, Minasian should hop in the car and drive the left-hander to his new clubhouse himself. Anderson signed a three-year deal with the Halos in 2023, and after struggling last season, has returned to his 2022 form that saw him earn a trip to the All-Star Game.

Anderson has a 2.23 ERA, but his 4.78 FIP suggests that the southpaw has been more lucky than good to begin his 2024 campaign. That's exactly why the Angels should sell high on Anderson right away. In fact, LA should follow the Marlins' blueprint and offer to pay down most of Anderson's 2024 salary in order to make a deal if necessary, so they can avoid having to pay him in 2025.

Luis Rengifo, LA Angels 2B

Luis Rengifo is hitting for power at the moment. The 27-year-old owns a .462 slugging percentage and .839 OPS. That's a sell-high situation if you've ever seen one. For his career, Rengifo has a .394 slugging percentage with a .704 OPS.

Rengifo is under team control through the 2025 season, so any team who's interested in his services would be gaining a versatile infielder who can hit from both sides of the plate. The Washington Nationals sold high on Jeimer Candelario last summer, and the Halos may be able to get a similar return for Rengifo.

Matt Moore, LA Angels LHP

Left-handed relievers will always have a place in the game of baseball, and Matt Moore is one of the better southpaws available. It's mildly surprising that the lefty made it back to the Angels. The Halos inked Moore to a one-year, $9 million contract back in January.

To date, Moore has been a bit off his game. The left-hander owns a 5.11 ERA and hasn't gotten the opposition to chase the way he did back in 2024. Despite his early-season struggles, the Angels could still fetch some sort of return for Moore if they made him available. Moore's last two seasons saw the veteran play for four different organizations and still log 143 punchouts with a 2.20 ERA.

Jo Adell, LA Angels OF

Some Angels' fans are screaming at their screen right now with pleas of, "No, he's finally living up to his potential." First, that's debatable. And second, that's precisely why the Halos should act now and trade Adell before he falls back into old habits.

Adell has always been a great athlete, and while he's shown improvements in the batters' box, it's not enough to justify the Angels hanging on to him if a prospect-laden package is presented. Adell has been a bust since arriving in LA, and if the Angels can turn the 25-year-old into couple of mid-level prospects, Minasian should pull the trigger on that deal immediately.

Taylor Ward, LA Angels OF

This one would hurt more than most, but will the Angels really be a competitive team during the window in which Taylor Ward is still on the roster? Ward entered his first year of arbitration this offseason, and will be under team control through 2026. But that's exactly the type of player that other teams will be coveting.

The Angels could get a decent return for Ward and help to build up their decimated farm system. The Angels do not have a single top-100 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline. That needs to change, and dealing Ward could help the Angels' front office in that endeavor. For those in opposition of trading Ward, just know he's 30 years old and will have rising arbitration figures between now and 2026.

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