Angels continue bullpen overhaul, sign Matt Moore to one-year deal

The Los Angeles Angels were awfully quiet early on in the offseason, which came as a huge disappointment especially considering the fact that Shohei Ohtani left in free agency.

While the Angels have not addressed the offense or starting rotation at all, they've completely revamped what was one of the league's worst bullpens in 2023. They signed Adam Cimber, Adam Kolarek, and Luis Garcia to cheap one-year deals early on. After a prolonged period of nothing, the Angels then made their biggest move of the winter, signing Robert Stephenson to a three-year deal.

While the Stephenson signing was a good one, the bullpen was lacking a prominent left-handed reliever. That has now changed, with the Angels signing Matt Moore to a one-year deal.

LA Angels continue bullpen overhaul by bringing back familiar face

Last offseason the Angels signed Matt Moore to a one-year deal worth $7.5 million, and he turned out to be their best and most consistent reliever before the team opted to place him on waivers to save some money when they were out of postseason contention.

As an Angel, the southpaw posted a 2.66 ERA in 41 appearances and 44 innings pitched. He showed versatility with his ability to face both righties and lefties, and even recorded more than three outs when asked.

Moore put together a second straight dominant year out of the bullpen, yet only got a $1.5 million raise. This is a remarkable deal for the Angels, who now have three reliable late-game arms with Moore joining Stephenson and Carlos Estevez. Even Ben Joyce and Jose Soriano are knocking on the door. The rotation might be bad, but Ron Washington has several options all of a sudden to turn to in the bullpen.

While $9 million might sound a bit expensive, it's only a one-year deal, and Aroldis Chapman signed a deal for $10.5 million. Moore is far better than Chapman, making this a really strong deal for Minasian and the Angels.

There's more work to be done, but the moves the Angels have made in the last week have undoubtedly made them a much better team.