There haven't been many Los Angeles Angels rumors of late, as most of the dialogue has been surrounding the recent news that Arte Moreno has pulled the Angels off of the market and will remain the owner in 2023 and beyond.
One thing that'll get Angels fans to get over the fact that Moreno isn't in fact leaving is if he continues to improve the product on the field. For years, he's gotten some big-name pieces but once he got up to the luxury tax, he'd refuse to allow the GM to do more to improve the team. The Angels have around $14 million dollars to spend on a team with multiple holes left, let's see if Arte actually allows Perry Minasan to do whatever it takes to help the team win.
One area of improvement for this Angels team has to be the bullpen. Carlos Estevez was brought in to be a back-end arm and I believe that was a good signing. However, for an Angels bullpen that was below average in 2022, I think another piece is needed.
The latest Angels rumors suggest the team is looking for another left-handed reliever.
Ken Rosenthal (subscription required) lists the Angels among a bunch of different teams with "various interest and various amounts to spend." The interest could be minimal or serious and the amount of money they have to spend could be a lot or a little. Either way, I think it's encouraging that the Angels are at least in the conversation here.
The Angels do have two left-handed relievers already locked into their bullpen in Aaron Loup and Jose Quijada, so seeing them pursuing another lefty is a little bit surprising but some of the best relievers left are left-handed, so it does make sense.
The best lefties available include Andrew Chafin and Matt Moore. Both are coming off of outstanding 2022 campaigns, and if the Angels get one of them, Chafin in particular, their bullpen will have gained two very legitimate high-leverage arms.
Other options include Zack Britton who the Angels have been linked to in the past. Will Smith and Brad Hand are two other veterans the Halos could pursue if they want to go the cheaper route.
Chafin and Moore are the dream options. Britton is the risky option considering he's coming off of Tommy John. Hand and Smith are decent veterans at this point in their careers. All five are fine options depending on the pricepoint and whether it'd stop the Angels from upgrading