Angels set to lose another offseason target to their crosstown rivals, the Dodgers

Losing Glasnow to the Dodgers might hurt, but he never made sense for the Angels anyway.

Sep 22, 2023; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Tyler Glasnow (20) reacts after
Sep 22, 2023; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Tyler Glasnow (20) reacts after / Jonathan Dyer-USA TODAY Sports

The Los Angeles Angels need pitching. That was blatantly obvious even before Shohei Ohtani made the decision to join the Dodgers last week. The Angels had a subpar rotation with Ohtani, and even if Shohei opted to remain in Anaheim, they would've had to add a frontline starter. The situation is no different with him gone.

While there are several high-end starters still available in free agency, it's been rumored that the Angels have been kicking around in the trade market looking to acquire frontline starters on expiring contracts. Three of the rumored targets have been Corbin Burnes, Shane Bieber, and Tyler Glasnow.

Glasnow felt like a very realistic target because of how risky of an acquisition he'd be. When he's healthy, he's great. The problem is he's rarely healthy. With one year remaining on his deal at $25 million, his value wasn't perceived to be so high, which would've helped an Angels team with limited assets to offer.

It turns out, the rich can get richer. Shohei Ohtani hasn't even been introduced as a Dodger yet, and the Dodgers are still making moves, as they're reportedly discussing a deal which would send Tyler Glasnow and Manuel Margot to LA. It's not finalized, but the way Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic worded his tweet, chances are it's going to be. Assuming it happens, the Angels will lose another one of their offseason targets to their crosstown rivals.

LA Angels set to lose another offseason target to the Dodgers

The Rays right-hander set career highs in both starts (21) and innings pitched (120) in his eighth MLB season. While it's great to see Glasnow set career bests, it's definitely concerning that those numbers are where he has topped out. For reference, the Angels had five starters with more starts and innings pitched than Glasnow.

When he pitches, Glasnow is an ace. There's absolutely no disputing that. He had a 3.53 ERA this past season, but had a 2.91 FIP and fanned an absurd 12.2 batters per nine. The upside is there, and it makes all the sense in the world that a team like the Dodgers would make this deal. They can expect him to miss time and as long as he's healthy for the postseason, they're golden.

For a team like the Angels, however, even though he was a rumored target Glasnow made no sense. This is a team nowhere near the playoffs right now. Even if Glasnow made 32 starts somehow it's hard to see this team getting in without multiple other major moves. Expecting the Angels to pull that off would not be wise.

The Dodgers are giving up a promising right-hander with loads of team control in Ryan Pepiot and an intriguing outfield prospect who played in 24 MLB games this past season for LA in this proposed trade. For the Angels, that'd likely be something along the lines of Chase Silseth and perhaps Jo Adell or Jordyn Adams. It's hard to find a Jonny Deluca comp.

A Glasnow deal is something the Angels could have but should not have pulled off. The same goes for any Shane Bieber deals. The only rental that should pique their interest is Corbin Burnes, and it's unclear whether Milwaukee would even move him. Losing Glasnow to the Dodgers might hurt more after Ohtani landed there, but he never made sense for the Angels anyway.

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