Why the LA Angels being sellers made sense

The trade deadline has come and gone and the LA Angels have made some serious moves to get them into contention for the future. The team made three significant moves that could see the team shape up for the future. After mulling over whether the team would be buyers, sellers, or stand pat, Angels General Manager Perry Minasian made their move known.

On Tuesday, the Angels traded away Noah Syndergaard and Brandon Marsh to the Phillies in seperate trades. They also traded Raisel Iglesias to the Braves in order to mostly save money. The Phillies deals saw Angels acquire catcher Logan O'Hoppe (Phillies No. 3 prospect in their system), Mickey Moniak (Phillies former #1 pick from 2016), and Jadiel Sanchez. The team is getting an all-around good catching prospect in O'Hoppe, who has power at the plate and his defensive skills are good enough to stay behind the plate according to MLB.com.

Moniak is an interesting move because he has struggled with the team that has drafted him. However, when looking at his numbers in the minor leagues, there is room for growth as 2019 saw his best full season in the minor leagues. He slashed .252/.303/.439 with an OPS of .742 and a wRC+ of 115 during the 2019 season. It shows he has potential.

This is about the future for the LA Angels.

The writing was on the wall based on the team's performance in the first-half of the season and Perry Minasian took advantage of the unfortunate situation. The LA Angels now have a catcher for the future, which could open up should Stassi leave after his three-year extension; as O'Hoppe is the #1 prospect in the teams farm system according to mlb.com.

The Angels got to free up some money in terms of their payroll by also trading Iglesias to the Braves in return for Jesse Chavez and Tucker Davidson. Minasian may know what he's getting with Chavez and Davidson as that used to be his former club before taking the Angels job. It will depend on the future on whether these moves pan out for the team as these were clearly moves aimed for next season and beyond.

While it might hurt to lose a home grown player like Marsh and a lock down closer like Iglesias, these moves allow the team to think about their future. The Angels had a surplus of outfielders that can play and still need to develop, so it does make sense to capitalize on Marsh's success. The Iglesias move obviously frees up money to be spent somewhere else; only time will tell when and where.