LA Angels should claim Nick Anderson off waivers

The Los Angeles Angels have a bullpen that could use some improvement. Jimmy Herget broke out in 2022 and should play a prominent role in this upcoming season's bullpen. Veterans Aaron Loup and Ryan Tepera had their ups and downs but will be counted on to produce in the bullpen as well.

The Angels have some young arms like Jose Quijada and Andrew Wantz who showed promise and will probably be in the bullpen in some capacity as well. Other than those relievers, the Angels don't have much.

Nick Anderson was at one point one of the better relievers in baseball. He was just placed on waivers by the Rays. The Angels should place a claim.

Claiming Nick Anderson off of waivers would be a low risk high reward move for the LA Angels.

Nick Anderson was a promising reliever with the Marlins and was traded to the Rays at the 2019 trade deadline. After arriving in Tampa, Anderson had a 2.11 ERA in 23 appearances while striking out an absurd 17.3 batters per nine.

In 2020 Anderson continued to be dominant, allowing just one earned run in 16.1 innings in the shortened season while striking out 41 batters. He struggled in the playoffs that season and has dealt with a variety of arm injuries since.

Anderson appeared in just six games and 2021 and did not appear in any games this past season. The Rays waived Anderson who's about to hit arbitration for the first time in his career.

With Anderson being projected at $845k for his 2023 salary, there's no risk and a chance of very high reward. If Anderson's arm is shot and he doesn't pitch well and doesn't stay healthy, the Angels spent almost nothing to acquire him.

If Anderson is anything close to what he was a few seasons ago, their bullpen will be in much better shape. They'd be getting a power arm with elite strikeout stuff who can pitch in the back end of the bullpen.

With uncertainty regarding how much money Arte Moreno will spend while trying to sell the team, Anderson is the kind of low-cost move that can end up producing huge results for the Angels.