Ranking the 5 most valuable Angels players from the 2023 season

1) Shohei Ohtani

I mean, does this really need to be said? The MVP of the league was obviously the MVP of the 73-89 Angels.

What Ohtani did this season was truly extraordinary. At the plate, he was as good as he has ever been. He smacked 44 home runs despite missing most of the final month of the season due to injury. He was just three shy of tying Troy Glaus' single-season franchise record in home runs, again, despite being limited to 135 games.

Perhaps what was most impressive about Shohei's season was his 10.0 bWAR. He led all of baseball in WAR despite the missed games, and had one of the best WAR seasons in Angels history. Only Mike Trout who has had a pair of 10.5 bWAR seasons has a higher mark than that in Angels history.

His numbers on the mound might've taken a slight dip from 2022, but he was still pitching like an ace. I mean, imagine being a bit disappointed by a 3.14 ERA in 23 starts and holding the opposition to a .184 batting average against! Just unreal.

If this is indeed the end for Ohtani in an Angels uniform, he went out with the loudest of bangs. It might not be better than his 2021 season because of the missed time, but Ohtani's play was clearly as strong as it has ever been this past season. The Angels didn't win enough, obviously, but Ohtani did everything he could to drag this team as far as he could when healthy.