Robert Stephenson's setback suddenly opens key Angels roster spot

Robert Stephenson's spot on the Los Angeles Angels' 2026 Opening Day roster always felt rather tenuous. Performance was never the question — though he's yet to appear in a Cactus League game this spring — but his health was always a concern. Stephenson appeared in just 12 games for the Angels in 2025 and ended the year on the injured list with inflammation in his right elbow.

Unfortunately, Stephenson has suffered yet another setback. Over the weekend, MLB.com writer Steve Stockmar reported that the Angels hurler was fighting back tears before Saturday's game after revealing that he “felt something” after his most recent bullpen session.

This is a devastating blow for both Stephenson and the Angels' bullpen. LA was hoping to have their highest-paid reliever in position to close out games in the ninth inning, but that duty will fall to someone other than Stephenson, at least at the outset of the 2026 season.

Stephenson's impending absence, however, all but guarantees Angels fans will see Hunter Strickland back in Anaheim this season. A non-roster invitee to spring training, the veteran has continually put up zeroes on the scoreboard through his first four outings this spring. He's allowed just three hits while striking out two of the 14 hitters he's faced, and has yet to walk a single batter.

The extent of Stephenson's injury is not yet known, but if it involves in the UCL, it's a good bet that he'll wind up on the 60-day IL. That would give LA the perfect opportunity to add Strickland to the 40-man roster as they attempt to weather the storm created by Stephenson's absence.

Robert Stephenson injury update makes Angels contract look brutal

It may not ever reach Anthony Rendon-levels of awful, but Stephenson's three-year, $33 million contract has to be looked at as an abject failure at this point. Even if he returns midway through the 2026 season, the fact that LA forked over that much money for a middle-of-the-road reliever is objectively insane.

Stephenson's injury history was well documented before the Angels signed him two years ago. In fact, there was even an injury clause included in the free-agent agreement he signed back in 2024. He suffered an elbow injury before even throwing a pitch that spring and missed the entire year after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

Stephenson returned to the mound during the 2025 season, and after a rehab stint in the minors, returned to the major leagues and recorded seven strikeouts over six innings of work last September. But he suffered yet another setback and landed on the 15-day IL with two weeks left in the regular season.

There's a small chance that the Angels could save face. Due to Stephenson's season-ending surgery two years ago, LA gained a meager $2.5 million option for 2027. Whether or not they exercise it will depend greatly on whether Stephenson returns to the active roster this season. Even then, his effectiveness will be highly questionable.

These are the types of roster moves that drive Angels' fans up a wall. The Halos have a bad habit of spending gobs of money on mediocre or injury-prone talent, while other teams avoid these types of traps. Stephenson's contract is the most recent example of how questionable the Angels' decision-making has been of late.