The 3 big questions hanging over the Angels as the holidays approach

Barring a Christmas Eve miracle, Boxing Day spending spree or a pre-New Year resolution, 2025 is pretty much over for the Angels. Like all of us going into the holiday season, questions remain. Questions like, “How many helpings of food can I get away with?” or “How quickly can I list unwanted gifts on Ebay?” may dominate the holiday season for most, but the answers to the Angels' key questions will reverberate across the 2026 baseball season.

3 Angels questions the team still must resolve

What will the Opening Day roster look like?

At this stage, arguably only three positions are locked in for the 2026 Angels. Barring injury or a totally unexpected acquisition, Opening Day will see Logan O’Hoppe behind the plate, Zach Neto at shortstop, and Nolan Schanuel at first base. Jo Adell will be in the outfield - somewhere - and Mike Trout will be in the lineup. Outside of that, though, everything else is worryingly TBD.

If Christian Moore starts, will it be at second or third base? If he’s not at the hot corner, Denzer Gusman, Oswald Peraza or Vaughn Grissom could be, and any combination of Trout, Jorge Soler, Matthew Lugo, Bryce Teodosio or even Nelson Rada could join Adell in the outfield. The rotation is in a similar state of uncertainty. Yusei Kikuchi seems a safe bet to start, likely followed in some order by Jose Soriano, Reid Detmers, Grayson Rodriguez and… Alek Manoah? Caden Dana?

The recent additions of Drew Pomeranz and Jordan Romano gives the bullpen a clearer outline, assuming they join Brock Burke, Ryan Zeferjahn, Robert Stevenson and at least two of Sam Bachman, Chase Silseth and Cody Laweryson.

The best thing you can say about that potential roster is that it’s young and likely hungry – but question marks remain, right across the diamond.

Is there a big move coming?

Of course, everything could still change with a few strokes of a pen. So far, the Angels have signed or traded for players that are risky, but also cheap. Could the moves so far be setting the table for something bigger? Some insiders certainly think so, but Angels fans have been down this road before.

They’ve already seen several players rumored to be Anaheim-bound sign elsewhere; Kenley Jansen to Detroit, Micheal King to the Padres, and Munetaka Murakami to the White Sox. The Angels, even by Perry Minasian’s own admission, are most in need of a center fielder and third baseman (or possibly second, depending on their plans with Moore). As always, more starting pitching would also be essential, and there are several high-profile free agent candidates still available.

The likes of Alex Bregman, Kyle Tucker and Framber Valdez are almost certainly out of reach, but Cody Bellinger’s left-handed bat would fill several needs, Japanese star Kazuma Okamoto’s contact approach always made more sense for the Angels than his slugging but strikeout-prone countryman Murakami, and Zac Gallen would be a far more reliable arm than either Rodriguez or Manoah. Sign one or more of these guys, on top of the high-risk, high-reward moves to date, and the offseason would immediately look like a success.

Angels fans, though, have become accustomed to seeing their team’s holes filled by journeymen, with predictable results, and the longer this offseason drags on, the more likely reliving that outcome becomes.

Is there stability on the horizon?

One hope for 2026 is that that baseball, good or bad, can once again be the primary focus for the Angels. Antony Rendon’s contract is finally coming to an end, even if they don’t negotiate an early exit. The Tyler Skaggs civil trial has reached a settlement, although Rob Manfred’s office has indicated they will still be looking at the case internally. They have Kurt Suzuki and his new coaching staff in place, if only for one guaranteed year. Arte Moreno hasn’t indicated that he plans to put the team on the market…yet.

It may sound strange, as the entire sport braces for the end of the current Collective Bargaining Agreement, but in many ways, the Angels are sailing smoother waters than they have in several years. How long that lasts is anyone’s guess, but there is at least a chance that the drama on the field will outshine the drama off it, for a while.  

Hopefully all of you reading this can take a break, and spend time with loved ones. These questions can wait, because 2026 is coming, whether the Angels are ready for it or not.