What is the best positional fit for this versatile Angels infielder?

Versatility is always a nice thing to have. It opens up flexibility, allows for optimal lineups, and provides options in the event of an inevitable injury. However, as currently constructed, the Angels' infield leaves much to be desired rendering a lot of Luis Rengifo's versatility null and void.

The team has a hole in the infield. Whether that's at second or third depends on where they'd prefer to slot Rengifo, who FanGraphs' roster resource projects as the opening-day starter at second base. In an ideal world, the Angels would've been aggressive early on in free agency, attacking both the second base and third base markets in search of the best possible option at either second or third to plug that hole, and then align Rengifo accordingly based on that addition.

Instead, the market is now slim pickings. The top non-Alex Bregman third base option is Yoan Moncada who provides some intrigue, but a lot of questions about health. Beyond him, the group becomes even less inspiring. Second base is a bit more inspiring, but the remnants of the market are still full of imperfect players, many of whom are of the glove-first variety.

Despite being one of the most active teams in free agency early on, the Angels missed the boat on adding a better caliber player than Rengifo this offseason, it would be a better idea to consider where Rengifo fits best and than fill the remaining hole accordingly.

LA Angels infielder Luis Rengifo is not a strong defender, but he performs better at one position than the others

Let's get this out of the way, no matter where you plug Rengifo he's not going to win any Gold Gloves. While he's played several positions throughout his career, second and third have been by far the most common and he's been a below-average defender at both.

Last season, he logged 244.2 innings at second base and posted -4 outs above average and -2 defensive runs saved. He also manned the hot corner for 368 innings with a -3 OAA and -2 DRS on his ledger. Still, his defensive outlook is slightly better at third where his arm is an asset and his range isn't as much of a liability.

Still, despite his defensive deficiencies, Rengifo was a highly sought-after name at last year's trade deadline, and his bat is a major reason why. While wrist injuries limited his 2024 campaign to just 78 games and wrist injuries are known to sap offensive production, he still finished the season with a career-high 117 wRC+.

When deciding his best position, these offensive factors matter more than one might think. Just because a player can play multiple positions doesn't mean he's equally comfortable at them all, and sometimes that discomfort translates to the batters' box.

Such appears to be the case for Rengifo. For his career, he's a 91 wRC+ hitter when he plays second base, but a 101 wRC+ hitter when he plays third. His batting average is similar at both positions (.250 at second versus .256 at third) his ISO climbs from .131 to .161 when he plays the hot corner. The Angels could use all the power they can get, and while that isn't Rengifo's calling card, if they can get a little more out of him at third than at second, that's not a bad thing.

All-in-all, in order to maximize the asset they already have it makes too much sense to play Rengifo at third. On top of that, there's slightly more left on the market at the keystone position at third, so combined the Angels could further optimize their lineup by sticking Rengifo at third and signing someone to man second.

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