Who starts at this position on Opening Day will prove whether Angels plan to contend

The Los Angeles will have an interesting season in 2026. Despite having a roster and payroll situation that indicates the window to contend is more likely to open in 2027, the Angels have a general manager and (shockingly) first-year manager on the hot seat. Both Perry Minasian and Kurt Suzuki are tied together for 2026, and if the team fails then they are out.

How much Arte Moreno will spend in order to supplement the two desperate staffers should be interesting. The team has no shortage of holes that need to fill, but Moreno likely will not set Suzuki and Minasian up too much for success after he opened up his wallet last year and the team fell flat on its face. Plus, the team has a few prospects (including some already on the 40-man roster) who could be leaned on to be every day players next year.

One position in particular will be incredibly interesting to monitor, and could show ownership's willingness in actually trying to compete a year before they actually need to go all in.

Who starts at this position on Opening Day will prove whether Angels plan to contend

The Angels are all but certainly going to let Luis Rengifo walk in free agency, which should open up the door for Christian Moore to play on a full-time at second base...right? Well, Moore struggled mightily last season and there are quite a few intriguing options that would represent a win now mentality in Anaheim.

On the free agency front, Bo Bichette, Ha-Seong Kim, Gleyber Torres, Brandon Lowe (if the Rays decline his team option) and new member of the class in Jorge Polanco would all be massive upgrades at second base over Moore and allow the former first round pick to marinate more in the minors. Bichette next to Zach Neto up the middle makes all the sense in a perfect world, but he will likely be well out of the Angels' price range.

Kim, Torres, Lowe and Polanco are the type of mid-tier free agents that MLB has discounted, so if Minasian prioritizes one of them he could certainly reel one in. Lowe and Polanco in particular looks intriguing, as the Halos could desperately use a left-handed bat with some pop. Stealing Polanco helps the Angels and hurts the Mariners, so that would be extra juicy.

During his 22-years-old season, Christian Moore slashed .198/.284/.370/.655. In typical Angels fashion, Moore started out his career as a clutch world-beater, got injured and did not have the same impact once he was activated off the injured list. The defensive concerns are real with Moore, as well as the strikeout numbers, yet he remains the favorite to start every day at second base. All due respect to Moore -- should he win that job, it certainly would show that the Angels are not going to seriously contend. Starting a 23-year-old with glaring holes in his game is not the ideal situation for a team looking to make the playoffs, especially when there are many intriguing alternatives.