Back in the middle of November I wrote about how the Angels had let Mike Trout down. The superstar having played in just 3 post season games in his 14 seasons there.
At that point this is what their off season looked like:
They had traded for slugger Jorge Soler. They signed three free agents, mostly back up infielder Kevin Newman, catcher Travis d’Arnaud with up and comer Logan O’Hoppe already entrenched as starter, and pitcher Kyle Hendricks, who’s best years are behind him.
They had already traded for Scott Kingery who the Phillies once signed to a six year $24 million deal before he ever played a game in the majors. He wasn’t horrible for the Phils in 2019 but has played in only 52 big league games since. At 30 he had a decent AAA season in 2024.
Certainly underwhelming when you consider how far they have to go. The Angels weren’t just bad last season, they were historically bad. The ninety-nine losses were the most in franchise history, impressive when you consider they started as an expansion team.
Kikuchi comes on board
The first piece of really decent news came December twenty-seventh when they outbid some teams for the services of left hander Yusei Kikuchi. At three-years and $63.675 million it was a bit of an overpay but when you lose ninety-nine games that’s the price.
The Angels are certainly hoping they got the Kikuchi that pitched in Houston. His ten games there were the best of his career, a 2.71 ERA and 0.933 WHIP. His career numbers have him at a less than average ERA+ of 91.
Nonetheless he’s hoping his arrival coincides with the Angels somehow finding their way back into post season play. Thanks here for the translation:
1泊3日でフィジカル検査のためにアナハイムに来ていました。無事に終えて、先ほどエンジェルスと契約締結となりました。久しぶりのプレーオフ進出の力になれるように頑張ります。
これから始まる新しい旅が楽しみです。
今からフライトし、日本へ帰ります。— 菊池雄星 (@Yuseikikuchi16) November 28, 2024
“I came to Anaheim for a physical exam for three days and one night. All went well, and I just signed a contract with the Angels. I will do my best to help us advance to the playoffs for the first time in a while.”
Could Santander really be next?
Now comes word that the Angels have emerged as a favourite to land free agent Anthony Santander. With the addition of Santander, Soler and hopefully a finally somewhat healthy Trout, The Angels would be a lot more fun to watch after finishing twenty-second in the majors with 165 home runs.
All that and still almost three months to go to do a little more before opening day. And maybe, just maybe Anthony Rendon isn’t done and wants to play baseball.
