Los Angeles Angels

The Los Angeles Angels and free-agent pitcher Noah Syndergaard have reportedly agreed to a one-year, $21 million contract, ESPN's Jeff Passan reports.

MLB Network's Jon Morosi first reported the two sides were working on a deal.

The Angels entered this offseason badly needing to address their rotation. Shohei Ohtani was the only pitcher on their staff to throw at least 100 innings in 2021 (130.1).

Andrew Heaney, who finished third on the Angels with 94 innings pitched, left as a free agent to sign a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Alex Cobb (93.1 innings) is also a free agent. 

Los Angeles' starting staff hasn't ranked higher than 22nd in innings pitched since 2015. It hasn't finished higher than 20th in ERA since 2018. 

Syndergaard is a high-risk, high-reward gamble for the Angels. The 29-year-old only pitched two innings out of the bullpen for the Mets at the end of last season. He underwent Tommy John surgery in March 2020. 

The Angels should be doing everything they can to make the playoffs. Ohtani and Mike Trout are two generational talents, but the franchise has been unable to surround them with enough help to be a postseason threat. 

During his last healthy season in 2019, Syndergaard posted the worst ERA of his career (4.28). His peripheral stats were better than that, with a 3.60 fielding independent pitching and 4.3 wins above replacement, per FanGraphs.

If Syndergaard pitches next season at that level, he will be a perfectly viable No. 2 starter behind Ohtani for Los Angeles.    

Free-agent pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez is receiving interest from the Toronto Blue Jays, Los Angeles Angels and Detroit Tigers, according to MLB Network's Jon Morosi. 

The news comes after the Boston Red Sox extended an $18.4 million qualifying offer to the left-hander last week. He has until Nov. 17 to accept or decline that offer. If he declines, the Red Sox will receive draft compensation.

Morosi reported Nov. 9 that the Angels were showing interest in Rodriguez as they aim to upgrade their rotation this winter. L.A. has also reportedly been linked to Robbie Ray, Marcus Stroman and Noah Syndergaard. 

The Angels had one of the worst pitching staffs in MLB last season, recording a 4.69 ERA, the ninth worst in MLB, and a 1.38 WHIP. 

Shohei Ohtani, Jose Suarez and Patrick Sandoval figure to be atop L.A.'s rotation in 2022. However, the Angels need replacements for Dylan Bundy and Alex Cobb, who struggled in 2021 and are now free agents. 

As for Toronto, the Blue Jays actually had one of the better pitching staffs in baseball last season, finishing with a 3.91 ERA (10th in MLB) and a 1.23 WHIP (eighth in MLB). However, with Ray now a free agent, the team could very well need to replace him this winter.

As it stands, the Jays' rotation includes Hyun Jin Ryu, Jose Berrios, Alek Manoah and Thomas Hatch. 

Like the Angels, Detroit's pitching staff was subpar in 2021, finishing with a 4.32 ERA and 1.37 WHIP. The Tigers have a relatively young rotation with Casey Mize, Tarik Skubal and Matt Manning onboard for 2022, and they could benefit from adding a veteran like Rodriguez. 

However, Rodriguez struggled in 2021 after missing the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign due to myocarditis related to his COVID-19 diagnosis. The Venezuelan went 13-8 with a career-worst 4.74 ERA and 1.39 WHIP. 

The 28-year-old's best season came in 2019, when he finished sixth in American League Cy Young voting. He went 19-6 with a career-best 3.81 ERA, in addition to a 1.33 WHIP and 213 strikeouts in 203.1 innings across 34 starts. 

Despite his struggles, Rodriguez is a solid candidate to have a bounce-back season in 2022, and he's among one of the best free-agent pitchers available this winter.  

The Los Angeles Angels have their eyes on starting pitching this offseason.

According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, Robbie Ray, Marcus Stroman, Noah Syndergaard and Alex Wood are all seen as potential fits for the Angels in free agency.

Los Angeles finished last season with a 77-85 record while the team's 4.69 ERA ranked just 22nd in the majors. It meant a seventh straight year without a playoff appearance for the organization.

Shohei Ohtani will return as the ace of the staff, while Jose Suarez and Patrick Sandoval were serviceable in the rotation last season. The team still needs replacements for Alex Cobb and Dylan Bundy, who are free agents after poor 2021 seasons.

It's clear the squad needs more front-line starters to help compete in the American League West.

Ray would certainly be an upgrade after a Cy Young Award-worthy season for the Toronto Blue Jays. The left-hander had a 2.84 ERA, 1.045 WHIP and 248 strikeouts, all bests in the AL.

Consistency might be a concern after Ray produced a 6.62 ERA in 12 appearances during the shortened 2020 season, but his career 11.2 strikeouts per nine innings indicate he can succeed anywhere.

Wood is also coming off an impressive season with the San Francisco Giants, going 10-4 with a 3.83 ERA and 3.9 strikeouts per walk. The 30-year-old won a World Series with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2020 and helped the Giants post the best record in the majors last year.

Stroman didn't play at all in 2020 after opting out but proved his ability this past season with a 3.02 ERA in 33 starts for the New York Mets.

Syndergaard is more of a question mark after Tommy John surgery cost him nearly two full seasons. The Mets right-hander returned in time to pitch two innings at the end of 2021, allowing two runs in this stretch.

It could be a significant risk for a player who hasn't been an All-Star since 2016.    

The agent for Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani declined to specify whether the MVP finalist has discussed a new contract with the team.

Nez Balelo did, however, tell reporters his client is "extremely happy" in Anaheim. He went on to praise the vision of Angels general manager Perry Minasian.

"I was with Perry yesterday, and I know one of the things that he's really set out to do is to put together a competitive team," Balelo said. "He is all about it. And I think that's wonderful. ... They're really close to being a really dynamic team."

Ohtani has one more year of arbitration before hitting free agency in 2024. Based on his performance in 2021, he might become one of the highest-paid players in MLB.

The 27-year-old had 46 home runs, 100 RBI and a .592 slugging percentage while posting a 3.18 ERA and striking out 156 strikeouts over 130.1 innings. His two-way dominance is something fans haven't seen for generations.

When it comes to Ohtani's extension, money shouldn't be an issue for the Angels.

Per Cot's Baseball Contracts, the franchise has had a top-10 payroll on Opening Day for each of the last 18 seasons. Los Angeles also handed Mike Trout a record-setting 12-year, $426.5 million extension.

The bigger question is whether Ohtani wants to commit his future to a team with one playoff appearance since 2009. The Angels are a prime example that spending money isn't a path to success without a plan in place.

Perhaps Minasian will build a contender by the time Ohtani is due to hit the open market, thus removing one incentive for him to leave.

For the time being, nobody should blame the Japanese slugger if he's having some reservations about re-signing.

The Los Angeles Angels reportedly have their eye on starting pitching this offseason.

According to Jon Morosi of MLB Network, the American League West team is looking "to add at least one and possibly two impact starting pitchers" and is interested in southpaws Robbie Ray and Eduardo Rodriguez.

It isn't particularly surprising the Angels are looking for starting pitching considering they were just 22nd in the league in starting pitching ERA during the 2021 campaign.

Those totals were also with Shohei Ohtani dominating on his way to a 3.18 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 156 strikeouts in 130.1 innings. It was the first time in his career he pitched more than 51.2 innings in a season, so relying on him to replicate that in 2022 may not be the most surefire way to guarantee an effective starting staff.

Even if he does remain as durable and unhittable for extended stretches, Los Angeles needs more pitching around him if it is going to make the playoffs for the first time since 2014.

Ray, 30, is a veteran who would immediately elevate the staff. The 2017 All-Star turned in the best season of his career in 2021 for the Toronto Blue Jays and led the league across the board with 32 starts, 193.1 innings pitched, a 2.84 ERA, a 1.05 WHIP and 248 strikeouts.

The performance was perfect timing for the southpaw heading into free agency, and the Angels would be the fourth team of his career after stints with the Detroit Tigers and Arizona Diamondbacks.

While Rodriguez can't match Ray's gaudy numbers, he was sixth in American League Cy Young voting in 2019 for the Boston Red Sox and is younger at 28 years old.

He is also playoff tested with 11 postseason appearances on his resume and would likely slide in near the top of the Angels' rotation if they signed him.                   

As he prepares for an uncertain offseason, Albert Pujols doesn't sound like he's ready to hang up his cleats right now. 

Per MLB.com's Juan Toribio, Pujols addressed his future while speaking to reporters in the Dominican Republic on Friday. 

"I’ve always said that I’m going to retire when I feel it's time," he said. "I don’t think that my time has come yet."

Speculation about Pujols' future really began back in spring training when his wife, Deidre, indicated in a since-deleted Instagram post (h/t Katherine Acquavella of CBS Sports) the 2021 season would be his last. 

Pujols refuted his wife's comment while speaking to Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes. 

“Nothing has changed what we talked about last week," Pujols said. "I will make a decision about the future, depending on what happens this season."

The 41-year-old first baseman began the season with the Los Angeles Angels. He hit .198/.250/.372 with five home runs in 24 games before being designated for assignment on May 6. 

After clearing waivers to become a free agent, Pujols signed a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He fared better as a part-time player, posting a .254/.299/.460 slash line with 12 homers in 189 at-bats. 

Pujols is probably best served in a platoon role at this stage of his career. The Dominican had a .939 OPS against lefties in 2021 compared to a .500 mark against righties. 

A 21-year MLB veteran, Pujols is one of the best players of his generation. He is a 10-time All-Star, six-time Silver Slugger winner and three-time National League MVP. His 679 career home runs rank fifth in MLB history.    

Rob Manfred recognized Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani with the Commissioner’s Historic Achievement Award.

After putting up one of the greatest seasons we’ve ever seen, the sensational Shohei Ohtani will become just the 16th recipient of the Commissioner’s Historic Achievement Award. pic.twitter.com/zBozIVTJMd

— MLB (@MLB) October 26, 2021

Unlike other postseason honors, the Commissioner's Historic Achievement Award isn't handed out on an annual basis. New York Yankees legend Derek Jeter and former longtime Los Angeles Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully were the most recent recipients in 2014.

"This award is not given out every year so it’s very special," Ohtani said Tuesday. "I’m not sure I even deserve it. But if Mr. Manfred is going to give it to me I will gladly accept."

The 27-year-old put together a season that may not be replicated for another generation or more.

He hit 46 home runs, drove in 100 runs and posted a .257/.372/.592 slash line at the plate. Despite playing almost exclusively at designated hitter, his 5.1 WAR were 18th among position players, per FanGraphs.

The right-hander also made 23 starts, going 9-2, posting a 3.18 ERA and striking out 156 batters over 130.1 innings.

Ohtani's ability as a two-way player was a big reason why his arrival ahead of the 2018 season was so highly anticipated. But nobody could've predicted he'd excel in the way he did.

This is unlikely to be the last piece of hardware Ohtani collects this fall. He's a finalist for the Silver Slugger at designated hitter, and his performance makes him an MVP front-runner despite the Angels finishing fourth in the American League West at 77-85.

The Los Angeles Angels already have Mike Trout locked in through the 2030 season, and soon, they may have the same kind of long-term security with Shohei Ohtani.

Ohtani is due to earn $5.5 million next season and has one more year of arbitration before hitting free agency in 2024. On Sunday, he told reporters he's open to remaining in L.A. well beyond that.

"Of course I'll be very open to negotiation," he said. "I mean the team is supporting me for this whole four years and I'm really appreciative of that. Whether or not there's any contracts extensions I just want to, like I said earlier, be ready and be ready for next season."

Given the terms of Trout's deal (12 years, $426.5 million), one would expect the Angels to table an offer in line with Ohtani's value. The question is whether he will commit his future to a franchise that has Los Angeles' recent record of futility.

Trout is the greatest player of his generation, and he has had a total of 15 plate appearances in the playoffs. The Angels are going to finish fourth in the American League West for the fifth time in six years.

Trout's calf strain has undoubtedly had a hand in Los Angeles' 76-85 record, but there's no getting around the fact that the organization has failed to adequately build around a Hall of Fame-level talent.

Ohtani is getting a taste of what life has been like for Trout.

At the plate, the 27-year-old has 45 home runs and a .959 OPS, while he has posted a 3.18 ERA, a 3.51 FIP and 156 strikeouts in 130.1 innings, per Baseball Reference. He has put together a campaign that's likely to culminate in an MVP award yet has largely been wasted in terms of his team's collective success.

Ahead of Sunday's finale against the Seattle Mariners, the Japanese star said he's hopeful the Angels can stay healthier in 2022 and that he'll "be looking forward to seeing all the additions that they're going to make."

The need for upgrades is obvious, so Ohtani's comment will echo the belief of many fans who will be expecting the front office to be active.

At the same time, it's impossible to totally separate his contract from the equation and see a statement like that as a tacit acknowledgment that he'll be paying close attention to what the Angels do to improve and in turn entice him to stick around.

The Seattle Mariners may have caught a break in the American League wild-card race.

Los Angeles Angels manager Joe Maddon told reporters Shohei Ohtani will not make his scheduled start in Sunday's season finale against the Mariners. Instead, the potential American League MVP will only hit for the season's remaining games in a decision that was made by both the player and team.

The Angels are 74-83 and eliminated from postseason contention.

"He finished with two really strong outings," Maddon told reporters. "There's really nothing to gain right now."

Ohtani started last Sunday's game against the Texas Rangers and allowed a single earned run and five hits while striking out 10 in seven innings of work. The showing came after he gave up two earned runs and five hits with 10 strikeouts in his previous start against the Oakland Athletics.

That means the two-way star finishes the season as a pitcher with a 3.18 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 156 strikeouts in 130.1 innings. It was quite an impressive year, especially since he didn't pitch at all in 2019 and made just two starts during the shortened 2020 campaign.

Now Ohtani will focus on improving his already noteworthy offensive numbers. He is slashing .256/.370/.592 with 45 home runs, 98 RBI and 24 stolen bases.

The biggest fallout from this decision is what it means for the Mariners. They are just a half-game behind the Boston Red Sox for the final American League wild-card spot and now know longer have to worry about facing one of the league's best pitchers in their final regular season contest.

The final playoff spot could be on the line, and Los Angeles will try to play spoiler without Ohtani on the mound.

What had been a long time coming finally came Saturday: Mike Trout, Major League Baseball's most decorated prime-age superstar and venerable GOAT candidate, won't return to the diamond until 2022.

When the Los Angeles Angels first placed Trout on the injured list with a strained right calf May 18, the three-time American League MVP and nine-time All-Star was expected to miss eight weeks at most. But as hard as he tried to recover, he just never could and was forced to accept that, in his own words, "my body wasn't allowing it."

The 30-year-old center fielder continued to produce when healthy. Through 36 games, he was hitting .333/.466/.624 with eight home runs and 1.9 rWAR, the latter of which had him on pace for about a characteristically excellent 8.6-WAR season.

In tandem with the 53 contests he played amid last year's shortened campaign, however, it's hard to sugarcoat the fact that Trout has played only about a half-season's worth of games (89, to be exact) over the last two seasons. Because these are prime years we're talking about, it's likewise hard not to think about all the production he's lost.

What does this mean for his trajectory as one of baseball's all-time greats? Does he still have a chance to become the greatest of them all? Or have the last two seasons irreparably sidetracked him toward lesser greatness?

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Why Trout Won't Be the GOAT

It wasn't that long ago that it was easy to look at Trout and say, "Yup, that dude's gonna be the GOAT when he's done."

Power, speed and overall hitting know-how generally don't go together as easily as Trout made it look, and the numbers backed up the eye test. By the time he wrapped up his age-27 season in 2019, he was sitting on a .305/.419/.581 slash line and a 176 OPS+, as well as 285 home runs and 72.5 rWAR.

Among all-time players in that age group, he held some rather distinct ranks:

• 12th in AVG*
• 5th in OBP*
• 2nd in SLG*
• 2nd in OPS+*
• 5th in HR
• 1st in rWAR

*Minimum 5,000 plate appearances.

This is not to mention that Trout became the youngest player to reach 200 home runs and 200 stolen bases in 2019. That year also began with him becoming baseball's first ever $400 million star and eventually saw him become only the fifth player to hit as many as 45 home runs despite playing in 134 or fewer games.

Hence all the GOAT talk. Even if it could seem hyperbolic at times, there weren't any good arguments that Trout wasn't deserving of such consideration. The only real question was how long he could keep being, well, Mike Trout.

This is where nobody could have predicted that a pandemic would force him and the rest of MLB into playing a 60-game season in 2020. And while the thumb, wrist and foot injuries he sustained in 2017, 2018 and 2019 conjured a specter of injury-proneness, there was little reason to suspect that another injury would limit him to six weeks of action in 2021.

Regardless, the damage has been done.

Though Trout's rate stats—he also hit .281/.390/.603 with a 166 OPS+ in 2020—have remained excellent over the last two seasons, the lost games have cost him valuable counting stats in relation to full 162-game slates. For instance, he potentially could have hit 52 homers in 2020 and another 36 this year, as opposed to the 25 actual homers that he hit across the two seasons.

The disclaimer here is that Trout probably wouldn't have played in all 162 games in 2020 or 2021, but these figures nonetheless capture the scope of what he's lost. It especially hurts to think that he's missed out on as many as 63 home runs. Take that many homers away from Barry Bonds, for example, and he goes from first on the all-time list to third.

These losses alone could diminish Trout's standing among the all-time greats whenever his career ends, so it's on him to make up the difference in future seasons. Preferably through offensive mega-seasons like the ones he had from 2016 to 2019.

Even setting aside the injuries, however, Trout is at an age when the possibility that his prime production could fade has to be taken seriously. 

There's plenty of literature out there—Neil Paine of FiveThirtyEight had a good piece in 2019—about how baseball's star power has shifted toward the young in recent years. It becomes apparent when one simply divides the league's overall offensive production between the under-30 crowd and the 30-and-over crowd during the 30-team era: 

Though the rise and fall of baseball's steroid era is a factor, these lines paint a clear picture. These days, players peak in their 20s and decline in their 30s.

Granted, the upward tick in production that 30-somethings have experienced in the last two seasons will bode well for Trout and other veterans if it continues. If not, he'll effectively be rowing upstream as he looks to recoup what he lost in 2020 and 2021.

In the meantime, there's bound to be discussion as to whether Trout is even still the best player on his own team when he returns in 2022. Because he's chasing arguably the greatest season in baseball history with both his bat and his arm, slugger/ace Shohei Ohtani will have a strong claim to that crown after this year. 

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Why Trout Could Still Be the GOAT

Now comes the part where everyone is advised to chill out. Because even if the last two seasons have sidetracked Trout, he still has a path to baseball's inner circle of all-time greats.

Sure, he's no longer outpacing his historic peers in WAR. But he also hasn't fallen off the pace by as much as you might think. His 76.2 rWAR through his age-29 season is tied for fifth in that department, alongside some guy named Babe Ruth.

Small sample size be damned: Trout has also been perhaps the best hitter in baseball over the last two seasons. His .301/.419/.611 line works out to a 177 OPS+, the second-highest mark for anyone with at least 380 plate appearances after Juan Soto.

So at least until there are red flags in Trout's offensive performance, the Angels only need to worry about how to keep him on the field in 2022 and beyond. To this end, they have an idea that's as good as it is obvious: move him off center field.

“You would think giving him less ground to cover might be wise,” manager Joe Maddon said in July, according to J.P. Hoornstra of the Orange County Register. “So we’ll see how that plays out. I’ve already broached the subject with him. His thought was originally that he was going to be OK once his leg feels fine, but we’ll wait and see.”

The Angels last experimented with Trout as a corner outfielder in 2013. Though that didn't last, it was through no fault of his own as defensive wiz Peter Bourjos just couldn't stay healthy enough to be a viable regular in center.

Should the Angels circle back to this experiment in 2022, it could have benefits beyond simply sparing Trout's legs from wear and tear. It could also mean a defensive boost, as his excellent speed (29.3 feet per second in 2021) should allow him to cover more ground than the standard corner outfielder.

Moving Trout off center field might ensure that his future contains not only additional All-Star and MVP honors, but also maybe even a Gold Glove or two for a trophy case that lacks a defensive award.

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Lastly, a Crucial Reminder

We can spend all the live-long day talking about Trout's merits as the greatest to ever come through Major League Baseball, but it's all academic to at least one extent.

Even if he hangs up his spikes right now, he'd still be in the Hall of Fame in five years' time.

Once he acquired the requisite 10 years of major league experience in 2020, Trout pretty much had all the boxes checked for his future induction into Cooperstown. Most notably, he already had more career WAR than fellow center fielders Carlos Beltran and Andruw Jones and even Hall of Famers Derek Jeter, Barry Larkin, Tony Gwynn and Ivan Rodriguez. 

Factoring in how Trout is also one of only 11 players to win at least three MVP awards, he's had a none-too-shabby career for a player who only turned 30 on August 7. So even if he doesn't end up being the GOAT, the only thing that will keep him from being one of the GOATs is if he slips into irrelevance after 2021.

On this much everyone should be able to agree: That won't happen.

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Stats courtesy of Baseball Reference, FanGraphs and Baseball Savant.