Welcome to that mad dash period between the Thanksgiving and Christmas/Hannukah holidays. Just like the rest of us, MLB executives are busy trying to knock down their shopping lists so they can take some time off at the end of the year.
This week, it was sluggers on the move as the two most prolific power bats on the market signed massive deals.
First up, Kyle Schwarber reunited with the Phillies on a 5 year, $150 million deal. Most fans and pundits thought the lefty slugger would stay in Philadelphia, but he was highly sought after. In fact, one offer was notable just for who made it.
Yes, you read that correctly. The Pittsburgh Pirates had the highest annual salary but fell one year short of being the best deal. Pirates ownership claims they want to build a team around Skenes and their young pitching core. I’d love to see that ring true, but there could be ulterior motives to spending money right before a labor stoppage as well. More on the Pirates later.
As you can see, Baltimore matched the Phillies offer, but a match didn’t get Schwarber to change addresses. So the O’s added $5 million to that deal and signed the Polar Bear. Pete Alonso is a guy I was afraid Arte would purse. He’s a bad fit here, but should add some serious thump in Baltimore, who already added Taylor Ward’s 30+ home run power to their lineup.
The addition of Alonso creates a logjam at 1B and DH that Baltimore will need to resolve. How will they do that? Most likely on the trade front and most likely for little return. The Twins and Guardians are both looking for help at first base and in the power department, so those are the two teams atop this rumor mill.
I wouldn’t call Mike Yastrzemski a slugger, but he is a solid bat and the third most notable name to come off the board this week. He’s heading to Atlanta on a 2 year deal with an option, so there’s a chance he’s here in the future.
This is an Angels site and the Angels did make a minor move this week, adding Vaughn Grissom to the infield mix. Grissom was on the roster bubble in Boston but is only 24 and has flashed significant upside in the minors.
Last year Grissom put up a .270/.342/.441 slash line in AAA with 24 doubles and 13 home runs in 418 plate appearances. That’s at sea level parks in the International League so those numbers are far more likely to carry over than ones in the launching pad Pacific Coast League.
Here’s s cool little interview with the newest Angel.
Grissom joins trade deadline pickup Oswald Peraza in the utility infielder mix. Both are young, versatile, established in the minors, and yet to put it together in the majors. Both are gambles worth taking at this stage of a rebuild/retooling but the Angels need to add more established players as well.
Circling back to the Pirates, they line up nicely with the Angels for a trade and I found one on the simulator I really like. The Angels currently have 3 guys who play RF and holes all over the rest of the roster. Meanwhile, the Pirates have extra pitching and a serious need for dingers.
This trade would give the Angels an absolute horse in the rotation to help balance out the risk presented by Grayson Rodriguez and Reid Detmers. Over the last 4 seasons, Keller has averaged 31 starts, 176.2 innings, and 2 bWAR. Meanwhile, Wilber Dotel looked great in AA last year and could be MLB ready in a year or so. He offers a more stable prospect profile than most Angels hurlers on the farm. The kid notched 131 K’s in 125.2 innings and stuck out 3 hitters for every 1 he walked.
Trading Adell would hurt in the dinger department but we need help on both sides of the ball. Assuming we are correct that Perry had $40 million to spend after the Ward trade, he has $38 million after the Manoah signing. This would take up about $12 million of that, leaving him with $26 million. Grabbing Song for third base and Austin Hays for LF probably cuts that in half and leaves him $13 million to add to the bullpen. Rada plays center in this scenario, so the team OBP as a whole gets a massive lift from the 2025 squad.
The biggest news in Angel land again does not come from the field. In this case it does not come from the Tyler Skaggs trial, either. No, it comes from a City Council meeting. Anaheim officials are putting Angels Stadium back in play. Hat tip to Steelgolf for texting me that info.
Will this lure Arte to keep the team and try to get his white whale development deal? Or could a sale force the Angels to move? There are a lot of potential outcomes and we will follow this developing story.
MLB held the 2026 Draft Lottery at the Winter Meetings and the Chicago White Sox won the first overall pick. Our Angels will draft 12th overall. It is never too early to kick out a mock draft, and MLB Pipeline already has one up. I’d take a well polished college outfielder there.
For being the whipping boy of MLB farm organizations, the Angels hurlers were hugely popular in the minor league phase of the Rule V draft. 5 Angels arms were selected in the draft while the Angels added an arm from Boston.
As you know, TBW writes for Baseball America and does a phenomenal job covering the Angels farm system. BA rolled out their Top 10 list for our Angels and the top prospect is not a surprise.
But, wait, there’s more from TBW. He did a Q and A on the Angels farm that is a must read. Here is your longform reading for the weekend, albeit in a different format than usual.
And just as I finish up, there is breaking news on the pitching front. Former Padre closer Roberto Suarez is heading to Atlanta for 3 years.
If I try to keep this article current, I’ll never get it published. So enjoy your weekend and link what I missed. I’m dry brining a 7 pound prime rib right now that I’ll smoke over charcoal and mesquite for several hours tomorrow then we shall feast for a weekend. My son will enjoy some Grandma and Grandpa time and we’ll inch closer to the holiday madness.
