And just like that, we are in a brand new year. I let the boy stay up until midnight and now I’m looking at the first sunny sky I’ve seen in over a week. My holiday trip up to Sacramento was cold and rainy.
So what’s happening in Angels land?
Well, the team finally figured out the Anthony Rendon contract restructure. Yes, Santa left Rendon his entire paycheck (presumably plus interest) while letting him off the hook for showing up to camp or keeping a rehab schedule.
To say it is figured out is actually a bit of a misstatement. The team will pay Rendon off over 3 to 5 years, so it is far from finalized. The reason for the variance intrigues me, as I’m a loan guy by trade.
The architect of the restructure seems to be agent Scott Boras, who represents Rendon. Conveniently Boras also represents NPB star third baseman Kazuma Okamoto, who is meeting with teams this week. Could Scott be doing Arte a favor by helping him find some payroll room for his new guy? I wouldn’t put it past him.
Whatever yearly savings the Angels realize, some of them were allocated to a one year deal for Kirby Yates. A 1 year, $5 million gamble on a guy the Angels should have never released in 2017 makes sense as it reunites Yates with pitching coach Mike Maddux. The last time the two worked together, Yates baseball savant page looked like this:
If there is a theme to this season’s signings and trades, it is potential upside. He’s acquired a bunch of players who have shown solid results and is hoping they all come together to create a solid team.
Individually, I think each of the gambles on Yates, Grayson Rodriguez, and Drew Pomeranz are very reasonable. But with each leg of a parlay the odds of hitting it big decrease so counting on all of them plus Vaughn Grissom to play up to potential is a hard ask.
The last line from Perry can not be ignored. Opportunities abound and between offloading Ward’s salary and whatever savings were realized through the Rendon structure, big name players are still in play.
Boras mouthpiece Jon Heyman is reporting the Angels are not likely to land Okamoto, but he could also just be trying to get some more dollars for his boss’s client.
Meanwhile, reports of a very Arte move are surfacing. The team is apparently interested in Nolan Arenado. Bringing in an expensive player on a brutal decline is exactly the type of move Team Moreno loves to make, but the contract here is the issue. If the team isn’t willing to spend on Okamoto, they are going to require the Cardinals to pay a huge chunk of the $42 million owed to Arenado over the next two seasons. If the Cardinals are eating contract, they’ll want a prospect or two back.
The team will almost assuredly add a third baseman, but seems set at catcher. Angels execs believe Logan O’Hoppe can be an All Star and they have given him ample help in new coaches Kurt Suzuki and Max Stassi.
I’d love little more in baseball. Logan is a great guy who gives a ton of time to kids and charity. He’s the kind of guy who should be a fan favorite and will with just a little more production.
Is the Angels 2026 rotation set? Hopefully not. But it will not include Tatsuya Imai, who signed with the Astros. Here’s who the Angels will get to face for the next 1-3 years.
With baseball taking a pretty significant break over the holidays, there isn’t a ton more to link.
Tyler Mahle got a one year deal from SF.
Here’s a rundown of each team’s free agent activity thus far.
So enjoy a great football weekend and link what I missed. I’m learning the OnSI publishing software and am figuring out how my 2026 will go. For the important things, I’m entering 2026 with a happy and healthy family and friends group and feel blessed. This is our last month without baseball and there are a ton of free agents and trade targets available. Hopefully this is a fun January that leads right into Spring Training.
