Last night Angels GM Perry Minasian pulled off a trade that nearly broke the simulator. For one year of Taylor Ward’s power, Perry landed four years of former top prospect Grayson Rodriguez.
Let’s take a look at Mike Maddux’s new toy.
The Hype
Rodriguez was lauded as one of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball after being selected 11th overall in the 2018 draft. Prior to the 2023 season, Grayson was rated in the top 8 prospects in all of baseball by various sources. The 6 foot 5 righty checks in at 230 pounds and has the look of an ace after filling out in the minor leagues.
His minor league development was slowed due to the lack of a 2020 minor league season, but his overall minor league numbers were appealing. 475 strikeouts in 333.1 innings with only 89 earned runs allowed had Baltimore fans salivating as he prepared to head to the big leagues.
The Big Leagues
Like many youngsters, Grayson had an up and down first year in the bigs. In 2023 he hurled 122 innings at a rate 6% worse than league average. The K’s were still good, totaling 129 but he gave up more contact than expected and was tagged for 121 hits.
2024 showed some modest improvement in WHIP, hits per 9, walks per 9 and K’s per 9 and saw Grayson throw 116.2 innings of league average ball (ERA+100). The kid was making strides but not living up to his early billing.
His stuff was good, he just needed to better locate it. And likely mix up his pitch sequencing.
If you are unfamiliar with Stuff+ is it like any other stat that ends with a +. Above 100 is above average and vice a versa. In this case, Grayson looks really good across the board. So the upside is really there.
The Injuries
This wouldn’t be an Angels blog without pitching injuries to discuss and Rodriguez has endured his share. He missed the entire 2025 season dealing with shoulder and lat injuries. He also missed time in 2024 with a shoulder injury. In all, his injury history is long and distinguished. Three months ago he underwent an elbow cleanup procedure and says he’ll be ready for camp.
Perry Minasian says Grayson Rodriguez will start throwing bullpens in January and is expected to be ready for Spring Training in 2026
Injuries are likely the primary reason Baltimore made Rodriguez available in trade. There are also rumors that he was clashing with the front office and both sides wanted to move on. Personality clashes are common in competitive arenas so I’m willing to bet it is the injuries.
What Might We See?
A pretty good pitcher at best and a minimum wage pal to keep Rendon company on the IL at worst. Most likely we’ll see a bit of both. In looking at Grayson’s 2024 season on baseballsavant.com, there’s a lot to like.
That’s a lot of red and in this case red is good. A really nice fastball and off speed pitches that get plenty of whiffs. Plenty of K’s without a ton of walks and decent numbers when the ball is put in play. If we get anything close to 2024 Rodriguez this trade is a steal.
His change piece was the star that year with all of his pitches doing pretty well.
The Million Dollar Question
This trade seems to simply come down to health. Baltimore is getting a safe bet to man an outfield corner, hit 25 bombs, and be a great guy. With the Angels part of the return, it is a roll of the dice. This could be a franchise changer. It could be Tommy Hanson 2.0. But at this point in the franchise’s trajectory this is a gamble you make 10 times out of 10.
Until further developments, I expect to see signs of promise along with a couple of IL stints each year. Perhaps he has a year where he stays on the field and puts up a great season while he’s here, making the trade look lopsided.
One thing is certain, the Angels have not had this type of youth and upside in the rotation in quite some time. If we’d typed back in 2023 that Grayson Rodriguez would join Reid Detmers in Anaheim we’d have been quite happy. Now let’s see how it plays out.
Don’t worry. Folks around here will find a way to hate this trade. All you have to do is focus on one fact, his health, then play like he’s 34 years old. Then ignore all the other facts about both 50 Shades and Ward’s situation and there you go. This trade is stupid. Arte is just spending money on a new pool. Perry is so dumb.
June 2022: Lat muscle strain April 2024: Shoulder inflammation Aug. 2024: Teres major muscle strain Feb. 2025: Elbow/triceps inflammation April 2025: Lat muscle strain July 2025: Elbow discomfort August 2025: Season ending elbow surgery
Ward wasn’t going to bring a lot back when traded, and he wasn’t going to get a large increase from Arte as a free agent, so it makes sense to take the risk on a young pitcher and make the trade.
Let’s Take A Look At Grayson Rodriguez
Last night Angels GM Perry Minasian pulled off a trade that nearly broke the simulator. For one year of Taylor Ward’s power, Perry landed four years of former top prospect Grayson Rodriguez.
Let’s take a look at Mike Maddux’s new toy.
The Hype
Rodriguez was lauded as one of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball after being selected 11th overall in the 2018 draft. Prior to the 2023 season, Grayson was rated in the top 8 prospects in all of baseball by various sources. The 6 foot 5 righty checks in at 230 pounds and has the look of an ace after filling out in the minor leagues.
His minor league development was slowed due to the lack of a 2020 minor league season, but his overall minor league numbers were appealing. 475 strikeouts in 333.1 innings with only 89 earned runs allowed had Baltimore fans salivating as he prepared to head to the big leagues.
The Big Leagues
Like many youngsters, Grayson had an up and down first year in the bigs. In 2023 he hurled 122 innings at a rate 6% worse than league average. The K’s were still good, totaling 129 but he gave up more contact than expected and was tagged for 121 hits.
2024 showed some modest improvement in WHIP, hits per 9, walks per 9 and K’s per 9 and saw Grayson throw 116.2 innings of league average ball (ERA+100). The kid was making strides but not living up to his early billing.
His stuff was good, he just needed to better locate it. And likely mix up his pitch sequencing.
If you are unfamiliar with Stuff+ is it like any other stat that ends with a +. Above 100 is above average and vice a versa. In this case, Grayson looks really good across the board. So the upside is really there.
The Injuries
This wouldn’t be an Angels blog without pitching injuries to discuss and Rodriguez has endured his share. He missed the entire 2025 season dealing with shoulder and lat injuries. He also missed time in 2024 with a shoulder injury. In all, his injury history is long and distinguished. Three months ago he underwent an elbow cleanup procedure and says he’ll be ready for camp.
Injuries are likely the primary reason Baltimore made Rodriguez available in trade. There are also rumors that he was clashing with the front office and both sides wanted to move on. Personality clashes are common in competitive arenas so I’m willing to bet it is the injuries.
What Might We See?
A pretty good pitcher at best and a minimum wage pal to keep Rendon company on the IL at worst. Most likely we’ll see a bit of both. In looking at Grayson’s 2024 season on baseballsavant.com, there’s a lot to like.
That’s a lot of red and in this case red is good. A really nice fastball and off speed pitches that get plenty of whiffs. Plenty of K’s without a ton of walks and decent numbers when the ball is put in play. If we get anything close to 2024 Rodriguez this trade is a steal.
His change piece was the star that year with all of his pitches doing pretty well.
The Million Dollar Question
This trade seems to simply come down to health. Baltimore is getting a safe bet to man an outfield corner, hit 25 bombs, and be a great guy. With the Angels part of the return, it is a roll of the dice. This could be a franchise changer. It could be Tommy Hanson 2.0. But at this point in the franchise’s trajectory this is a gamble you make 10 times out of 10.
Until further developments, I expect to see signs of promise along with a couple of IL stints each year. Perhaps he has a year where he stays on the field and puts up a great season while he’s here, making the trade look lopsided.
One thing is certain, the Angels have not had this type of youth and upside in the rotation in quite some time. If we’d typed back in 2023 that Grayson Rodriguez would join Reid Detmers in Anaheim we’d have been quite happy. Now let’s see how it plays out.