What Can the Angels Get for Top Trade Deadline Pieces? Former GM Takes a Guess

Maren Angus-Coombs | Jul 26, 2024

Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports

With the July 30 trade deadline just a few days away, the Los Angeles Angels have a plethora of players they are considering trading to contenders in exchange for prospects to rebuild their farm system.

Former Major Leauge Baseball general manager Jim Bowden, who now writes for The Athletic, answered a fan's question regarding the level of return for players such as outfielder Taylor Ward, infielder Luis Rengifo, reliever Carlos Estevez, or starter Tyler Anderson.

The fan, named Matt R., doesn't think the Angels will get a top prospect but possibly the next tier maybe a top-10 franchise prospect or top-50 to 200 overall.

How will the @Angels handle the trade deadline?

Insider @SamBlum3 weighs in on the Halos 😇 pic.twitter.com/TKZtXI5GnR

— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) July 22, 2024

Bowden agreed.

"Matt, I think you nailed it with your take," writes Bowden. "All four of those players have trade value but none of them are going to land a top 1-3 prospect from an average farm system. Landing multiple players from a team’s top-20 prospect list should be the expectation."

The Angels have reportedly been a definite seller after the first half of the season. Things have gotten a little murky recently thanks to a winning streak that included a series sweep of the Seattle Mariners. The sweep pulled the Angels within eight games of first place in the American League West.

If Los Angeles has figured things out, gained their confidence, and got Mike Trout back before the end of the season, they could make things interesting in the division race down the stretch.

More likely, however, they will focus on retaining and developing their players with the most years of team control — Logan O'Hoppe, Zach Neto, Jose Soriano, etc. — with an eye toward 2025.