Angels News: Halos Sign Former All-Star Infielder to Minor League Deal

The 38-year-old is making his way back into the league

The Los Angeles Angels made some noise this morning as they signed former MLB All-Star Daniel Murphy to a minor league deal. 

Anaheim insider Michael Pfaff and MLB insider Jon Heyman were among the first to report it.

Transaction: The @Angels have purchased the contract of infielder Daniel Murphy. Taking his spot on @LIDucks roster will be infielder Ruben Tejada, who will he activated prior to tomorrow’s (Tues., 6/13) game vs @dirtybirdscwv - congrats Murph and welcome aboard Ruben!

— Michael Pfaff (@LIDucksPrez) June 12, 2023

Angels sign Daniel Murphy to minors deal (via @LIDucksGM). Ruben Tejada replaces Murphy on LI Ducks roster.

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) June 12, 2023

Murphy, 38, will be joining the Angels Triple-A affiliate team, the Salt Lake Bees. 

Murphy will start with the Salt Lake Bees in Triple-A https://t.co/0ZKBoLdH4C

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) June 12, 2023

The last we saw of Murphy in the big leagues was in the shortened 2020 season, where he played with the Colorado Rockies. His best years came with the New York Mets, where he spent seven seasons and earned one All-star appearance out of his three. 

Murphy's best season came in 2016, his first year as a National after signing a three-year, $37.5 million contract. In 2016, he had a career-high in home runs with 25, RBIs with 104, and career highs in BA, slugging, OPS, and OPS+. However, he didn't finish his contract with the Nationals as he was traded in 2018 to the Cubs before signing with the Rockies in 2019 and last played a game in the majors in 2020 at the age of 35.

He will now join the Angels organization, and we'll see what he has left in the tank. None of us know how he'll look, and it'll be interesting to see how he performs after two years and some change out of the game. 

It's a minor-league deal, so the Halos aren't risking anything. Who knows, if he does great, maybe he can get some shine in a DH role with the parent club. We wish Murphy some good fortune and great success with the Bees.