Angels News: Lucas Giolito ‘Surprised’ After Being Placed on Waivers by Halos

The pitcher is forced to wait and see what happens at this point.

Just a little over a month ago, starting pitcher Lucas Giolito was traded to the Los Angeles Angels from the Chicago White Sox. He was seen as the missing piece for the Angels postseason push, and the team paid a hefty price to get him.

But things haven’t gone the way that anyone hoped, as the team is now even further out of the playoff picture than before. Giolito has struggled since heading out west, prompting some real concern from both sides.

Due to all the struggles that the organization has seen, they decided to put most of the players that they acquired at the trade deadline on waivers. It’s a very strange move by a team at this point in the season, but the Angels are looking ahead to the future in terms of salary relief.

So Giolito and others will now be subjected to waiver claims. He spoke on the decision of the club and gave his thoughts.

“I’m surprised,” Giolito said. “But at the same time, at the end of the day, it’s a business and it can be a very strange business sometimes. So just roll with it. … Thursday is when it all goes down. Until then I’m here. We’ll see what happens after Thursday.”

Per The OC Register

Player movement is one of the least talked about parts of sports. Giolito and others just uprooted their lives mid-season and now could have to do it once again, just a few weeks later. It is a business at the end of the day, but these players are humans. It does affect things on the field for them.

This move signals the Angels want to get under the luxury tax before the year ends. They want to be able to save themselves money, possibly so it doesn't hinder any plans that they have this winter.

"The Angels might be trying to position themselves to be back under the luxury tax threshold for this season. If they surpass the luxury tax threshold for 2023, the penalties would be greater in each subsequent year that they go over until they reset by getting under the threshold."

Per Jeff Fletcher of The OC Register

Teams can start to place waiver claims on the players Thursday morning and it'll be interesting to see how this plays out.