Angels Rumors: LA Showing Interest in Veteran Starter and Reliever

They're continuing to look to address the rotation and bullpen.

The Angels are among the teams reportedly showing interest in seven-year veteran RHP Seth Lugo. Lugo, who has been with the Mets his entire career, has experience as both a starter and reliever. The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal reported the interest.

"Right-hander Seth Lugo is drawing interest as both a starter and reliever, with the Angels, Dodgers, Padres and Nationals among the teams showing at least some interest in adding him to their rotations."

Lugo would be a perfect addition to the Angels, as he could both start games or come out of the pen. Angels manager Phil Nevin has already said he wanted to raise Shohei Ohtani's pitching workload in 2023, having him start every six days. This doesn't mean the team would go to a five-man rotation, it just means they would pitch Ohtani every time he's on six days rest.

So, someone like Lugo would be the perfect pickup, as he could start when called upon, but also be a great candidate out of the pen.

Last year with the Mets, the 33-year-old had a 3.60 ERA in 62 appearances out of the bullpen. In his career, he's made 38 starts out of his 275 appearances, with a total ERA of 3.48. He also has a good strikeout rate, averaging over one strikeout per inning in his career. 

The Angels are reportedly competing with the Dodgers, Padres and Nationals as teams considering using him in the rotation — that means there could be many other teams looking to sign him as a reliever. His market seems pretty high at the moment, but hopefully GM Perry Minasian can continue to work his magic.