Angels trade Garcia to Red Sox; otherwise quiet on deadline day

ANAHEIM, Calif.— In what was certainly considered a seller's trade market, the Angels opted to hold onto any players that are under team control beyond 2024.

Tyler Anderson, Luis Rengifo and Taylor Ward were names that other teams had reportedly been interested in, but all three remained Angels after the 3 p.m. Tuesday trade deadline.

"If there were things presented that made the organization better, obviously we would have done it," Angels General Manager Perry Minasian said. "Those are all good players that we have under control.

"If there were things presented as far as anyone in that room that made since for the organization, we would have taken a look at it."

Anderson, 34, was the Angels' representative in the All-Star game this month and has an ERA of 2.94. He is set to make $13 million in 2025 and doesn't have the strikeout numbers some teams covet who are in playoff contention.

Rengifo, 27, is the only Angels player with over 160 at bats that has a batting average at or above .300 and can play multiple positions in the field. He is making $4.4 million this season and is arbitration eligible in 2025 before hitting the free agent market.

Ward, 30, leads the Angels in home runs but has an OPS+ of 97, just a hair below league-average. He is under team control in 2025 and 2026.

"The players that have two years left, have one year left, they’re very talented players. And very productive players," Minasian said. "With that being said, in general it had to make sense.

"There had to be a certain value coming back. You have to line up. That’s not easy. People like different things. Sometimes you line up with different teams, like we did with Philadelphia, and sometimes you don’t.”

With the Angels holding onto these players, it's reasonable to assume that the team may try to contend next season rather than rebuild the farm system. 

Minasian was asked if he believes the team can be in a position to contend in 2025.

"We'll see," he said.

The Angels still have opportunities to field trade offers for those three players in the offseason, or keep them in hopes of trying to reach the playoffs.

Angels manager Ron Washington believes the Angels are improving and could contend as early as next season.

“No doubt about it,” Washington said. “We probably have a busy winter trying to put some pieces in place to help.

"But no doubt about it. The young kids are growing and I think they’ll be ready to really really compete going into next year.”

One player the Angels didn't trade that is not under team control for next season is 35-year old outfielder Kevin Pillar, who has an .853 OPS since signing in late March. But he is a fourth outfielder and has not hit a home run since June 7, so it's possible the Angels weren't offered anything substantial.

The Angels did make a pair of trades, one of them came right under the wire and yielded a noteworthy return. Right-hander Luis Garcia was traded to the Boston Red Sox for prospects Matthew Lugo, Ryan Zeferjahn, Niko Kavadas and Yeferson Vargas.

Garcia, 37, will be a free agent after the end of the season and has a 3.71 ERA in 43.2 innings pitched with four saves. Since June 15, Garcia has a 1.15 ERA and has an opponent's OPS of .465.

Lugo, the nephew of former major leaguer Carlos Beltran, was the highest-rated prospect the Angels received in the deal. The 23-year old has played the corner outfield and was a designated hitter this season between Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester. 

He has a OPS this season between the two levels and has 16 home runs. Lugo had a 1.069 OPS in Double-A Portland through 43 games before being promoted. 

"Talented young player, plays left field and can play the infield too," Minasian said. "Right-handed hitter is in Triple-A and doing well,"

He was the No. 23 prospect in the Red Sox organization according to the updated rankings by Baseball America. 

Zeferjahn is a 26-year old right-handed relief pitcher who has a 3.52 ERA and 53 strikeouts in 38 1/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A this season. He is 6-foot-5 and has hit 101 miles per hour this season according to Minasian. 

"He's somebody, we felt like the arm talent was definitely worth acquiring," Minasian said. 

Kavadas, 25, is a power hitting left-handed bat who plays first base. He has a .975 OPS in 83 games with Triple-A Worcester.

 "One of the more productive hitters in Triple-A," Minasian said. "A legit power bat that we felt would improve our depth overall in the minor leagues."

Vargas, 19, has thrown 35.2 innings in four starts between the Florida Complex League Red Sox and Class-A Salem. He has a 3.03 ERA between the two levels and 34 strikeouts.

"A young arm, 19 years old who is up to 98 (miles per hour). There's things to work with there," Minasian said. "Those are the types of guys you like to hand over to PD (player development) and see what they can do with him.

"At the end of the day, we felt like the group of four really helps our depth throughout the organization, especially at the upper levels."

The Angels also acquired relief pitcher Mike Baumann, 28, from the San Francisco Giants for cash considerations. Baumann was designated for assignment by the Giants last week and was previously DFA'd by the Baltimore Orioles and Seattle Mariners this season. 

He has a 4.41 ERA in 34.2 innings with 32 strikeouts and 17 walks between the three teams this season. 

"It's a good arm. The ability to take a chance on an arm like that," Minasian said. "I know he's jumped around a bit this year.

"You see that sometimes with players they get in certain situations and for one reason or the other, whether it's a roster issue or in general, become available at certain times. To be able to acquire an arm like that, it was the right thing to do."

Baumann is scheduled to report to the major league team on Wednesday and take the roster spot available from Garcia's departure.