With the MLB trade deadline passing yesterday, the Los Angeles Angels step into a series against the Baltimore Orioles in which both teams executed a fire sale that completely altered their current rosters.
The Angels’ offense ranks 27th with a wOBA (weighted on-base average) of .310. One of their significant moves yesterday was trading away their RBI leader, Jo Adell, for catching prospect Jacob Cozart. The Angels also traded catcher Logan O'Hoppe to the Texas Rangers on July 30, forcing Tyler Heineman into the lineup.
In their past eight games, the Angels haven’t scored more than four runs once.
Grayson Rodriguez is projected to take the mound against his former team for the Angels. Rodriguez has a 7.98 ERA in 44 innings. He has a 7.84 ERA in his last five outings, however his most recent outing against the Houston Astros was his best. He threw five innings and gave up two runs in that outing, also striking out six.
The Orioles traded away star catcher Adley Rutschman and former Angel Taylor Ward – significantly impacting their lineup as well. However, despite their subtraction, the Orioles are eighth in the MLB wOBA rankings.
First Pick: Baltimore Orioles over 4.5 runs
Rundown: Rodriguez posted a few decent outings recently, but he still holds an ERA over seven. He gave up more than five runs in two of his last three outings as well. This Orioles offense can score as well – averaging 4.53 runs per game, which ranks 13th in the league.
The Angels also sent off three of their bullpen arms, paving the way for some of their younger arms to get a feel for major league batters. It just feels like there will be plenty of growing pains down the stretch for the Halos' pitching staff.
Second Pick: Baltimore Orioles -1.5 over the Los Angeles Angels
Rundown: The Angels took a necessary first step into a rebuild yesterday. The sense of direction is that they don’t plan on being competitive this season – choosing instead to revamp their farm system.
Los Angeles has an 18-36 record on the road and they currently hold the worst record in baseball, which would give them the top pick in a strong 2027 draft.
The Orioles will score early and often against Rodriguez – and the Angels don’t have a very strong bullpen to limit runs late either.