‘Things Have To Change’: Under Mozeliak, Angels Sound More Open-Minded as Deadline Nears

ANAHEIM, Calif. — For a team that hasn’t had a winning record since 2015, the Angels have done little at recent trade deadlines to put their franchise on a path toward future success. This year could represent an inflection point and serve as a catalyst for real change, should they choose to be more aggressive sellers. John Mozeliak, the longtime Cardinals executive who was hired as the Angels’ interim general manager in late June after Perry Minasian’s dismissal, did not promise a full-on fire sale ahead. But two weeks ahead of the trade deadline, he at least acknowledged a reality that, for too long, has gone ignored in Anaheim. “Things have to change,” Mozeliak said earlier this week. “What that looks like, who that looks like, that’s to be determined. But not going into this with an open-minded approach, I think, would be a failure on my part.” Those words from Mozeliak, who spent 18 years running baseball operations for the Cardinals before stepping down at the end of last season, inspire more hope that the Angels might actually make the difficult but necessary moves to try to replenish a lagging farm system and get the franchise back on track. For years, the Angels have feigned optimism, insinuating better days are around the corner without offering any actual reason to believe. After winning 77 games in 2021, they haven’t won more than 73 in a season since. Without any proof of concept or signs of change, Minasian paid the price in late June. At 41-62, the Angels currently sport the worst record in the American League. They’re tracking toward a third straight last-place finish and a 12th straight season missing the playoffs. And yet, they have the pieces to spark meaningful change, should they decide to sell controllable players at the deadline. “Understanding the market and where that’s going, that’s first and foremost my biggest thing,” Mozeliak said. “We can talk about X, Y and Z, but if you don’t understand what the ROI should look like, we’re not quite there yet to do that. We don’t also know what people are willing to give up. So, over the next two weeks, that is 100% our focus.” The Angels don’t have a Shohei Ohtani — the way they did at the 2023 deadline, when they decided to be buyers only to then finish in fourth place and watch their two-way superstar depart for the Dodgers — or a Tarik Skubal, but they do have a handful of intriguing and productive young players who could command a significant return if they become available. Reid Detmers ranks eighth in MLB in strikeouts. José Soriano ranks 13th in the American League in ERA. Either could reasonably end up starting playoff games for a contender, and both are under team control through 2028. Outfielder Jo Adell, a former first-round pick who has 72 home runs since the start of the 2024 season, has another year of control. Shortstop Zach Neto, the Angels’ 2022 first-round pick, was worth more than 5 WAR each of the past two seasons and is under control through the 2029 season. Any of those players would command far better prospects than the Angels’ rentals, a group that includes veteran relievers Kirby Yates and Brent Suter, but Mozeliak also pointed out that this is not usually the time of year that controllable players get dealt. Would he be willing to make those kinds of aggressive moves, which could yield even more short-term pain for long-term gain? “Possibly,” Mozeliak said, without mentioning any specific names. “But the real answer is, ‘What are we getting in return?’ We could be presented with lots of deals that we just do not feel is in the best interest of this franchise. But that’s myself, my team’s responsibility, to really understand what that looks like. Once we get there, I think we have to do what’s best for the franchise.” Mozeliak is still in the process of figuring out which teams are buyers and sellers. As of Thursday morning, only eight MLB teams were more than five games out of a playoff spot. Most teams are still envisioning a path toward postseason contention. That could be to the Angels’ benefit, should they choose to be aggressive sellers. “It doesn’t hurt, right?” Mozeliak told me. “Supply and demand.” It remains to be seen how much autonomy Mozeliak will actually have under owner Arte Moreno to craft his vision, considering how hesitant Moreno has been to deal his best assets or signal any sort of rebuild, but Mozeliak believes he will have the power to do what he feels is best to steer what has been a rudderless club back to relevancy. Whatever direction he chooses to go, he repeated the need to be “open-minded” on multiple occasions. That, at least, inspires more hope that this deadline under Mozeliak, whose Cardinals teams reached the postseason 10 times and won six division titles as well as a 2011 World Series championship, might finally be different for the Angels. “I definitely feel like Mr. Moreno is trusting me to get this right,” Mozeliak said. “So, that’s what I’m certainly going to try to do.” Rowan Kavner is an MLB writer for FOX Sports. He previously covered the L.A. Dodgers, LA Clippers and Dallas Cowboys. An LSU grad, Rowan was born in California, grew up in Texas, then moved back to the West Coast in 2014. Follow him on X at @RowanKavner.