After falling out of playoff contention, the Angels are having a last-minute fire sale.
Los Angeles placed starting pitcher Lucas Giolito, relievers Matt Moore and Reynaldo López and outfielders Hunter Renfroe and Randal Grichuk on waivers Tuesday, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Each player can be claimed by teams starting Thursday, per Passan, in a rare opportunity for playoff teams to bring in post-deadline reinforcements.
The moves come less than a month after the Angels appeared to be all-in for a postseason run, acquiring Giolito, Lopez and Grichuk before the Aug. 1 trade deadline and holding onto Shohei Ohtani despite his impending free agency.
Giolito, a former All-Star, and López were acquired from the White Sox for prospects Edgar Quero and Ky Bush, who were the No. 2 and 3 prospects in the Angels’ system, per MLB.com.
A few days later, the team traded minor league pitchers Mason Albright and Jake Madden to the Rockies for Grichuk and infielder C.J. Cron.
Moore, who has posted a 2.30 ERA over 40 appearances this season, has arguably been the Angels’ best relief pitcher in 2023, while Renfroe has started 115 games for the team.
The deals were meant to bolster the team behind Ohtani, who has all but wrapped but the AL MVP award, as the team aimed to play October baseball for the first time since the Japanese sensation came stateside.
On the morning of the deadline, the Angels were 56-51 and just three games out of the third AL Wild Card spot.
But they’ve won just seven games since and sit at 63-69, essentially out of the playoff race (11.5 games back), prompting the team to make these money-saving moves that have luxury tax implications.
FanGraphs gives the Angels a zero percent chance of making the postseason, down from 14.8 percent on deadline day.
Injuries have also taken a toll on the team.
Ohtani won’t pitch for the rest of the season because of a ligament tear in his right elbow.
The Angels also may be without three-time AL MVP Mike Trout, who returned to the injured list after just one game as he recovers from surgery on a broken hand.
The Yankees and Mets also made roster moves, placing Harrison Bader and Carlos Carrasco on irrevocable waivers Tuesday.
