"Some of the savings were going to be undercut by an arbitration raise for Taylor Ward. He made $7.825MM in 2025 and was projected to almost double that, with MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projecting him for a jump to $13.7MM in 2026. The Halos quickly avoided that by flipping Ward to the Orioles in mid-November, just a couple of weeks into the offseason."
"in late November, it was reported that the Angels were trying to work out some kind of financial arrangement with Anthony Rendon. The frequently-injured third baseman was set to be paid $38MM in 2026, the final year of his ill-fated seven-year, $245MM deal. It took a few months to get everything worked out but the two sides eventually agreed to pay the money over five years in even instalments. The Halos will pay Rendon $7.6MM this year instead of $38MM."
The Angels enter 2026 with a notably lower payroll after free-agent departures and roster moves. Departures included Tyler Anderson and Kenley Jansen, reducing payroll obligations. Projected arbitration costs for Taylor Ward were avoided by trading him to the Orioles for Grayson Rodriguez, eliminating Ward's projected 2026 salary. The club restructured Anthony Rendon's remaining $38MM obligation into five equal annual payments, reducing 2026 liability to $7.6MM and freeing over $30MM short-term while shifting costs to future seasons. Despite available short-term payroll, the team has signed six inexpensive one-year free agents, none above $5MM, and has not made a bold acquisition.
Read at MLB Trade Rumors
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