5 Angels players the Phillies should target at the trade deadline

The Philadelphia Phillies should be targeting several Los Angeles Angels players at the trade deadline

Nearing the 2022 MLB Trade Deadline, the Philadelphia Phillies are looking like buyers.

Bryce Harper certainly wants them to be buyers.

They need to be buyers if they want to take this season into the playoffs for the first time since 2011.

Among the teams with several trade candidates are the ne’er-do-well Los Angeles Angels. In some ways, the Angels are the American League version of the Phillies; they have some of the best players, always have a high payroll, and never get anywhere. With a 38-50 record, and eight games out of the wild card race, it’s likely they’ll be sellers.

Here are five Angels players – some realistic, some almost impossible – the Phillies should pursue ahead of the August 2 deadline:

Taylor Ward

Taylor Ward is putting up the best numbers of his five-year career, which makes him an attractive, yet lofty trade target.

Over 64 games, he’s slashing .292/.385/.511 with a .896 OPS, all career bests. He’s doubled eleven times, tripled twice, and has 12 home runs thus far.

Primarily a right-fielder, Ward wouldn’t exactly be a perfect fit. He would certainly be a great substitute for Harper, who is sidelined with a fractured thumb and was already unable to play the outfield due to a small tear in his UCL. However, when Harper returns, where does Ward go? He’s made 44 appearances each in left field and third base, 12 in center, five as the designated hitter, two at first, and one as the catcher.

Ward won’t hit free agency until 2027, so like a few other players on this list, the Phillies would have to give up a sizeable return to get him. He’s also never played more than 65 games in his career, so it’s unclear as of yet that he can keep up this pace through a full season, and that should be a consideration.

Noah Syndergaard

Noah Syndergaard missed the entire 2020 season and most of 2021 recovering and rehabbing after Tommy John surgery.

Syndergaard’s stat line isn’t great so far this year. He has a 4.00 ERA over his first 14 starts and has only kept one outing scoreless. However, Syndergaard also has years of experience facing the NL East, and his struggles could likely partially stem from the change of scenery. He’d also have a fellow former Met to get him acclimated, Zack Wheeler.

Signed to a one-year deal, Syndergaard would be a short-term addition. As such, trading for him would certainly be a risk. His career numbers against the Phillies’ NL East rivals are also a bit of a mixed bag. The Atlanta Braves have hit him hard over 10 games, slashing .272/.318/.408 with 16 extra-base hits. He’s also never faced his former team, the New York Mets, so that’s a risky variable, but it’s encouraging to see that he has a solid track record against the Miami Marlins, who always seem to give the Phillies trouble.

Patrick Sandoval

Patrick Sandoval won’t hit free agency until 2027, so the Angels would want a hefty return in exchange for so much club control.

He’s also putting up the best numbers of his four-year career, with a 2.95 ERA over 14 starts and 84 strikeouts in 76 1/3 innings.

Starting pitching is an immediate and long-term need for the Phillies, as Zach Eflin and Ranger Suárez are injured, and Eflin, Aaron Nola, and Kyle Gibson become free agents after this year. The Phillies could very well pick up Nola’s 2023 option, but they’ll still need some new blood.

Shohei Ohtani

An absurd pipe dream, to be sure, but let’s dream for a moment. Shohei Ohtani can do it all. With a 2.44 ERA over 14 starts and 19 home runs in 85 games as a hitter, he’s Babe Ruth, but better. Imagine him in the same lineup as Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper and in the same rotation as Zack Wheeler. It almost wouldn’t be fair to everyone else.

The Phillies were actually somewhat in the mix for Ohtani back when he was posted during the 2017-18 offseason before he went to Anaheim, instead. He’s signed through the end of this season, will have his final year of arbitration next year, and become a free agent in 2024. If the Phillies traded for him and they reached the postseason together, they’d also have a leg-up on signing him long-term. With all the money coming off the books after this year, they could absolutely afford him.

While it would likely take emptying the entire farm system to get Ohtani, he may be the only player worth that. Sure, it would set their finally-growing prospect pool back to basically zero, but Ohtani is the kind of game-changer who could pull them into the postseason. Go big, or go home, right?

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