John Mozeliak said on Monday that the Angels will spend the next two weeks figuring out what the trade market will pay for their assets before the Aug. 3 deadline, with his first and foremost concern being the return. He said the club is still in the early stages of sorting out what teams are willing to give up and where the deal value really sits.
That search matters because the Angels opened Monday at 39-61, the worst record in the major leagues, and the two names drawing the most attention are Reid Detmers and José Soriano. Both are starting pitchers under club control for two more seasons, which gives the Angels a rare kind of leverage for a team that is this far out of the race.
Mozeliak said he is still learning the market after taking the job less than a month ago, and he framed the process as a simple one: understand the return before deciding whether to move anything. He said the next two weeks are the club’s full focus, and he made clear that aggressive trades are possible if the payoff matches what the franchise needs.
That leaves room for a deal, but not for one that falls short. Mozeliak said Arte Moreno is trusting him to get it right, while also making plain that the Angels can walk away from offers that do not serve the organization. He described that as a demanding task, especially with a roster that still has holes and a market that can shift quickly once teams get serious.
He pointed to the bullpen and a left-handed bat as areas that could change the club’s outlook in a hurry, and he said the farm system is stronger than public perception but still not top 10 in baseball. He also said the Angels had a strong draft and added some exciting depth, though he added that one draft does not change the franchise.
For now, the question is not whether the Angels have pieces other clubs want. It is whether the price comes back in the right shape, and whether Mozeliak uses the next two weeks to turn that leverage into help without weakening the club’s future beyond what Moreno is willing to accept.
Separately, Kurt Suzuki said he has spoken with Wade Meckler because Meckler is not getting regular playing time, telling him to stay sharp while he works through a mix-and-match role. Suzuki said he is trying to get him in when he can and told him he is doing a great job.
