Angels relief pitcher Kenley Jansen (74) is congratulated by designated hitter Mike Trout (27) after earning a save in the ninth inning defeating the Texas Rangers at Angel Stadium on July 28. Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Angels GM Reveals Why He Didn't Trade $10 Million All-Star at Deadline

Originally posted on Los Angeles Angels on SI
By J.P. Hoornstra | Last updated Aug 2, 2025 12:30 PM ET

Kenley Jansen would have fit right in among the many veteran closers who were traded ahead of Thursday's MLB trade deadline.

Jansen, a four-time All-Star, has a 2.93 ERA and 20 saves in his 16th major league season. For the cost of $10 million, the Angels have seen Jansen allow two earned runs in 21.1 innings in save situations this season — numbers that surely would have appealed to MLB executives looking to acquire a closer this week.

Considering Jansen is a free agent at the end of this season, the number of teams looking to acquire him was surely high. So why didn't the Angels, whose playoff odds stood at 3.4 percent, according to FanGraphs, trade Jansen for a player or two who might have helped them next season or beyond?

“(Jansen) is somebody that affects everybody, not only our pitchers in the bullpen, but our young rotation, our young position players,” Angels general manager Perry Minasian said Thursday, via the Orange County Register. “His pedigree, his desire to win games, I think, is more than welcomed, obviously, in this place and in this clubhouse. So looking at that relative to what was discussed, we felt like it was the right thing to do to keep him.”

Minasian's comments make sense in the context of how he views the Angels' competitive chances in 2025 — however slight they might be — compared to their chances to compete next season and into the future.

Do the Angels think their competitive window starts in 2026?

An exchange from the press conference with Minasian. pic.twitter.com/INeEwEOTwJ
— Sam Blum (@SamBlum3) July 31, 2025

"We've had a very competitive season up to this point," Minasian told reporters (via Sam Blum of The Athletic on Twitter/X. "We'll see what happens over the next two months, but I'm more concentrated on '25 and worried about '25, and worried about tomorrow (more than 2026)."

What did the Angels do this week?

After trading for two veteran relievers (right-handers Luis Garcia and Andrew Chafin), Minasian acquired Oswald Peraza , a .152/.212/.241 hitter in 71 games this season with the Yankees. Veteran Kevin Newman was cut in a corresponding roster move Thursday.

The net effect of the moves Minasian made (and didn't make) effectively tells the Angels' clubhouse that he believes in their ability to compete this season with minimal help from outside the organization.

Whether that message proves naive or inspiring remains to be seen. Considering the Angels parted with a pair of minor leaguers, left-handed pitcher Jake Eder and first baseman Sam Brown, it ultimately amounts to an odds-defying endorsement of the team's chances to win in 2025.

This article first appeared on Los Angeles Angels on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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