Angels may have found way to avoid luxury tax and why that matters

The Los Angeles Angels announced on Sunday that catcher Max Stassi has been replaced on the restricted list for the remainder of the season and will not participate in any more games for the club in 2023.

That is a potentially significant development for the Angels' finances and perhaps their offseason outlook.

Stassi had been away from the team all season after stepping away in spring training to deal with what was described as a family medical issue, as well as his own recovery from hip surgery. 

The Angels' statement on Sunday noted that even though Stassi informed the team he is able to resume baseball activities, he has voluntarily chosen not to do so.

By placing him on the restricted list, it means they will not have to pay him the remainder of his $7 million salary for the 2023 season.

That means the Angels may have done enough to get themselves back under the luxury tax threshold for the 2023 season. 

Los Angeles was set to go over that threshold following a trade-deadline spending spree as the club attempted to become serious buyers in order to to make a run at an American League wild-card spot. Unfortunately for the Angels, things almost immediately went south, as they went on an extended losing streak and were decimated by injuries to Mike Trout, as well as a tear to Shohei Ohtani's UCL that is going to prevent him from pitching for the remainder of the season.

All of that resulted in the Angels following out of contention in the playoff race. Their response to that was to put several players on waivers this past week, with five of them (Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez, Dominic Leone, Hunter Renfroe and Matt Moore) being claimed by other teams. That allowed the Angels to save more than $3.4 million in salary that nearly got them back under the luxury tax limit. But it was apparently still just a little short.

Sunday's move to switch Stassi over to the restricted list should get them back under it. 

The biggest benefit for the Angels when it comes to staying under that limit is that if they lose Ohtani this offseason in free agency, which seems likely, it would result in them getting a compensatory pick at the end of the second round of the 2024 draft instead of the end of the fourth round. 

In parts of four years with the Angels, Stassi has hit .209 with 29 home runs and a .658 OPS.