Angels Select Trey Mancini

For the first time in three years, Trey Mancini is in the big leagues. The Angels selected the veteran first baseman onto the MLB roster before tonight’s series opener with the Astros. Mancini is starting at first base and batting seventh against his old team, who are sending Spencer Arrighetti to the mound.

The Halos also confirmed their previously reported call-up of rookie infielder Denzer Guzman, who’ll make his season debut tonight with a start at third base. In corresponding moves, they placed Vaughn Grissom (left oblique strain) and Adam Frazier (right elbow inflammation) on the 10-day injured list. Grissom’s placement is retroactive to June 5, while Frazier’s is retroactive to June 6. Yoán Moncada moves from the 10-day to the 60-day IL to clear a 40-man roster spot for Mancini.

Mancini signed an offseason minor league contract. He had sat out the 2024 campaign and only played a half-season in Triple-A with the Diamondbacks last year. Mancini never seemed likely to break camp as a result. Assigned to Triple-A Salt Lake, he has hit .273/.377/.464 with six home runs across 224 plate appearances. Mancini has walked at a huge 14.3% clip against an average 22% strikeout rate.

They’re not dominant numbers but are a little better than those of the average Pacific Coast League hitter. Mancini struggled in his most recent look at big league pitching, as he posted a .234/.299/.336 slash over 79 games for the Cubs in 2023. He hasn’t been an above-average MLB hitter since he was traded from the Orioles at the ’22 deadline, but he made a couple strong defensive plays to help the Astros win that year’s World Series.

The Angels welcomed Nolan Schanuel back from the injured list over the weekend. Schanuel missed a couple weeks with left ankle inflammation. He played on Saturday and Sunday but will get a day off tonight after reporting lingering soreness (relayed by Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com). Schanuel said he does not expect to need another stint on the injured list.

Moncada has been on the injured list since May 22. He has battled right knee discomfort going back to last summer. He’s now officially out into the middle of July, all but removing any chance the Angels could find a trade partner at the deadline willing to assume any portion of his $4MM salary.