The 24 best players in Los Angeles Angels history

Mike Trout has long been considered the best active player in Major League Baseball--and when he's healthy, it's kind of difficult to dispute that. Since being drafted by the Angels in the first round of the '09 draft the resume Trout has put together is honestly hard to believe. The Millville, NJ native reached the Majors late in 2011 but officially his rookie season was the '12 campaign when he slashed .326/.399/.564 with 30 homers and 49 steals and easily won the Rookie of the Year. Since then, Trout has won three AL MVP awards in '14, '16, and '19, has been an all-star 11 times, and earned nine Silver Sluggers. He's given the Angels seven seasons with 30 or more homers, has driven in over 90 runs five different times, and has stolen more than 30 bases three times. Trout led the American League in runs in four of five seasons from '12-'16, and in 2023 was well on his way to another terrific campaign before injuries got in the way. The 32-year-old will undoubtedly be a first ballot Hall of Famer when he's done, and I can promise you no other Los Angeles Angels player will ever wear number 27. In the meantime, Trout and the Halos both hope there's a lot more of this story yet to be written. 

Chuck Finley spent the first 14 seasons of his 17-year Major League career in southern California with the Angels and was a huge piece of their pitching staff for a long time. The southpaw is this organization's all-time leader in starts (379), wins (165) and innings (2,675), and he'll forever have his fingers all over this team's leaderboard. During his time with the Halos, Finley represented the club in four all-star games, gave LA over 200 innings in eight seasons, and led the Majors with 13 complete games in 1993.

Shortstop Jim Fregosi played his first 11 Major League seasons with the Angels and was easily one of the most complete players ever to wear the club's uniform. The San Francisco, CA native took the field 1,429 times with the Halos, slashing .268/.340/.403 with 404 extra-base hits and 546 RBI. He represented the Angels in six all-star games, won a Gold Glove in 1967, and led the American League with 13 triples in '68. In December of 1971, Fregosi was at the forefront of one of the biggest trades in the Angels history, going to the Mets in exchange for Nolan Ryan and three other players--a deal that would pay huge dividends as Ryan is also on this list. The club retired his number 11 in 1998. 

The Angels selected outfielder Tim Salmon in the 3rd round of the 1989 draft, and it became clear pretty quickly that they had a difference maker on their hands. The Grand Canyon University product played all 1,672 of his Major League contests in a Halos uniform, and slashed .282/.385/.498 with 299 home runs, 1,016 RBI, and 339 doubles. He was the AL Rookie of the Year in 1993, earned a Silver Slugger in '95, and finished in the top ten in the American League's MVP voting twice. Inexplicably, despite homering over 30 times in five seasons and knocking in over 95 runs five separate times the right-handed swinging Salmon was never selected to an all-star team. He did, however, win a World Series ring in 2002 when the Angels defeated the Giants in an exciting seven game Fall Classic, and Salmon played a big part, homering twice and hitting .346 in the series. 

Righty Nolan Ryan is Major League Baseball's all-time strikeout king, and much of that work was done as a member of the California Angels in the 1970s. The flamethrower took the mound 291 times for the Halos and won 138 games with a 3.07 ERA---the best career mark he had with any of his four teams. Ryan went to five all-star games with the Angels, led the Majors in punchouts in six of his eight seasons with the team, and gave California an unbelievable 156 complete games--40 of which were shutouts. Ryan was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1999.  The Angels retired his number 30 in '92. 

Brian Downing spent the vast majority of his 20-year career in southern California with the Angels, first as a catcher and later out on the grass in left field. Regardless of where he played defensively, the Los Angeles, CA native was an important piece of the Angels offense for a long time, slashing .271/.372/.441 with 222 homers, 846 RBI, and 282 doubles in 1,661 games with the club. Downing homered over 20 times in six different seasons while with the Angels, led the American League by walking 106 times in 1987, and was a member of the AL all-star team in '79. 

Righty Jered Weaver spent 11 seasons with the Angels and was the team's best starting pitcher for most of his time in Anaheim. In 322 starts for the Halos, Weaver earned 150 wins and pitched to a 3.55 ERA with a 1.19 WHIP, while striking out 1,598 hitters in 2,025 innings. He was an all-star three seasons in a row from '10-'12, led the Majors with 233 punchouts in 2010, and gave the Angels over 200 innings four times. In 2011 he was the runner-up to Detroit's Justin Verlander in the American League Cy Young voting. 

Infielder Bobby Grich spent the first seven seasons of his career in Baltimore before signing a free-agent contract with the Angels ahead of 1976 season, and he must have liked southern California because he never left to play in another city again. In ,222 games with the Halos Grich slashed .269/.370/.436 with 357 extra-base hits, 557 RBI, and 27 steals. He qualified for three all-star games while with the Angels, earned a Silver Slugger in '81, and finished 8th in the AL MVP voting in 1979. 

It's truly inconceivable that a team that employed both Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani for six years has had absolutely nothing in the way of success. Ohtani is truly a once-in-a-lifetime talent, an elite offensive weapon as well as a bona fide number one starting pitcher. Over the last three full Major League seasons Ohtani has blasted 124 home runs and driven in 290 runs. While on the mound going 34-16 with a 2.83 ERA in 74 starts. The 29-year-old has won AL Rookie of the Year, two AL MVP awards, made three all-star games and won a pair of Silver Slugger thus far in his career and he's only getting started. Unfortunately for Angels fans, the rest of his career will play out on the other side of Los Angeles where he just inked a massive free-agent agreement with the Dodgers.

The Angels selected left-hander Frank Tanana 13th overall in the 1971 draft coming out of a high school outside of Detroit, MI, and it shouldn't come as a surprise that later in his career he jumped at the opportunity to return to his hometown as a free agent. But the first part of Tanana's Major League story was clearly written in Anaheim, where for eight years, he gave the Angels a reliable and consistent upper-echelon starter. In 225 outings, the southpaw won 102 games and pitched to a strong 3.08 ERA in 1,615.1 innings. He was an all-star three times, won the ERA title in 1977, and led the Major Leagues in strikeouts in '75. Tanana never won the award but finished in the top 10 of the American League Cy Young voting three times while with the Angels, and as a whole his most productive seasons certainly came in southern California. 

Sweet-swinging Darin Erstad was one of the best pure hitters of his generation, and for over a decade the Angels were lucky enough to watch him apply those bat-to-ball skills in Anaheim. In 1,320 games with the Halos the Jamestown, ND native slashed a phenomenal .3286/.341/.416 with 114 homers, 625 RBI, 279 doubles, 30 triples, and 170 stolen bases. He won three Gold Gloves and a Silver Slugger, and in 2000 led the Major Leagues with 240 hits. It's awfully surprising Erstad was selected to only two all-star games, and even more stunning that his .355 batting average in 2000 wasn't good enough for a batting title. Most importantly to his Angels legacy, though, Erstad was a huge piece of Anaheim's World Series-winning team in '02. 

Second baseman Howie Kendrick enjoyed significant success late in his career while with the Nationals, but it was in Anaheim where he first cut his teeth. In nine seasons with the Halos the right-handed hitter slashed an impressive .292/.332/.424 with 357 extra-base hits, 501 RBI and 95 stolen bases. He was an all-star in 2011 when he crushed a career-high 18 long balls, and along with shortstop Erick Aybar who will be discussed later in this gallery, formed a flashy double play combination for this club for a long time. 

Southern California native Garret Anderson was the Angels 4th round pick in the 1990 draft and while it took him sometime to reach the big leagues, when he did it became apparent rather quickly that the Halos did not miss on the selection. Anderson, a left-handed swinging outfielder, would go on to slash .296/.327/.469 across 15 seasons with the Angels, while blasting 272 homers, driving in 1,292 runs, and doubling 489 times. He was chosen to represent Anaheim in three all-star games, won two Silver Slugger Awards, and led the American League in doubles in both '02 and '03. Anderson drove in over 116 runs for the Halos each year from 2000-2003, won the '03 Home Run Derby and was a huge part of the Angels World Series winning club in '02. 

Southpaw Mark Langston enjoyed a successful 16-year career at the sport's highest level, and roughly half of his appearances came in an Angels uniform. With the Halos he took the ball 210 times and earned 88 wins, while pitching to a 3.97 ERA with a 1.30 WHIP in 1,445.1 innings. The San Diego, CA native represented Anaheim in three all-star games, earned five Gold Gloves, and 1991 he even finished 6th in the AL Cy Young voting. 

John Lackey became a polarizing figure in Boston, St. Louis, and Chicago after leaving the Angels, but it's important to remember that it was in southern California where he first began blossoming into a high-caliber starting pitcher. In eight seasons in Anaheim the right-hander went 102-71 with a 3.81 ERA in 1,501 innings. He helped the Angels win the World Series as a rookie in 2002, won the ERA title in '07, and wore a Halos cap in his lone all-star game appearance. Lackey led the American League in complete game shutouts three times while with the Angels, and gave the club over 198 innings in five straight seasons from '03-'07. 

Shortstop Erick Aybar wasn't exactly a household name during his decade-long run with the Angels, but that's not to say he wasn't a huge part of Anaheim's team while he was there. The switch-hitter slashed .276/.315/.378 in a Halos' uniform with 313 extra-base hits, 417 RBI, and 141 stolen bases. He won a Gold Glove award in 2011, made the all-star team in 2014, and was consistently a valuable and dependable defender at a premium position in the middle of the Angels infield. 

Free-swinging outfielder Vladimir Guerrero had firmly established himself as one of the most lethal offensive players in the sport during his eight seasons with the Expos, and the Angels were absolutely elated to add him as a free agent in January of 2004. He rewarded them instantly, crushing 39 homers and driving in 126 runs in his first season on the west coast en route to being named the MVP of the American League. Guerrero would end up homering over 27 times and driving in more than 100 runs in each of his first four campaigns with Anaheim and led the AL with 124 runs scored in 2004. He represented the Angels in four all-star games, won four Silver Sluggers, won the 2007 Home Run Derby and slashed .319/.381/.546 in an Anaheim uniform. Guerrero was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2018 and today his son, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is one of the most dangerous right-handed hitters in the game. 

Third baseman Troy Glaus was selected by the Angels third overall in the '97 draft coming out of UCLA and he reached the big leagues 13 months later. At his apex the right-handed slugger was one of the most dangerous power hitters in the American League, as he crushed 29 or more homers every year from 1999-2002--including an AL-high 47 in 2000. Glaus drove in over 100 runs for the Angels three times, made three all-star teams, and won two Silver Sluggers, but his final two years on the west coast were marred by injuries. In six total seasons with Anaheim Glaus slashed .253/.357/.497 with 182 home runs, 515 RBI, and 165 doubles. The highlight of his career was undoubtedly the 2002 World Series, in which he hit three homers and drove in eight runs on his way to being named the MVP of a Fall Classic his team would ultimately capture in seven games. 

Utilityman Chone Figgins played six different positions during his eight seasons in Anaheim with the Angels, but wherever he lined up defensively he was generally an offensive asset. In 936 games with the club, he slashed .291/.363/.388 with 232 extra-base hits, 341 RBI, and most notably, 280 stolen bases. In his heyday Figgins possessed game-wrecking speed, and he actually led the Majors with 62 thefts in 2005. The Leary, GA native was never much of a power hitter but he impressively reached double digits in triples twice while with the Angels, and it's honestly perplexing that he qualified for only one all-star game during his career. Figgins first reached the big leagues late in 2002 but that was mostly just to ensure he'd be postseason eligible, and in October Anaheim often used him as a pinch-runner. He ended up earning a World Series ring with the Angels that fall. 

Right-hander Mike Witt pitched for the Angels for essentially all of the 1980s, and while he was not exactly a star, he did fill a valuable role for this team for a decade. In 314 outings for the club (272 starts), Witt worked to the tune of a 3.76 ERA with a 1.31 WHIP, while striking out 1,283 hitters in 1,965.1 innings and earning 109 victories. He made the all-star team in both '86 and '87 and gave California over 200 innings six times. 

Center fielder Torii Hunter had won seven straight Gold Gloves in Minnesota before coming to Anaheim, and while he earned two more in his first two seasons with the Angels, as he got deeper into his 30's some of his range out on the grass started to abandon him. But with the Halos Hunter made up for that by becoming a more prolific offensive player than he'd been earlier in his career. In his five seasons with the Angels the Pine Bluff, AR native slashed .286/.352/.462 with 105 homers, 432 RBI, 147 doubles, and 60 stolen bases. He won a Silver Slugger Award in 2009, represented Anaheim in two all-star games, and drove in over 90 runs for the Angels three times. 

Jarrod Washburn was the Angels' second-round pick in the 1995 draft coming out of the University of Wisconsin, and three short years later he emerged as an important piece of the club's pitching staff. Washburn would end up spending the first eight seasons of his Major League career in southern California, winning 75 games with the Halos and pitching to a 3.93 ERA. He never qualified for an American League all-star team, despite once finishing 4th in the AL Cy Young voting, but for eight years he consistently took the ball every 5th day and gave his team a chance to win. Washburn earned a World Series ring with the Angels in 2002. 

Left-handed swinging center fielder Jim Edmonds played the first seven of his 17 Major League seasons with the Angels, and while today he may be most remembered for his exploits in St. Louis, let's not forget how prolific he was early in his career. In 709 games with the Halos he slashed .290/.359/.498 with 121 homers, 408 RBI and 161 doubles. He represented Anaheim in the 1995 all-star game and earned two Gold Gloves with the team, and his two-way prowess propelled him to stardom with the Cardinals later in his career.  

During his prime there simply was not a better defensive player in the Major Leagues than shortstop Andrelton Simmons, who flashed his defensive prowess in Anaheim from 2016-2020. With the Angels he earned two Gold Gloves and even finished 8th in the AL MVP voting in '17. Offensively he slashed .281/.328/.394 in 561 games with the Halos, while contributing 157 extra-base hits and driving in 238 runs. He left the Angels to join the Twins in free agency in 2021.