MLB.com reported that Minasian, in his annual end-of-season press conference at Angel Stadium, said that for the 2025 season, the Angels really need their top players to step up from the injury setback. The Angels are trying to chalk up a plan to keep Trout on the field more in 2025. That might mean spending time in the outfield corners and DH’ing more often. However, Rendon is probably headed to a bench role despite being owed $38.5 million in both 2025 and 2026, considering his lackluster performance.

“We need them to be better. It’s not a lack of effort. It just is what it is, but they understand how important they are, and from a payroll standpoint, they take up a significant chunk of the payroll. So when your best players aren’t playing, it makes it more difficult.” Minasian, who signed a two-year extension in late August, said.

It’s tough when you think about the impact of Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon barely being on the field. They played 29 and 57 games, respectively. And looking at the numbers, it gets even more concerning. The Angels had $75.7 million, nearly 44% of their total payroll, sitting on the injured list for most of the season.

Hence, Perry Minasian is feeling the pressure; it’s not just about getting Trout and Rendon back on the field, they need to perform at their best. The GM pointed out, “There’s been significant money spent on the payroll, it comes back to the players we’re spending on. And we need our best players to play. They know that. With that being said, we definitely need more players.”

Owner Arte Moreno has yet to reveal to Minasian just how high the payroll will be for next season, but it is expected to increase. Adding to the team’s overall depth is of the highest priority, as they’re likely to add to the infield, outfield, and starting rotation this offseason. However, stats are concerning for Trout and Rendon in the 2024 season.

Trout batted .220 with a .867 OPS, which is pretty lackluster for someone of his talent. And Rendon? A .218 average with a .574 OPS and no home runs all season; that’s definitely not what anyone expected from these stars, especially with both players costing over $37 million each. But there is one positive thing that the GM pointed out about the season.

The team relied on youth this season and Minasian believed that it going to do good only for the team. Minasian only had good words to say for the club’s young core of Zach Neto, Logan O’Hoppe, Nolan Schanuel, Jose Soriano, Jack Kochanowicz, and Ben Joyce to be optimistic about.

“It’s a frustrating year for all of us. I’ll be the first one to say that. But big picture, I’m really excited where this thing’s going. I’ve been in situations like this in other organizations where we’ve had tough seasons. But you can usually point to a season where things change, not necessarily in the win-loss column, but where players took huge leaps and caused a jump in wins and a jump to contention. We needed a young core to build around and we finally have it,” he noted. He also praised manager Ron Washington for helping the young players out.

Meanwhile, as the GM has laid the blame on injuries and the lack of production from Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon for this rough 2024 season, Mike Trout sees it differently on why things have gone south for the Angels.