It seems that Anthony Rendon and injuries have gone hand-in-hand since he joined the LA Angels. Since he joined the Angels in 2020, he has yet to play for a full season without any gap. 2025 is also going to be no different, with Rendon set to miss the start of the season due to injuries. Recently he is further getting ridiculed due to a stat, which shows Rendon played fewer matches for the Angels than a player from the WWII era who took a break from baseball to fight the Nazis.

The colossal contract the Angels have with Rendon proves to be a lost case for them. Reportedly, the Angels got Rendon for seven years worth $245 million, but his performance has only gone south since then. Majorly his groin and shoulder injuries affected him the most in the last few years. Now with such poor on-field turnouts, what future holds for Anthony Rendon?

Anthony Rendon’s injury-ridden journey 

Anthony Rendon was one of the top names in the circuit back in 2019 when his 6.7 WAR was second only to the legend Mike Trout’s 8.4. Expectedly, he fetched a huge deal from the Angels, and Rendon started with them in an already shortened COVID-hit season in 2020. In 2021, Rendon was placed on the injured list two times and played only 58 games, followed by playing 47 games in 2022, 43 games in 2023, and 57 games in 2024. In total, Rendon played 257 games in five years for the Angels. That’s 25% of the total games he was expected to play! 

MLB insider Not Gaetti shared the stats of Red Sox veteran Ted Williams from the WWII era. The surprising fact here is that Williams played a total of 300 games between 1942 and 1946, including his break for three years (1943, 1944, 1945) due to his WWII services. While a player went on to play 300 games besides fighting the Nazis, Rendon played 257 games in all five years. Additionally, Williams is ahead of every other stat compared to Rendon. Williams got a WAR of 21.1 in those five years compared to 3.1 for Rendon in his last five years. With such stats, what’s ahead for Rendon?

What’s ahead for Rendon?

Anthony Rendon still has two years left to play with the Angels, but it is unlikely that the team will continue his service at 3B going further. His injury-ridden seasons and inability to hit a single home run since July 2023 make a strong case for the Angels to look for alternatives. One of the potential options can be moving him to first or second base. Considering how undervalued 1B positions are now, the Angels can settle him there. They might release him before 2025, but that looks uncertain now considering the offseason is about to end.

Trading him can also be an option, but it is unlike that other teams will accept him due to his injury-ridden past, and the trading window is also about to close. For Rendon, it’s now or never, and if given a chance to play for the Angels, then 2025 will be his chance to prove. “My enthusiasm has been the same since I got drafted, to be honest,” said Rendon, pointing out how he is hopeful to make a strong comeback. Apart from the Angels’ objective, it is Rendon’s career that depends on his 2025 performance.

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