The Los Angeles Angels are still looking for a third baseman, but they’re not having much luck in the free-agent hunt.

The Angels either can’t or won’t compete with some of the big-market teams that are chasing the likes of third baseman Alex Bregman, and Japanese third baseman Munetaka Murakami just took a two-year, $34 million deal with the Chicago White Sox to prove that he can overcome his issues with strikeouts.

Advertisement

The next name up in the rumor mill is yet another Japanese infielder, Kazuma Okamoto, who might be a better candidate for the Angels. He’s the current hot free-agent name, and he’s a third baseman, which is a position where the Angels have a big need.

Okamoto is also 29, and he’s considered a more complete player than Murakami, according to MLB.com. He also has good power, having hit at least 30 home runs in six consecutive seasons in Japan’s NPB league from 2018-2023. His career slash line in Japan is .277/.361/.521 through 11 seasons.

One issue with Okamoto is his health, which is another reason he would fit right in with the Angels. He missed 77 games last season, but Okamoto still hit 15 home runs to go with a .992 OPS. Given that Murakami’s two-year deal was for a reasonable amount, Okamoto might be an even cheaper option.

There are several reasons why this probably won’t happen, and the first is competition. The rumor mill has the Toronto Blue Jays and Pittsburgh Pirates as the current interest kings when it comes to signing Okamoto, and the Boston Red Sox have supposedly “kicked the tires” on the third baseman as well.

Advertisement

The Angels don’t seem all that interested in joining this kind of competition right now. They were mentioned as having interest in outfielder Cody Bellinger during the winter GM meetings, but that mention came courtesy of a Scott Boras filibuster during which the super agent mentioned half the teams in the league.

Another reason this won’t happen is the overall market reaction to this year’s crop of Japanese and Korean imports. Several of these players were talked up early in free agency as the rumor mill got going, but genuine interest quickly fizzled when negotiations got serious, and several of the deals that resulted have been surprisingly inexpensive. Okamoto’s posting period will end on Jan. 4, so any team that signs him will have to move quickly.

As for the Angels, sooner or later they’ll have to do something. No one thinks they can go into the season with infielders like Vaughn Grissom or Christian Moore manning the hot corner, although it’s not out of the realm of possibility with the Halos.