This Seattle Second Baseman Could Be A Good Fill-In Option For Angels

The Los Angeles Angels have a couple of big holes in their infield, and one is at second base. The second baseman of the future is Christian Moore, at least in theory, but this year’s rookie cameo proved Moore still has some developing to do before he’s ready to take over the job full-time.

Moore stuck out an astounding 62 times in 162 plate appearances in 2025, although he did display some power with seven homers. That combination sounds a lot like a byproduct of the approach recommended by former hitting coach Johnny Washington, whose philosophy was basically “keep swinging until you strike out or hit a home run.”

There are other options out there, and one is free agent second baseman Jorge Polanco. Polanco spent the last two seasons with the Seattle Mariners, and he hit .265 with 26 home runs and 82 RBIs. Polanco also cut his strikeout rate in half from his previous season, dropping that number to 15.6 percent across 524 plate appearances.

According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Mariners and Polanco are about to part ways now that Seattle has signed first baseman Josh Naylor to fill the Mariners’ power needs. The Mariners are committed to going with top prospect Cole Young at second, and Polanco has already stated that he “wants to play out the market.”

There are some drawbacks here, as always. Polanco is 32, and he’s never been that strong defensively. But the Angels are in a position where they have to fill holes if they’re going to give rookie manager Kurt Suzuki a decent chance at success, and having a veteran option like Polanco might make some sense and stabilize the position.

The Angels could also be hunting for a defensive second baseman, but it’s hard to tell at this point. They just filled out their coaching staff last week, and one of the big tasks faced by new hitting coach Brady Anderson will be getting players like Moore to make more contact.

We still don’t know what overall approach the Angels are going to take offensively, or whether their positional signings and trade targets are going to lean toward offense or defense. Hopefully we’ll get more information on that this week, especially since MLB GMs are scheduled to meet again on Dec. 10.

Polanco could also help tutor Moore to cut his astronomical strikeout rate, so he should be on the Halos wishlist as a possible signing if the money numbers are right. Right now this is just a rumor, but it’s one of the few that makes some sense.