Signed as an Amateur Free Agent from the Dominican Republic in 2000, Ervin Santana had an inconsistent career with the Angels, always seeming to flirt with greatness or appear close to it.

Santana made the Angels’ regular rotation in 2005, throwing for a 12-8 record and an ERA of 4.65.  His sophomore campaign was better, increasing his Wins to 16 with a reduced ERA of 4.28, but 2007 was a mess where his ERA flirted with six, and he was demoted at one point to AAA.  The righthander came back in 2008, winning 16 Games with his first ERA season under 3.50 (3.49) with a career-high in Strikeouts (214).  He made his only All-Star Game as an Angel that year, and Cy Young voters placed him sixth overall.

His up-and-down existence continued, as over the next four years, he had two seasons with an ERA over five and two years when it went below four.  Santana did have a career highlight, throwing a no-hitter in 2011, and he also had a career-best in Wins (17) in 2010.

Santana was traded to Kansas City after the 2012 Season, leaving the Halos with a 96-80 Record and 1,167 Strikeouts.

Ranking Albert Pujols so low is so strange for us.  Spending the second half of his career with the Angels, we know that Pujols will be a first ballot Hall of Fame inductee, but after a decent start, Pujols devolved into the most overpaid player in baseball and one of the worst everyday players.

Pujols was a legend in St. Louis, winning three MVPs and leading them to a pair of World Series Championships.  He was so good that a legitimate question lingers as to who was the greatest Cardinal of all time, Pujols or Stan Musial.  When he was a free agent, the Angels aggressively pursued he First Baseman, offering a monster contract, taking the chance the player who was in his early 30s would not decline.  But decline he did.

Pujols kept up good power numbers, blasting 30 Home Runs in his first year (2012) and getting back up to 40 in 2015, which was his lone All-Star campaign in Los Angeles.  He had four years where he still had over three digits in RBIs, but he never had a .300 year in Batting Average, and quickly he couldn't muster a .300 in OBP either.  As his skills eroded, his defensive liabilities grew, as did his speed.  After multiple years where he had a bWAR in the negative, Los Angeles released him during the 2021 season, when Pujols would not agree to reduced playing time.  

As an Angel, he did have 1,180 Hits and 222 Home Runs, but nevertheless, a player who couldn't run, couldn't field, and had a sub-three OBP through the last half of his stint was a huge liability and had to reflect on this list.  

Before he won two back-to-back World Series with Toronto, Devon White established himself as an upper-tier defensive Outfielder with the Angels.

After being drafted in 1981, White first made the Majors in 1985, and that year and in the one that followed, he played a combined 50 Games for the parent club.  White won the starting Centerfielder role in 1987 and had 168 Hits with 24 Home Runs and 32 Stolen Bases, arguably his best season with California.

He had more acclaim in the following years, winning two Gold Gloves (1988 & 1989) and earning an All-Star berth in '89.  White was generating the power numbers of 1987, but his fielding was excellent, and he had enough power and speed to make him a dangerous hitter.

After being injured for a portion of the 1991 Season, White was traded to Toronto in a six-player deal, and arguably he was the only player of note.  In addition to his two rings in Toronto, he won a third in Miami.  

With the Angels, he swiped 123 Bases, collected 551 Hits, and had a Defensive bWAR of 6.9.

Jim Abbott was born without a right hand, but you forgot it quickly when you saw him pitch.

The Angels believed so immediately, as he was a First Round Pick (8^th Overall) in 1988, and he made their starting rotation the following season, going 12-12 with a 3.92 ERA.  He was decent the next year (10-14, 4.51 ERA), but his best year in baseball by far was 1991.  Abbott posted a record of 18-11 and a 2.89 ERA, which was fourth in the American League, and he was third in Cy Young voting.  While his record dropped to 7-15 in 1992, his ERA went down to 2.77.

Abbott left the Angels for the Yankees as a Free Agent after the 1992 Season but returned in 1995 when he was traded from his then team, the Chicago White Sox.  After a mediocre 1995, Abbott had an abysmal 1996, losing a league-leading 18 Games with an ERA of 7.48 and WHIP of 1.754.  He was released after that and did manage to play two more years, but his run with the Angels was an inspirational one and will never be forgotten.