Andy Messersmith played his first five seasons in the Majors, beginning in 1968, where he threw for 81.1 Innings with a 4-2 Record. It was the start of what was a solid career.
Messersmith became a starter the following year, winning a combined 27 Games in 1969 and 1970 and leading the American League in H/9. 1971 was viewed as Messersmith's best year in California, where he was fifth in Cy Young voting, made the All-Star Game, and won 20 Games. He only won 8 Games in 1972 but had a lower ERA and WHIP and was the victim of poor run support.
The Angels traded Messersmith to the Dodgers after the 1972 Season, and he would become more known for challenging, winning the reserve clause, and ushering in free agency. Messersmith had a 59-47 Record with a 2.78 ERA as an Angel.
In the year it counted the most, Jarrod Washburn had his best season.
The southpaw first made the Majors in 1998, and he spent his first three years bouncing between the Minors and the parent club, staying for good in 2001. Washburn won 11 Games in 2001, and in 2002, he posted a sweet record of 18 and 6 with a 3.15 ERA. Washburn was arguably the ace that year, and he was fourth in Cy Young voting.
Washburn's regular season did not translate into the playoffs, as despite performing well in the first two series, he was shellacked in the World Series, dropping both decisions with an ERA over nine. Nevertheless, the Angels won the World Series, and Washburn was largely why they got there.
Washburn slipped after, as his ERA went back up over four in 2003 and 2004, though he dropped it back to 3.20 in 2008. That was his last season in SoCal, as he bolted for Seattle.
As an Angel, Washburn had a 75-57 Record with 699 Strikeouts.
Doug DeCinces had giant shoes to fill as he was the Orioles Third Baseman after Brooks Robinson. He played well, but he was never going to be the Hall of Famer, and altercations with his star Pitcher, Jim Palmer, led to a trade to California in 1982.
DeCinces’s career took an upward turn with the Angels, as he belted a career-high 30 Home Runs in '82 and had his only .300 season. He was an All-Star the following season, and from 1984 to 1986, he smacked at least 20 across the fences.
His play slipped in 1987, and he was released, but he left the Angels with 130 Home Runs and a .463 Slugging Percentage.
Andrelton Simmons was a top defensive infielder when he was with the Atlanta Braves, and he brought that skill to Los Angeles when he was traded to the Angels after the 2015 Season.
Simmons had a good 2016 but rattled off three straight Gold Gloves (2016-18) and two Wilson Defensive Player Awards (2017 & 2018). 2017 was especially impressive, as Simmons led the American League in Defensive bWAR with 5.1. He had a career-high 164 Hits that year and was eighth in MVP voting. Simmons left L.A. for Minnesota as a Free Agent before the 2021 Season.
Simmons had 592 Hits and a Defensive bWAR of 12.1 as an Angel.