Sports
Column: Yes, the Angels are signing players. But what can they expect from Mike Trout?
In the NFL, Patrick Mahomes makes your team a contender. In the NBA, Nikola Jokic makes your team a contender.
In baseball, as the Angels and their fans know all too well, one player does not make your team a contender. Over the past decade, Mike Trout could not do it all by himself, and he and Shohei Ohtani could not do it all by themselves.
The Angels agreed Monday to a three-year, $63-million contract with pitcher Yusei Kikuchi, according to a person familiar with the deal but not authorized to comment publicly. The team has not announced the deal because Kikuchi has yet to complete his physical examination.
With the deal, the Angels topped the $100-million mark in holiday spending before Thanksgiving, buying six players in their 30s: Kikuchi and fellow starting pitcher Kyle Hendricks, designated hitter Jorge Soler, backup catcher Travis d’Arnaud, backup infielders Scott Kingery and Kevin Newman.
Kikuchi and Soler are about impact, the others are about depth. But if this is really about contention, the Angels are back to being all about Trout.
How good, really, are the Angels? They lost 99 games last season, the worst team in franchise history. They have resisted a full rebuilding, and the best young player to emerge — shortstop Zach Neto — is coming off shoulder surgery and might not be ready when the new season starts.
No team made the playoffs last season with fewer than 86 victories. Could the Angels really go from 63 victories to 86 in one year?
The Kansas City Royals went from 56 victories (and 106 losses!) two seasons ago to 86 victories last season, and into the playoffs.
The Royals’ primary pickups in free agency: starting pitchers Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha. That couldn’t have worked any better: Lugo and Wacha each finished among the top 10 in earned run average in the American League, and the duo combined to pitch 373 innings.
The Royals’ starters ranked second in the league in ERA, at 3.55. The Angels’ starters ranked last, at 4.97.
Kikuchi and Hendricks combined to pitch 306 innings last season. Hendricks has posted an ERA below 4.00 once in the last four seasons; Kikuchi has done that once in his six major league seasons, but he posted a 2.70 ERA in 10 starts following a trade from the Toronto Blue Jays to the Houston Astros last summer.
The Angels bet $39 million on Tyler Anderson after he put up a career year for the Dodgers. They now are betting $63 million on Kikuchi after he put up two brilliant months for the Astros. Such is the price of durable if not spectacular pitching.
The Angels still have significant needs: more starting pitching, even more relief pitching, infield, big bat. Their lineup is thin, their bullpen thinner.
It is uncertain how much more owner Arte Moreno might spend this offseason. Including Soler, who was acquired in a salary-dump trade, the Angels have taken on $107 million this month. The number of teams spending more than $110 million on free agents last winter: five (three of them in the National League West: the Dodgers, Arizona Diamondbacks and San Francisco Giants).
Let’s get back to the Royals for a moment. Their pitching was good; their offense was not. The Royals had four players with at least 300 at-bats and an OPS+ above 100 — that is, better than league average. Same for the Angels.
The difference: Only one of those eight players was even 20% above league average: Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., the runner-up to Aaron Judge as AL most valuable player. Witt batted .332 with 32 home runs and had a 171+ OPS — that is, 71% better than league average.
Soler had a 121+ OPS. That helps.
But what the Angels really need are elite hitters, like Witt. Moreno already has signed two. He needs them to play, and play well.
The Angels are not counting on Anthony Rendon. If he earns playing time in spring training, great, but he has not hit a home run in 513 days.
That brings us back to Trout, the three-time MVP who has not played even 120 games in a season since 2019. When Trout plays, he remains an elite hitter.
His OPS+ last season: 140 — that is, 40% better than league average. Over a full season, that would have put him within the top 10 in the AL. He played 29 games last season.
No one really knows how many games Trout might play next season. Even the Angels appear mystified. Their promotional calendar usually is highlighted by Trout giveaways: bobbleheads, jersey replicas, T-shirts, even fish hats.
On Monday, the Angels announced their 2025 promotional calendar. The five bobbleheads are all blank faces, to be announced at a later date.
The Angels have gone 10 years without a postseason appearance, the longest such drought in the majors. This offseason appears little different from most recent offseasons for the Angels: patch some holes, add some depth, hope for a run at .500 and then some luck.
The luck would come from within the house. Mike Trout, an Angels nation turns its lonely eyes to you.
The Cleveland Browns, rumored to be willing to trade down from their No. 6 overall selection in the 2026 NFL draft, did just that Thursday evening when the traded the pick to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Cleveland traded the sixth overall pick in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft to the Chiefs, in exchange for the ninth overall pick, as well as pick No. 74 in the third round and No. 148 in the fifth round.
The Browns now hold the No. 9 and No. 24 picks in the first round of the draft. They have a total of 11 picks in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Quarterbacks Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson of the Cleveland Browns watch from the sidelines during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Huntington Bank Field in Cleveland, Ohio, on Sept. 7, 2025. (Jason Miller/Getty Images)
So the Chiefs gave up three picks in making the first trade of the first round.
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And we know what the fan bases of both clubs were thinking prior to the selection:
Chiefs fans were thinking we know something they don’t. And then the Chiefs selected cornerback Mansoor Delane from LSU — a move no doubt forced by the club’s trade of Pro Bowl cornerback Trent McDuffie to the Los Angeles Rams earlier in the offseason.
So, the Chiefs fill a major need, assuming Delane is indeed the quality corner they believe.
LSU Tigers CB Mansoor Delane celebrates a defensive stop against the Clemson Tigers at Memorial Stadium in South Carolina. (Ken Ruinard/USA TODAY Network)
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ESPN’s Mel Kiper didn’t like the pick, by the way. He had Delane as the 14th best player in the draft.
“It was a necessity,” ESPN analyst Louis Riddick, a former NFL defensive back, responded.
Browns fans weren’t thinking that way.
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They were probably thinking something akin to “We screwed up.”
This is understandable because they’re Browns fans and this could have been the Browns Browning.
Well, the Browns, moving down three slots, gave up a shot to draft linebacker Sonny Styles of Ohio State to the Washington Commanders, receiver Jordyn Tyson to the New Orleans Saints and then the Browns got their chance with the newly acquired No. 9 pick:
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Offensive tackle Spencer Fano of Utah.
Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry speaks at the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis, Ind., on Feb. 24, 2026. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
Fano is good. And he makes the Browns offensive line instantly better because he’s going to likely start at left tackle for them.
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So what will Browns fans think of this pick?
They’ll probably wonder why the Browns didn’t pick Miami’s Francis Mauigoa, who went with the No. 10 pick to the New York Giants and promised “to die for” Jaxson Dart if necessary. They’ll wonder this because Browns fans expect the worst.
UCLA women’s basketball team has added some star power as its revamped roster begins to take shape.
Former Iowa State forward Addy Brown announced Thursday she is committing to UCLA, giving the Bruins one of the top players in the portal.
Brown averaged 11.9 points, 8.8 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game while shooting 43.1% from the floor and 33.8% from three-point distance with the Cyclones last season. She played just 21 games due to injury, but she is one of the better two-way players in the nation on the transfer market.
The 6-foot-2 forward co-starred with Audi Crooks for Iowa State the past few seasons and was a part of the mass exodus from the Cyclones’ program.
The Bruins reeled in former North Carolina junior guard Elina Aarnisalo and former Texas Christian senior guard Donovyn Hunter a few weeks ago, adding two more experienced players to the depleted starting lineup after a record six UCLA players were selected in the WNBA draft.
UCLA also signed Arkansas sophomore guard Bonnie Deas earlier this month. She is likely to start at point guard for the Bruins and is one of the best rebounding guards in the nation.
Along with returner Timea Gardiner, the Bruins are starting to form somewhat of a core to defend their national championship. Gardiner was a starter during UCLA’s 2024-25 Final Four run, but missed all of this past season with injury and has one season of eligibility left.
A lineup with Deas and Aarnisalo in the backcourt, Hunter at the three and Gardiner or Brown at the four and adding another big or Sienna Betts at the five would be a competitive lineup in the Big Ten.
Before going to TCU, Hunter played two seasons at Oregon State where she earned All-Pac-12 Defensive Team honorable mention and All-Pac-12 Freshman team honors. This past season with a Horned Frogs team that went to the Sweet 16, she was third in scoring with 10.2 points per game and averaged 3.2 rebounds per contest. She also shot 45.7% from the field and was 33.7% from beyond the arc.
Aarnisalo played her freshman year in Westwood after she originally committed to UCLA in 2025. Due to injuries from point guard Kiki Rice at the start of the 2024-25 season, she was forced into action early her freshman season and finished the year averaging 5.1 points per game.
The Helsinki, Finland, native averaged 10.2 points per game for the Tar Heels as a sophomore last season while shooting 47.3% from the field and 40.3% from the arc. The Bruins will desperately need to replace the three-point production lost with the departure of Rice, Gianna Kneepkens and Charlisse Leger-Walker.
UCLA coach Cori Close said she wanted to sign five players from the portal. She probably needs one more guard and a little more forward depth coming off the bench following the departures of Gabriela Jaquez and Angela Dugalic.
Lena Bilic and Amanda Muse are returners coming off the bench who got a little bit of playing time in the tournament and should have much larger roles, but they are still relatively unproven in late-game situations. They will get a chance to develop as backups with some more Power Four experienced starters now in the fold.
Trump says there’s ‘no time frame’ to secure Iran deal
Republican Minnesota Senate candidate Tom Weiler joins ‘Fox & Friends’ to discuss President Donald Trump’s blockade in the Strait of Hormuz as the U.S.-Iranian conflict continues and react to Gov. Tim Walz’s, D-Minn., criticism of the president.
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Saudi Arabia was among the countries seeing missiles fly into their airspace as a conflict broke out in the Middle East between the U.S. and Iran.
The prospect of Iran targeting its Middle Eastern neighbors like Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates put some sporting events on hold and questioned others. Formula 1 races in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain were canceled and rumors swirled around whether future WWE events could be held in the kingdom.
Roman Reigns celebrates his win during WWE’s Royal Rumble at Riyadh Season Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Jan. 31, 2026. (Georgiana Dallas/WWE)
As the Trump administration brokered a ceasefire with Iran, WWE announced on Thursday that its Night of Champions premium live event will be held in Riyadh on June 27.
“We are proud to welcome Night of Champions back to Riyadh and look forward to delivering another unforgettable night of WWE action for fans in the Kingdom and around the world,” General Entertainment Authority chairman Turki Al-Sheikh said in a news release.
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Sami Zayn makes his entrance during Night of Champions at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on June 28, 2025. (Georgiana Dallas/WWE)
The release touted that WrestleMania 43 will still be held in Riyadh in 2027. It will be the first time that WrestleMania is held outside the U.S.
WWE president Nick Khan was adamant before WrestleMania 42 that the event will still take place in Saudi Arabia despite the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
“We’re doing WrestleMania next year in Saudi,” he said at a Sports Business Journal event, via The Sporting Tribune. “First time ever, WrestleMania will be outside the United States or Canada. And we’ve had a big, fruitful partnership with them.”
John Cena wrestles CM Punk during Night of Champions at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on June 28, 2025. (Georgiana Dallas/WWE)
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He added that those complaining about WrestleMania being held in Saudi Arabia were a “vocal minority.”
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