The Angels have designated outfielder Justin Upton for assignment, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports. This means the team will have seven days to trade Upton or place him on irrevocable outright waivers. For the Angels, the move clears a spot on the 40-man roster.
Very likely, Upton will be waived and become a free agent. That's because he's owed $28 million for 2022, the final year of the five-year, $106 million pact he signed with the Angels prior to the 2018 season. If Upton does indeed clear waivers as expected, then a team can claim him for the league minimum. The Angels would be on the hook for the remainder of that $28 million salary.
Over the last three seasons Upton has seen his performance at the plate decline, as he's batted a combined .211/.299/.414 (90 OPS+) over that span. He could potentially be appealing as a strict platoon DH or corner outfielder from the right side, but the Angels seemingly have no such need for him. Likely, the Angels will proceed with a primary outfield mix of Jo Adell, Brandon Marsh, and, of course, Mike Trout.
As for the Angels and dead money, here's this:
It's a bit of an unceremonious end in Anaheim for the 34-year-old Upton, but it's been an excellent career. Across parts of 15 major-league seasons, Upton has a WAR of 32.7 to go with 324 career home runs and four All-Star appearances.