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Former Angels first baseman Mark Trumbo questioned the team's handling of Ryan Johnson, a player the team drafted with the Shohei Ohtani comp pick.

The Los Angeles Angels are having a miserable 2026 season. The team sits at 17-33, the worst record in MLB by a full two games and there doesn’t seem to be any indication that the organization will turn things around anytime soon.

The latest criticism comes from former Angels slugger Mark Trumbo. Trumbo, who was an All-Star in 2012 and co-host of “Halos Territory”, criticized how the club has handled Ryan Johnson’s development.

The Angels selected Johnson out of Dallas Baptist University with the 74th overall pick in the 2024 draft and signed him for over $700K above the pick’s slot value of $1.06 million. That selection was awarded to the club after Shohei Ohtani declined a qualifying offer and signed a $700 million deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Mark Trumbo Calls Out Angels for Handling of Ryan Johnson

Johnson was recently optioned to the Angels’ Double-A affiliate in Huntsville to stretch out as a starter again. The move drew Trumbo’s ire.

“What is going on, what is the plan?” said Trumbo. “This kid, he deserves better than this.”

The Angels certainly viewed Johnson as a key arm when they selected him that high in the draft. However, in their haste to get the right-hander to the major leagues, it may have hurt his long-term development.

Johnson made the team’s Opening Day roster in 2025 as a potential leverage arm. Since then, he’s been shuttled up and down the minors in various roles, with no obvious plan in the organization for where he fits.

In 18 career appearances at the major league level, Johnson owns an unsightly 10.17 ERA and 6.82 FIP. Much of that damage came in 2026, allowing 14 runs in 8.1 innings. The appearances haven’t been particularly helpful to the Angels, as the right-hander has surrendered at least three runs in three of his four appearances on the season.

Trumbo believes that Johnson will settle into a setup-man role that relies on a sinker/sweeper combination. Ironically enough, that was the role the club had in mind when they promoted him to the roster the first time.

Ryan Johnson’s Link to Shohei Ohtani Twists the Knife Further

The fact that Johnson will be forever linked to Ohtani’s tenure with the Angels further twists the knife in this situation.

This comes on the heels of a report from The Athletic‘s Ken Rosenthal detailing a deal involving the two-way star that was cancelled at the last second. The Angels nearly traded Ohtani to the Tampa Bay Rays for a package headlined by Junior Caminero and Carson Williams in 2023. Team owner Arte Moreno nixed the deal, the second time he’s vetoed a trade involving the Japanese two-way star.

Since Ohtani left for Chavez Ravine, the Angels have remained a rudderless ship. The team has a .406 winning percentage since the start of 2024, and they are headed for a 100-loss season.

Ohtani returned to Angels Stadium over the past weekend. The series was not particularly competitive for the Angels, as the Dodgers outscored them 31-3 in a sweep. The closest margin of defeat was six runs in the series opener.

“That in of itself is important,” said Trumbo. “You didn’t trade Shohei, you didn’t get anything in return. He walked right across town, comes in, and beats you up.”

With the Dodgers crushing the Angels over the weekend, fed up fans let owner Arte Moreno know how they felt. “Sell the team!” chants rang throughout Angel Stadium.

“It seems like it is noticed. They say any publicity is good publicity, but this is not good publicity.”

As the Angels continue to stack losses, it only makes the calls for the organization to trade Mike Trout louder. Trumbo spoke about the trade rumors that continue to swirl around his former teammate.

“Mike has done everything he can to provide value for this franchise, and he’s in an unenviable spot where this conversation is going to keep coming up.”