Almost a decade ago, the Angels made a trade that would leave a lasting mark on their history. On November 12, 2015, Billy Eppler kicked off his tenure as general manager by trading Sean Newcomb, fan-favorite Erick Aybar, and Chris Ellis to the Atlanta Braves.
In exchange, the Angels received José Briceño and Andrelton Simmons. Fast forward to 2025, and only one of the players involved—Sean Newcomb—is still active in professional baseball. He recently signed a minor league contract with the Boston Red Sox.
At the time of the trade, Newcomb was the Angels’ top prospect and the 17th-ranked overall prospect in baseball. Known for his ability to generate movement on his pitches, he struggled with limiting hard contact and issuing walks, despite not having overpowering velocity. Now 31, Newcomb will look to revive his career in Boston, where the Red Sox are hoping he can contribute from the bullpen.
The trade also unknowingly set the stage for Perry Minasian, the future Angels GM. The Angels and Braves would later share a significant amount of player transactions, including numerous trades.
Looking back, the Newcomb-for-Simmons deal was one of the most successful trades in Angels history, and it marked a high point that the team wouldn’t match again for years. In some ways, this trade also signaled the decline of the Angels as serious contenders.
Simmons, already a gold-glove caliber defender, experienced a career resurgence offensively with the Angels. After a solid first season in 2016, he exploded at the plate in 2017 and 2018, posting career-best OPS marks of .752 and .754, respectively.
In 2017, Simmons finished eighth in the American League MVP voting, just four spots behind Mike Trout. In 2018, he was 15th in the MVP race, again just behind Trout. Unfortunately for the Angels, by the time Shohei Ohtani earned his first MVP votes and ultimately his MVP award in 2021, Simmons had faded and was playing for the Minnesota Twins.
Simmons has since cemented his place as an Angels legend, while Newcomb hopes to rekindle his career with Boston.
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