Former Guardians bullpen mainstay signs minor league deal with lowly Angels 

For four seasons, Nick Sandlin was one of the most important arms in the Guardians’ bullpen. While he only recorded one save during his four-year stint with Cleveland, he evolved into a fairly high-leverage arm who was on the mound for plenty of big moments. 

But that tenure came to a bit of an unceremonious end last year when the Guardians traded him to the Blue Jays alongside Andrés Giménez, and his tenure there came to an even more unceremonious end when the Blue Jays designated him for assignment after one injury-plagued year  with the Blue Jays. 

But now he’s going to get a chance to rebuild his career in a new location, as he signed a minor league deal with the Angels on Monday, per the Orange County Register’s Jeff Fletcher. 

Former Guardians reliever Nick Sandlin signs minor league deal with Angels 

The contract is a part of a fall from grace for Sandlin, who posted a 3.27 ERA across 195 1/3 innings during that four-year stint with the Guardians. 

He joined the major league picture during the Guardians’ rough 2021 season but quickly became a big part of their revamped bullpen in the following season, which is the best big league showing he’s had so far. 

In total, he had a 2.25 ERA in 44 innings that season before adding 2/3 of a scoreless inning in the postseason. 

He finished his Guardians career with two back-to-back seasons with a 3.75 ERA before being sent up north alongside Giménez. 

While Sandlin’s fastball tends to sit around 92 miles per hour, he’s been able to have some success thanks to a unique arm slot where he releases the ball at a 12 degree angle. 

Although he’s had some injury struggles throughout his career, the 2025 season was his worst, as he only pitched in 16 1/3 innings due to a lat strain and elbow inflammation. 

The Blue Jays ended up designating him for assignment after the season rather than pay him a projected salary of $2 million through arbitration, which is why he likely had to settle for a minor league deal. 

Now he’s going to join a new-look Angels bullpen that is led by Robert Stephenson, Kirby Yates, Drew Pomeranz and Jordan Romano. All four of them are more intriguing arms than Sandlin, but they’re also all 32 or older and have struggled with injuries in their career. 

The Angels have some intriguing non-roster options, but Sandlin stands out as a top option so long as he’s healthy and recovered from the injuries that plagued him last season. 

He still has less than five years of service time, so the Angels would be able to control through the 2027 season even if they call him up in 2026.