Jeimer Candelario has elected free agency, ending a one-year stay in the Los Angeles Angels organization that never developed into a regular big-league role.
The move was posted on the MiLB transaction log for October 7, which listed the switch-hitting third baseman as having elected free agency.
The 32-year-old, born in New York City on November 24, 1993, signed a minor-league deal with the Angels on February 3 worth a reported $780,000 and carrying an invitation to major-league camp. A strong Cactus League pushed him onto the Opening Day roster.
The stay was brief. In seven games he went 2-for-18 (.111) with two doubles, a walk and eight strikeouts before the Angels designated him for assignment on April 11. He cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Salt Lake on April 13.
Salt Lake was the better chapter. Across 334 at-bats, Candelario hit .281 with 15 home runs, 56 RBI and an .886 OPS, according to his MiLB player page.
He spent a short stretch on the seven-day injured list in September, was activated on September 21, and finished the year in the Bees’ lineup.
The production was not enough to bring him back to Anaheim. The Angels, who finished last in the American League West at 62-99, never recalled him after the April demotion.
The free-agency filing closes a sharp drop from the contract that defined his late prime. After a 2023 season split between Washington and the Chicago Cubs in which he hit 22 home runs and 39 doubles, Candelario signed a three-year, $45 million deal with the Cincinnati Reds. He never approached that form.
Cincinnati designated him for assignment on June 23, 2025, and released him after he cleared waivers, with a year and a half left on the deal.
He finished that summer on a minor-league contract with the New York Yankees, hit .203 at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, and elected free agency in November without a big-league appearance.
Before the slide, Candelario had been a useful regular. He debuted with the Cubs in 2016, spent his best years with Detroit, and led the majors with 42 doubles in 2021 while hitting .271.
Through his brief 2026 major-league stint, his career line stood at .236 with 110 home runs and 384 RBI.
At 32, with more than seven years of service, he is an unrestricted free agent again.
The Salt Lake line gives him a case for another minor-league invitation, or a low-cost depth deal, somewhere that needs a switch-hitting corner infielder. Nothing on the October 7 log suggests the Angels intend to be that team.
