Report: Angels to remain under luxury tax, won't pursue Cespedes

The Los Angeles Angels reportedly remain adamant they will not chase their big-spending rivals this winter with any transaction that will put them over the luxury tax.

Sources tell MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez that the Angels will not pursue slugger Yoenis Cespedes in an effort to stay under the $189-million tax threshold. The Angels have been among several teams linked to the 30-year-old Cuban, the last impact bat available in free agency.

The Angels remain extremely close to that figure, with more than $150 million already committed to the 2016 payroll, and as much as $10 million due to Kole Calhoun and Garrett Richards through arbitration. Teams that exceed the limit the first time are taxed 17.5 percent of the amount they go over, and the penalty jumps to as high as 50 percent for repeated violations.

Owner Arte Moreno has stayed steadfast in his desire not to exceed the tax, even as the Angels sputter around the perennial MVP efforts of Mike Trout. The Angels won 85 games last year and were eliminated from playoff contention on the final day of the season, marking the fifth time in six years that club has failed to qualify for the postseason.

"Economically, I can't tell you we always make the right decisions - but we have invested," Moreno said during general manager Billy Eppler's introductory news conference in October. "We have no debt on the team. We're trying to find, like Billy said, the secret sauce to get to the next level."