4:02pm: Petit’s contract comes with a $2.25MM base salary upon making the Major League roster, MLBTR has learned (Twitter link). He can earn up to an additional $1.25MM via incentives.
2:19pm: The Angels announced that they’ve signed right-hander Yusmeiro Petit to a minor league contract with an invitation to Major League Spring Training.
Petit, a client of Godoy Sports, spent the 2016 season with the Nationals, pitching to a 4.50 ERA with 7.1 K/9, 1.7 BB/9 and a 41.5 percent ground-ball rate in 62 innings. Of Petit’s 36 appearances with the Nats, 35 were out of the ‘pen, but he also made one spot start and has a history of working in both the rotation and in relief.
Petit was in the midst of a solid season with the Nats and carried a sub-3.00 ERA into the month of August, but he was used sparingly down the stretch and hit hard when he did take the hill. Of the 31 earned runs he allowed last year, 16 came in his final 10 appearances (12 1/3 innings). Petit’s deal with the Nationals contained a $3MM vesting option for the 2017 campaign, and his sparse usage down the stretch may simply have been a reflection that the Nats didn’t wish to see that option lock in.
[Related: Updated Los Angeles Angels Depth Chart]
The 32-year-old Petit is best known for his work with the Giants, for whom he pitched from 2012-15. In that time, the righty worked out of both the rotation and the bullpen, pitching to a 3.66 ERA in 245 2/3 innings (plus another 12 2/3 innings with two runs allowed in the postseason). At one point during the 2014 season, Petit broke a record that still stands, as he retired 46 consecutive batters across six relief appearances. (Mark Buehrle had previously held the record with 45 straight set down.)
The Halos will head into camp with a projected rotation of Garrett Richards, Matt Shoemaker, Ricky Nolasco, Tyler Skaggs and Jesse Chavez. Others that figure to be in the mix for starts include lefty Nate Smith and righties Alex Meyer and Daniel Wright. Barring an injury, it may be difficult for Petit to get a look there, but GM Billy Eppler tells Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register that Petit will come into camp as a starter (Twitter link). Should that not work out, there could be multiple openings in a murky bullpen picture for the Halos.
The Angels’ bullpen will consist of Huston Street, Cam Bedrosian and Andrew Bailey, to be sure, but the other slots are a bit less defined. Names like JC Ramirez, Jose Alvarez, Deolis Guerra and possibly Meyer (if he’s not starting in Triple-A) could all factor into the mix. Mike Morin, Kirby Yates and Brooks Pounders all represent 40-man options that come with big league experience as well.
Nice add for them, he was very good for the Giants two years ago. Good long relief/spot starter depth for only the cost of a minor league deal.
Triple A fodder.
Even though he didn’t have the best year last year, I’m a little surprised it took until now for Petit to sign. He’s versatile and has a pretty good track record, at least as a reliever. Good add for a team that needs options.
Every move Eppler makes improves the depth of the organization in a strategic way without costing the team over the long term. These aren’t A-list players, but they don’t have to be. They are providing leverage for the major level team and depth at AAA, allowing the younger players to develop without having to trade them away.
What young players?
Im so fed up with uneducated people saying that the Angels don’t have any decent prospects. How about actually look into their system before talking like you know all about it when all you’ve done is read an article about the farm system a year ago. The Angels still have decent, high ceiling guys like Meyer, Jones, Thaiss, Ward, Fletcher, and Marsh just name a few. So yeah, those young players
While the Angels farm is certainly improved from a year ago, they still rank in the bottom five pretty much unanimously across anyone that ranks farm systems, so I wouldn’t call it uneducated to point out the fact that their farm is still weak.
Petit was the original Rafael Montero…Fringy but occasionally useful
Petit has a pretty good setup, all things considered. A true-blue elite curveball and decent slider, a deceptive “invisiball” fastball with decent punch for a soft-tosser, and good command. His only real issue is that his changeup has lost depth as he’s gotten older, and it’s not really an effective pitch anymore. He could be pretty good out of the pen for the Angels, and act as a swingman in a pinch. Might be one of those guys to benefit from the Rich Hill approach (i.e. throw your breaking ball as your primary pitch and use your fastball as an off-speed), but that might be a long-shot.
nice move
They still won’t make the playoffs and might not even be .500 but the Angels have quietly improved a little here and a little there and should be a much better team this year.
Petit>Hernandez NOT
Geez, this guy screwed the Nats twice. Once in that marathon playoff game while playing for the Giants, and once by playing FOR them last year.