Angels right-handers Griffin Canning and Chris Rodríguez will not pitch this season, trainer Mike Frostad told reporters (including Sam Blum of the Athletic). It’s a lost year for both, as they’ve each spent the entire 2022 campaign on the injured list.
Canning is now over a year since his last game action. He suffered a back injury while on optional assignment to Triple-A Salt Lake in July 2021, and he was shut down for the year not long after. The 26-year-old suffered a setback in May while throwing a simulated game in trying to build his way back. Canning declined to undergo surgery at the time in hopes of making it back to the mound this year, but that unfortunately won’t come to pass.
The only silver lining is that Canning has accrued a full year of big league pay and service time this season. The former second-round pick entered the season with two-plus years of service, so he’ll be eligible for arbitration for the first time this winter. Canning won’t be in line for much of a raise, as he carries a 4.73 ERA through 209 1/3 career innings and had no work in his platform year. Depending on his health status, it’s possible the Angels nevertheless non-tender him rather than devote him a 40-man roster spot for the offseason.
Injuries have been all too familiar for Canning, who’d been one of the Angels better pitching prospects during his time in the system. Despite the lackluster ERA, he’s shown some of that promise during his big league stint. Canning has a slightly above-average 23.8% strikeout rate and quality 13.2% swinging strike percentage as a major leaguer. He still seems to have mid-rotation upside if healthy, but he’d also lost an extended chunk of the 2019 season due to elbow inflammation before these back issues.
Rodríguez underwent surgery on his throwing shoulder last November. The team announced at the time the procedure would cost him most of this season, so it’s not especially surprising that he won’t make it back to Angel Stadium this year. Frostad indicated Rodríguez is still throwing at the club’s Arizona complex and generally progressing well, so it seems they simply doesn’t want to press him late in a non-competitive season.
The 24-year-old made his MLB debut last season, working 29 2/3 innings over 15 appearances in a multi-inning relief role. He posted a 3.64 ERA, compensating for mediocre strikeout and walk numbers with a robust 54.7% ground-ball percentage. As with Canning, Rodríguez collected a full year of service and salary in 2022. He won’t reach arbitration-eligibility until after the 2024 campaign at the earliest.
Doesn’t Griffin Canning have to be IN for the season before he is OUT for the season.
Sad to see he has never been able to stay healthy.
In-N-Out is only soso
Lmao!
Yes sir. He a talented pitcher that like many other Angel players just can’t stay healthy. Same with Rodriguez. Both have top end potential, but they just can’t stay on the field. Perhaps next season, but not holding my breathe.
Team is going nowhere for at least the next half decade. Their only hope of possibly getting back into contention by 2026 at the earliest would have been to trade Ohtani and anyone else over 26 who could have been traded- 26 because they are at least 4 years from contention, so anyone over that age couldn’t be counted on to contribute and therefore no point in keeping them. Ohtani’s trade value went down a lot when they decided to keep him instead of trading him before the deadline. Zero chance he re-signs with Anaheim so it’s just a situation of the team trading long-term viability for very short term (less than a year and a half) marketing. Most dysfunctional team in MLB, especially when payroll and ‘off the field issues’ are factored.
the opener – that’s a lot of speculation.
Also, what “off the field issues” are you referring to?
Crickets…
Exactly what I expected. Facts get in the way of a good agenda so most people ignore them.
prov-I “think” the opener is referring to Arte Moreno’s issues with the stadium and the City of Anaheim. Which has nothing to do with the on field issues.
Former drug addicted pitcher, terrible owner, drug dealing team employee, piece of garbage albert pujols screaming at the manager in front of the entire team, drug addicted former outfielder, constant lying about injuries, etc.
opener – I agree the owner is not making decisions that lead to winning. That’s not an off the field issue.
Tyler Skaggs died over three years ago and that was a personal addiction that ended tragically. He was enabled by someone who supplied drugs but that was handled three years ago so it’s not a current event.
And I don’t remember Pujols ever “screaming” at the manager (which manager?) in front of the team. That’s not Pujols’ style. Even if it happened, which I doubt, that’s not an “off the field issue”. Again, I don’t think it happened, at least the way you characterized it as “screaming”. Every player has a disagreement with a manager eventually. I don’t think there is anyone in baseball who would characterize Pujols as a “piece of garbage” as you have. By all accounts, he’s a good man on and off the field. So unless you can cite a reference, you have very little credibility at this point.
opener – If the drug addicted outfielder you reference is Hamilton, he hasn’t played for the Angels since 2015 and left baseball in 2017…again old news that really had nothing to do with the angels.
I have no idea what you could proffer that would show anyone has lied about injuries. I think the extent of injuries unfolds through analysis over time and then the PR department decides how to report it. That’s how every team/business/agency etc. does things.
Piece of garbage albert pujols screamed at Maddon in front of the entire team, even though he was still getting very regular playing time (despite the fact that he was a horrible player for the final half a decade of the contract). Then he went to the Dodgers and hugged everyone in a pathetic attempt to try to rewrite the narrative after his despicable behavior in Anaheim. Only sat next to Trout on the bench, because he felt that only Trout was worthy of his presence. Went for the contract that offered the most money (of course), then said that’s what God wanted (fake Christian). Divorced his wife- and publicly announced it- while she was going through life-threatening surgery. pujols is garbage.
opener – Again, that’s a lot of conjecture and speculation as to why things happened. This isn’t about Pujols’ character, which again is solid by all accounts. As a Christian man myself, we aren’t sinless as humans. Sinful behavior doesn’t make someone a “fake” Christian as you called Pujols. It makes us need a Savior in Jesus Christ.
I questioned your assertion that the Angels have “off the field issues” but you have yet to specify any that are currently effecting the team.
I didn’t play in the minors, but played in college. There’s a big difference between having teammates who do drugs than having a team executive (Kay) supply them the drugs and ultimately kill one of them.
It’s another thing to have a clubhouse manager (Harkins) doctor baseballs for opposing pitchers to pitch better against the very team you’re employed. The Angels players who were around Bubba in essence had careers that were being sabotaged by one of their own. I would have crushed that dudes face if he were doing something to try and beat me at the plate.
All of this happening under Artes (and Scioscias, etc) nose. It starts at the top fellas.
Teams go on spending sprees and offer huge returns on trades in the offseason. Maybe they were planning on signing a big bat and lose out on a planned signing, so then they get desperate before the season starts. I would rather get a couple prospects that you know will win in the majors, then 6 great minor league players who might win.
The Angels problems begin and end with Arte Moreno. The team lacks direction, player development is terrible, Arte insists on handing out big money contracts to sluggers that always come back to bite him while constantly nickel and diming the pitching staff. Scioscia stayed too long, Ausmus never really got a chance, Maddon was a bad choice for a veteran team, and they are worse with Nevin.
The only way the Angels get back in to contention is to commit to a rebuild which they sort of can’t because of the contracts of Trout and Rendon. The unpopular move may have been to trade Ohtani now with a year plus control and maybe get back a similar return as the Nationals got for Soto, which would have gone a long way towards strengthening their horrible farm system but Arte pulled the idea off the table when realizing Ohtani is his money maker and the only one selling tickets and merchandise.
Team needs a new owner before they realistically ever have a chance at another World Series
Rsox – Yes. Moreno likes the homerun more than the complete game for sure. Baseball begins and ends with pitching. Everything else follows. Ohtani should have been traded because the alternative is impossible. Ohtani wants 45m AAV on a long term deal. If we pay him that, we will have 110m AAV tied up in three players. Moreno has a personal cap of about 180m AAV leaving 70m to build out the rest of the team. The math doesn’t work no matter how you squint your eyes. My hope is we can put together a trade package for Ohtani this winter.
On the bright side, I don’t see Ohtani ever signing with the Angles. There will be several contending teams offering him the same or more money. Ohtani wants to win and that will be what his decision is based on.
Interesting that a Red Sox fan gets the current state of the Angels. You’re spot on. As far as an overall franchise, the Angels do have value. Even a mildly good product on the field will pull 3 million fans a year. There’s passion for baseball in SoCal as kids play here year round and Trout and Ohtani jerseys are everywhere.
They’re at a crossroads. Trout is getting banged up every year and one of the biggest athletes on the planet (and should be marketed as such), Ohtani, still wears Angel red. They have to sign him. And I’m not saying that’s the best baseball decision per se, but it’s the best Angel decision. To do this, Arte MUST expand the yearly payroll. The man is worth over 2 billion and increasing the payroll $20-30 million a year shouldn’t be heartburn. If it is, he needs to sell the team.
Rendon is the fly in the ointment. But you have to accept it and move on. His contract is not going anywhere.
The real challenge (and you guys touched on it) is poor scouting and development. When’s the last time the Angels brought up a quality Latin player? They’re DR and PR scouting is horrible. The Mariners have JRod and we get Jo Adell. Great.
There’s no quick fix. While trading Ohtani may bring in some bandaids for the next 4-5 years, poor scouting will still continue to bite you. You can’t win a race with bandaids all over.
I say the best option is to open the Moreno wallet, sign Shohei to a massive AAV shorter term 5-6 contract, work with Trout on an off-season program that slims him down a bit so he can play 150 games, sign some freakin up the middle defense (esp SS), get Rendon an extra set of panties, tell Boras to eff off, and spend the rest on pitching depth.
Ohtani isn’t re-signing with Anaheim. Would be 1 of the most surprising things I have ever seen in sports. Trout will never play 150 games again- his body is too shattered at this point (especially now, with the latest permanent injury). His prime ended with the 2019 season at the latest- arguably 2018. They shouldn’t have traded Ohtani for band-aids, they should have traded him for prospects. No point in band-aids since they are 4 years (at the minimum) from even possibly being contenders again. His trade value took a big hit with the owner’s refusal to trade him- now he’s a potential 1 playoffs rental vs a potential 2 playoffs rental- huge difference.
Agree that the scouting system need to be overhauled, but it’s hard to overstate how dumb it was to keep Ohtani. Trout’s a 2-4 WAR player at this point. 4-5 WAR pace in 2020, 2 WAR total last year, 4 WAR this year. Albatross contract and he wouldn’t even be worth a trade for the lowest rated prospect in baseball at this point, because only an idiot would take on the remainder of his contract ($37 million per year through 2020).
There is a team in the Pacific Northwest with whom Ohtani might like to sign. Their GM isn’t too crazy about long-term contracts but the organization has plenty of payroll space and maybe would make an exception here.
Obviously, I’m a Mariners fan, but I don’t hate on the Angels. I would like to see them run by competent people. I’ve followed the M’s since 1977 and know well what it’s like to root for a team that isn’t well-run. No fans of any franchise should have to deal with that.
Assuming Ohtani prefers to stay on the West Coast, I honestly would prefer to see him sign with the Giants or Padres. I think the Giants especially would be good for baseball. I almost think it would be better long term for the Angels in that it would open up the DH slot for Trout days off and really give them financial flexibility to fill much needed holes.
Perry’s move of the Iglesias contract gives me a little hope that he knows what he’s doing. Plus that he even listened to Ohtani offers was a plus. But his big demerit for :me: was firing Maddon (full blindside according to Joe) and putting in Phil Nevin. Phil. Nevin. To lead Ohtani and Trout. Wow that’s a misfire.
dirkg – My guess is the Giants for Ohtani too. I understand the Maddon firing I suppose, but the team has been way worse for way longer afterwards and no one else has been fired. The hitting coaches, for example, should be flipping burgers. Nevin is just filling the role until winter so I understand him still being there. He’s not doing his resume any favors though for future manager jobs. Thinking about all of the issues with this team is chaotic.
Who cares 4 years from now. Once Ohtani gets rid of the Angels, they will be irrelevant. You think getting minor leaguers will solve the problem? Have you seen them invest in their minor league system? Arte will never build a championship team through the minor league system, but through free agency. By the way, that has failed since he’s owned the franchise. How many have the Angels drafted that came up through the system that was actually really good besides Mike Trout? They got lucky with him, but anyone else? Nothing.
TheOpener – You are spot on about Pujols. He is a fraud of a person and if you do some digging, he sounds like a bona fide jerk that’s hiding behind his charitable Christian/good teammate facade.
Honestly if you think about it their is a lot of interesting potential non-tender candidates this winter. Canning, Smith, Candelario are just some of them.
Canning is a number 4 or 5 starter at best. The guy’s stuff and command just does not equate to mid-rotation. Never been healthy either, so I wouldn’t be upset if the Angels let this guy walk.
“The only silver lining is that Canning has accrued a full year of big league pay and service time this season.”
How is this a silver lining?
For Canning
He got paid almost a million for doing nothing? just a guess.
Canning was at AAA SLC when he injured his back last year. What are the rules that allow him to accrue pay and service time at the major league level for 2022? Same may apply to Rodriguez, but I don’t recall if he was with the big club when he suffered his injury.
He wasn’t optioned to the minors, it was an optional assignment so he was still on the active roster at the time of his injury
He was called up and added to the Major league 60 day so he doesn’t take a 40 man spot
Canning’s injuries should be blamed on the team. Ever since that game he came out the pen, in-between starts, with no extra rest, Canning has never been the same. Tragic mismanagement of a young pitcher and his career.
It’s pretty crazy to think the Angels were responsible for a back injury.
We’re they responsible for his injuries at ucla too?
Who are the top free agent pitchers this coming off season?
Verlander will probably opt out so he will be the best.
Not many.
Here are the MLB free agents ineligible for a qualifying offer in 2023:
José Abreu, Chicago White Sox
Carlos Correa, Minnesota Twins
Noah Syndergaard, Los Angeles Angels
The following 2023 MLB free agents are expected to receive the qualifying offer.
Nolan Arenado, St. Louis Cardinals
Willson Contreras, Chicago Cubs
Xander Bogaerts, Boston Red Sox
Aaron Judge, New York Yankees
Jacob deGrom, New York Mets
Carlos Rodón, San Francisco Giants
Trea Turner, Los Angeles Dodgers
Chris Bassitt, New York Mets
Edwin Diaz, New York Mets
Brandon Nimmo, New York Mets
Dansby Swanson, Atlanta Braves
Thor-was traded to Philly 2 days ago.
Wow Canning. Typical that these guys end up being out longer when they choose not to have surgery at first. They always end up getting surgery anyway when they don’t recover without it then have to recover all over again. I am not ever a surgery first guy, but sometimes it’s inevitable.
I guess it was a good tactic that the Angels drafted nothing but pitching last year. Hope these two can get healthy by next season. It would be great if the Angels resigned Syndergaard this winter and added someone like Bassitt. They have a nice young group of pitchers with Ohtani (for now), Sandoval, Detmers, Suarez, Barria, Bachman, etc., but they better do something major this winter in terms of signing FA’s to at least appear to Ohtani they want to win or he’s walking after next year and not looking back.