The Angels announced they’ve optioned right-hander Jack Kochanowicz to Triple-A Salt Lake. Jake Eder is up to provide an extra bullpen arm for this weekend’s series against the Diamondbacks.
This is the first change that the Angels have made to their rotation all season. The quintet of Yusei Kikuchi, José Soriano, Tyler Anderson, Kyle Hendricks and Kochanowicz has combined to start all 93 games. That reflects both remarkable health and a lack of upper minors alternatives. Kikuchi is the only member of the starting five with a sub-4.00 ERA or an above-average strikeout rate. Soriano has allowed an even four earned runs per nine with huge ground-ball numbers. Anderson and Hendricks are soft-tossing fifth starter types.
Kochanowicz has been one of the least effective starters in MLB. He carries a 6.03 ERA with a well below-average 15.6% strikeout rate and an elevated 11% walk percentage. The 6’7″ righty is one of six pitchers with at least 15 starts while allowing over six earned runs per nine. Only Randy Vásquez, Erick Fedde and Antonio Senzatela have a worse strikeout/walk rate differential.
The 24-year-old Kochanowicz hasn’t tossed a quality start since the middle of May. He had his worst outing of the season against Texas last night. He surrendered eight runs on as many hits and three walks without escaping the third inning. He’ll spend at least the next 15 days in Triple-A unless he’s recalled in the corresponding move for an injured list placement.
Anderson, Kikuchi and Soriano are lined up for this weekend’s series. They’ll be able to reset their rotation coming out of the All-Star Break. They won’t need to tab a new fifth starter until July 22. Caden Dana and Victor Mederos are on the 40-man roster and working out of the rotation at Salt Lake. Neither is having a great season. Mederos has a better ERA with superior control, while Dana has shown slightly better swing-and-miss ability. Chase Silseth is also on the 40-man but has been on the minor league injured list since May and recently started a rehab assignment at the complex. Sam Aldegheri was just optioned back to Double-A this week.
Sam Blum of The Athletic suggests the Angels might stretch Carson Fulmer out as a starter. He worked 5 1/3 innings of long relief behind Kochanowicz last night. Fulmer had a 3.98 earned run average in 54 1/3 Triple-A frames — mostly as a reliever — before being called up this week. He owns a 5.38 ERA across 115 career big league outings. Reid Detmers has worked out of the bullpen all season, mostly one inning at a time. The Halos haven’t ruled out moving him back to the rotation at some point, but he’s their best setup option in a thin relief group. He’d also need to build back to a traditional starting workload over multiple appearances.
As explored in this afternoon’s Trade Deadline Outlook, the Angels could pursue a starter. Despite a thin roster, they’re within four games of a Wild Card spot in a cluttered American League. They’ve resisted selling at prior deadlines, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if they’re at least soft buyers while they’re within range of the playoff picture.
Not surprised. Hopefully he gets control of his splitter dialed in and comes back better.
Finally
I think a lot of fans are saying finally, but I don’t believe what we have waiting is any better.
Dana has been getting lit up in triple A. He had one of the best seasons in the minors last year in AA, but not so much in AAA.
Kessler has been awful since getting hit in the head.
We have seen Aldegheri. He results in Anaheim have been similar to Jack K.
Silseth is probably the best option, but he has been injured. Also, no guarantee he will be any better than Jack K.
I think the consensus in we don;t have any good options, but they can’t be any worse that what we have been getting.
I said it after spring, they made a mistake by going with Kochanowicz instead of Detmers in the rotation.
With the exception of a few starts, Kochanowicz has been pretty brutal to watch. He’s a contact pitcher (few strikeouts) who tends to get hit hard.
@orange2001. To start the season it looked like it was right move. Detmers wasn’t looking great in the beginning. Hendricks, detmers, and kochanowicz are pretty much the same take your heart medicine and enjoy the ride. it will be interesting to see who the starter is maybe fulmer for a bit.
Agreed 100%. Detmers should’ve got the job to start the season.
And yet he got lit up early as a reliever. If that happened to him as a reliever, it would’ve likely happened to him as a starter. It wasn’t the role. It was something he needed to fix in his approach because those struggles date back to last season, as a starter.
@RyanWKrol. Atleast jack started off good and went up and down now mostly bad. Detmers would’ve went down to the minors. He’s settled in the bullpen the question is who’s taking over now. I guess fulmer for a couple starts.
Detmers has always been a challenge to get straight and he got lit up over a short three-outing set of games (0.1 ip/12 ER!!). He was pretty good before that, but you could see he was doubting himself, which has always been a thing for him. I am guessing if he ever got dealt out of LAA, someone is going to fix him up and he’ll be a very good starter…
to his credit, he had a nice stretch of starts between the middle of May and the middle of June, had the two hit, 8K outing against the Yanks (2HR, 3BB) that was a nice start for Kochanowicz this season.
I bet the uniform company had fun getting that name on the back of a jersey.
Gasunheit
What took so long?
Saving money on ink.
And just after the Uniform Person FINALLY was able
to find a way to fit the name
“KOCHANOWICZ”
on the back of a uniform,
Yes, it has taken this long !!.
This is so the Angels can carry an extra reliever. They won’t need a 5th stater til the 22nd at the Mets and will likely recall Kochanowicz to take the ball.
Would like to buy a vowel. “E”
Now let’s see if Detmers can join the rotation and show off some of that talent as a SP he occasionally flashed. There’s time to stretch him out; a much better alternative than just putting him on the trading block at the end of the month.
if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
Leave Detmers in the pen.
Detmers doesn’t belong in the pen; his stuff works better as a SP.
I’m shocked the Angels went this long with only their original 5. When was the last time that happened?
What the heck, give Ryan Johnson or Chris Cortez or Klassen a few starts. Tired of retreads like Fulmer etc.
F Arte Moreno U
But at least they used that #2 draft pick, their highest pick in many years, on that total stud Kade Anderson. Wait, no? So, Liam Doyle? NO? Jamie Arnold? Seth Hernandez? Oh, wait, they took he 18th rated prospect at #2….
Perry’s looking for so-called major league-ready players, ignoring the development strategy successful teams employ.
Problem being that Anderson, Doyle, and Arnold will all be ready for the majors before Bremner is. And they have higher ceilings and higher floors.
@61. Because they don’t have anyone to develop them. Holliday probably had a hitting instructor since he was born. Even if it bucked the trend he’s probably ready in three years when he gains muscle and fills out. I get the strategy because it gives them three darts and they need something but this draft and the high draft pick. I would like a upside pick.