OC Register: Angels acquire Matt Andriese, plan to use him as a starter

[AngelsWin.com]

The Angels picked up right-hander Matt Andriese from the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for minor league right-hander Jeremy Beasey on Tuesday.

Although Andriese has pitched mostly out of the bullpen in the past two seasons, he will come to camp as a starter, according to general manager Billy Eppler. Andriese has options, so he could be part of the club’s rotation depth that shuttles between Triple-A and the majors.

Andriese, 30, posted a 4.71 ERA in 70-2/3 innings with the Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay Rays last season. He struck out 79, for a career-best ratio of 10.1 strikeouts per nine innings.

Andriese has been a durable big league reliever for the past three seasons, averaging 78 innings per season. The Rays also used Andriese as an opener frequently over the that time.

Andriese last pitched as a traditional starter in 2017, when he had a 4.66 ERA in 17 starts.

Andriese will make $1.35 million in 2020, and he will not be eligible for free agency until after the 2022 season.

Beasley, 24, was the Angels’ 30th-round pick in 2017. He posted a 4.49 ERA in 2019, splitting his time between Double-A and Triple-A. Beasley was the inaugural winner of the Aaron Cox Award, which the Angels established to honor their former prospect who died in 2018. Cox was Mike Trout’s brother in law.

More to come on this story.

Related Articles

• 2020 Angels spring training preview: starting rotation
• Whicker: MLB’s punishment of Astros was the least it could do
• Brian Goodwin is Angels’ only unsigned arbitration-eligible player
• Hoornstra: MLB punishing alleged sign stealers is more difficult than banging a trash can
• Angels acquire reliever Kyle Keller from Marlins

 

View the full article

[T.G.]

Gubi has some splainin' to do.

[TheUPSman]

[Revad]

This acquisition suggests that any top of the rotation pitcher will wait until the trade deadline.  I'm definitely hoping for something before then but it seems less and less likely.

[BackUpTheTruck]

2020 iteration of Chris Stratton.

[failos]

when's the press conference?

[Jeff Fletcher]

1 hour ago, Revad said:

This acquisition suggests that any top of the rotation pitcher will wait until the trade deadline.  I'm definitely hoping for something before then but it seems less and less likely.

Really? Why do you say that?

[Revad]

Well, he’s coming to camp as a starter and competing for the #6 spot against our young pitching.  

[tchula]

4 minutes ago, Jeff Fletcher said:

Really? Why do you say that?

I can see that perception to be honest with Spring Training less than a month away.   Especially, when we start making trades for more reliever-starter types.  Don't get me wrong, I like this trade.  Now, granted, maybe Eppler is really working the phones currently, but when the GM publicly says trade involving front liners are too pricey, I think it's a good indication he's not making much headway on that front.  And historically, the need for pitching increases once the season starts, which is why teams often over-pay for players at the trade deadline.   Now, granted Cole was traded very late so there is still hope.   And for teams seeking to dumb salary (i.e. Boston and Chicago), maybe they'll start asking less the closer the season gets here.  

[AngelStew43]

Never hurts toi have more options for those 5 and 6 spots in the rotation.  

[Revad]

30 minutes ago, Jeff Fletcher said:

Really? Why do you say that?

The rotation seems pretty set assuming Canning is a full-time starter.  Maybe Eppler is open to moving Heany or Canning to acquire someone better but that doesn’t make sense to me- I’d be looking to use prospects further away from the majors and hold on ML pitching.  Didn’t Eppler say something like (maybe when asked about Calhoun at the trade deadline), “we’re moving forward and will continue to improve the major league team?”  There has to be room for the young players to grow. 

Edited January 15, 2020 by Revad

[Jeff Fletcher]

28 minutes ago, Revad said:

The rotation seems pretty set assuming Canning is a full-time starter.  Maybe Eppler is open to moving Heany or Canning to acquire someone better but that doesn’t make sense to me- I’d be looking to use prospects further away from the majors and hold on ML pitching.  Didn’t Eppler say something like (maybe when asked about Calhoun at the trade deadline), “we’re moving forward and will continue to improve the major league team?”  There has to be room for the young players to grow. 

They are still trying to add players, including starters. At the moment, there are no deals out there that make sense, but that doesn’t mean they have stopped trying. 
 

The fact that they got Andriese also doesn’t mean they have stopped trying. Andriese cost very little, he has options and he can also pitch out of the bullpen, so his acquisition does not in any way limit other acquisitions. 

[Jeff Fletcher]

26 minutes ago, RBM said:

However, Andriese being brought in as a starter at $1.35M does infer they are not set on their 5/6 spots and he will compete with Canning/Sandoval/Suarez/Barria/Peters.

Sure. 
 

They also could move him back to the bullpen. Basically anyone who has the potential to start will be looked at as a starter, and then maybe go back to the pen, because it’s a lot harder to go the other direction. 

[Angel Oracle]

Andriese has pitched only 248 innings (minors and MLB combined) over the past 3 years.    He is probably more fitting into the type of role that Felix Pena had in 2019, part-time starter/part-time long innings reliever.

[stormngt]

4 hours ago, BackUpTheTruck said:

2020 iteration of Chris Stratton.

I was thinking the same thing.  

[tdawg87]

I'm hoping he's more like JC Ramirez: The Gritty Reboot

[Stradling]

Comparing him to Stratton is a bad comparison.  The year before we traded for Stratton he started 26 games, so he was a starter. He was traded to the team the day before the season started because Heaney went down again.  Andriese is a reliever who’s made some starts in the past.  Andriese will get an entire spring training with the club, which allows Calloway and Maddon 5-6 weeks to help him make adjustments before the games count.  Just a lazy comparison because people assume the worst or wanted a better option.  

[totdprods]

If anything his presence now makes it easier for the Angels to part with a young SP in a trade for a quality arm, not an obstacle.

I think our rotation depth is at like 11 now? Heaney, Bundy, Teheran, Ohtani, Andriese, maybe Pena (injured), Canning, Barria, Peters, Suarez, Sandoval, 12 if you count Gohara. 

Obviously we can never have too much depth and like Jeff mentioned, some can work out of the pen, but having 11-12 guys currently at the big league SP depth chart suggest they could part with one or event two in return for someone worth it, like Gray. 

Speaking of Colorado, with how many bad expensive vet relievers they have, I bet someone like Buttrey, Anderson, or Middleton would be pretty appealing to them to help balance things out.

Edited January 16, 2020 by totdprods

[zenmaster]

We started like 20 guys last season. Eppler is just picking up warm bodies who can start if needed rather than calling up young guys who aren't ready to start 10+ games each.

I am sure he is still trying to land a regular, once every 5 starter.

[Docwaukee]

when Petit was grabbed by Eppler he had a career 4.58 era and a 4.37 FIP.  9.1 h/9, 2.4 bb/9, and 7.8 k/9

Andriese has a 4.58 career era with a 4.22 FIP.  9.4 h/9, 2.6 bb/9, and 8.2 k/9

other metrics for both are fairly similar although Andriese throws harder and has higher spin rates.  

Petit figured something out in his time with the halos.  Hopefully, Andriese can do the same.  

while they're calling him a starter right now, I see him more in the Petit mold as a multi-inning reliever when all is said and done.  

You want another pie in the sky comp?

how about pre Houston Charlie Morton?

4.54 era with a 4.10 FIP.  9.6 h/9, 3.4 bb/9, 6.3 k/9.  Avg FB velo before going to the Astros was about 93/94 and touched 97.  

Not saying he's gonna morph into Charlie Morton overnight as that type of situation only happens very rarely, but my recollection is that Andriese actually has pretty good stuff and hasn't pitched to it as of yet.  

It's an interesting flyer and the cost wasn't much so if it fails then it's easy to move on.  

[ettin]

16 minutes ago, Dochalo said:

when Petit was grabbed by Eppler he had a career 4.58 era and a 4.37 FIP.  9.1 h/9, 2.4 bb/9, and 7.8 k/9

Andriese has a 4.58 career era with a 4.22 FIP.  9.4 h/9, 2.6 bb/9, and 8.2 k/9

other metrics for both are fairly similar although Andriese throws harder and has higher spin rates.  

Petit figured something out in his time with the halos.  Hopefully, Andriese can do the same.  

while they're calling him a starter right now, I see him more in the Petit mold as a multi-inning reliever when all is said and done.  

You want another pie in the sky comp?

how about pre Houston Charlie Morton?

4.54 era with a 4.10 FIP.  9.6 h/9, 3.4 bb/9, 6.3 k/9.  Avg FB velo before going to the Astros was about 93/94 and touched 97.  

Not saying he's gonna morph into Charlie Morton overnight as that type of situation only happens very rarely, but my recollection is that Andriese actually has pretty good stuff and hasn't pitched to it as of yet.  

It's an interesting flyer and the cost wasn't much so if it fails then it's easy to move on.  

Your logic is quite off-putting, Doc.

[Docwaukee]

4 minutes ago, ettin said:

Your logic is quite off-putting, Doc.

it's actually not all that logical to conclude that he'll get better.  All I'm saying is that he could as there is precedent for it and he's got the repertoire to pull it off.  I'm not expecting it though but we've seen Eppler have some success in this area before. 

So I think it's reasonable if not logical.  

[ettin]

12 minutes ago, Dochalo said:

it's actually not all that logical to conclude that he'll get better.  All I'm saying is that he could as there is precedent for it and he's got the repertoire to pull it off.  I'm not expecting it though but we've seen Eppler have some success in this area before. 

So I think it's reasonable if not logical.  

I was just being silly with you.

To speak more to Andriese, it would not be surprising to see the Angels ask him to bring back his old cutter. If you look back at his history in 2015 and 2016 (even 2017 was okay), his cut fastball was a really good pitch for him. However, for some reason, he stopped using it and you can see how the placement of the pitch in relation to how it crosses the plate changed too as time went on. In fact let me just cut it out of FanGraphs:

In 2015, his cutter, across 220 pitches, produced a 37 wRC+ against opposing hitters. Then in 2016, across 374 pitches, it produced a 70 wRC+. In 2017, across 153 pitches, it produced a 97 wRC+. Then in 2018, across only 59 pitches, it produced a terrible 286 wRC+ and in 2019 he barely threw it (5 pitches).

When you look at the movement on the pitch starting in 2015, it was a bit high and on the outside of the plate to a right-handed hitter, but then, year-to-year, began to creep into the heart of the zone:

If Andriese could reincorporate that pitch and keep it up and slightly to the outside of the plate as he did in 2015 and 2016, I don't see why he couldn't see renewed success with it.

Certain organizations don't like their pitchers to throw certain types of pitches but I'd rather see a guy throw his best stuff and worry about the injury potential if and when it happens.

Bring back the cutter Matt!