OC Register: Tony Watson’s meltdown costs Angels, who are swept in Oakland

[AngelsWin.com]

OAKLAND — The Angels’ bullpen suffered another embarrassing blowup.

After leading by four runs in the second inning, the Angels still had a two-run lead when Manager Joe Maddon handed the game to his bullpen in the sixth inning, only to watch a meltdown.

Tony Watson failed to retire any of the six hitters he faced and all of them scored in the Angels’ 8-4 loss to the Oakland A’s on Wednesday afternoon.

It was the second straight game that got away from the Angels because one of their relievers who had been pitching well had a terrible day. On Tuesday night Steve Cishek entered in the sixth inning of a tie game and saw the A’s score three runs while he was on the mound.

Griffin Canning started Wednesday’s game with three scoreless innings, facing the minimum, while the Angels handed him a 4-0 lead with three first-inning runs and a Shohei Ohtani homer in the second.

Canning, though, gave up two runs on two hits, two walks and a hit batter in the fourth and fifth, cutting the lead in half. He’d also thrown 69 pitches, and he came into the game allowing opponents an 1.199 OPS after his 76th pitch. The A’s had lefties Matt Olson and Mitch Moreland due to lead off the sixth.

All of that led Maddon to bring in the left-handed Watson, who carried a 3.43 ERA to the mound. Watson had not allowed a run in any of his previous five games, retiring 14 of the 15 hitters he faced.

Olson led off with a grounder up the middle. Pinch-hitter Jed Lowrie then singled into center. Matt Chapman followed with single into left, driving in a run.

Pinch-hitter Chad Pinder singled into left, tying the score. The Angels intentionally walked Elvis Andrus to load the bases. Tony Kemp then singled to drive in the go-ahead run, ending Watson’s day.

It was the first time in Watson’s career that he’d faced six batters in a game and been pulled without retiring any of them, although one of them was an intentional walk.

The A’s then kept piling on against Steve Cishek, who threw a run-scoring wild pitch. Another run scored on a grounder when the Angels couldn’t get the out at the plate, and the last one scored on Olson’s second hit of the inning, against lefty José Suarez.

By the time it was over, the A’s had scored six runs to take an 8-4 lead.

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The A’s swept the Angels, sending them limping home and taking any good vibes they had carried from the six-game winning streak they brought to town.

They looked like they might be able to salvage a game in the series the way the game began, hitting five balls at over 100 mph in a first-inning three-run outburst.

Ohtani then belted his 19th homer of the year, a 435-foot shot that got into the upper deck in right field.

Once the Angels took a 4-0 lead, though, they had just three more singles the rest of the game.

More to come on this story.

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[DMVol]

We had a winning streak against crap teams….that’s about it….

[ukyah]

classic buttercup.

[Angel Oracle]

Thanks for nothing, Watson and Maddon!

[fan_since79]

Watson, Cishek, Schlegers, Quintana, Cobb, and Bundy.

Six pitchers I don't want to see next year.

[Angel Oracle]

Minasian, do better than a D/F off-season grade next time.

Thank you!

[Mark PT]

15 hours ago, fan_since79 said:

Watson, Cishek, Schlegers, Quintana, Cobb, and Bundy.

Six pitchers I don't want to see next year.

I'll add, six pitchers that the majors should not see next year.

[Stradling]

21 minutes ago, Mark PT said:

I'll add, six pitchers that the majors should not see next year.

I will go out on a limb and say 5 of those guys will pitch in the majors next year, and maybe all 6.  Watson, Cishek, Cobb, Bundy all definitely will. Quintana will at the very least get a minor league deal with an invite to spring training.  I think Slegers will get the same and that is if he doesn’t have another option remaining.  If he does then he will be back with us next year.  

[Mark PT]

3 hours ago, Stradling said:

I will go out on a limb and say 5 of those guys will pitch in the majors next year, and maybe all 6.  Watson, Cishek, Cobb, Bundy all definitely will. Quintana will at the very least get a minor league deal with an invite to spring training.  I think Slegers will get the same and that is if he doesn’t have another option remaining.  If he does then he will be back with us next year.  

For sure they will, I was not debating that. My point is that they should not be. And yes this is part over reaction but I do feel that none of these guys would make a roster in the 80s or prior.

[Stradling]

12 minutes ago, Mark PT said:

For sure they will, I was not debating that. My point is that they should not be. And yes this is part over reaction but I do feel that none of these guys would make a roster in the 80s or prior.

Of course they would have made the rosters in the 80’s.  Watson before yesterday was a guy with a 3 ERA.  Cishek has a 4 ERA.  Look an any roster from the 80’s or the 70’s and they will have plenty of guys with ERAs in the low 4’s.  My guess is Alex Cobb has a FIP better than virtually anyone on the Angels pitching staff in the 70’s or 80’s.  

[tdawg87]

T. Watson.

[Angel Oracle]

1 hour ago, Stradling said:

Of course they would have made the rosters in the 80’s.  Watson before yesterday was a guy with a 3 ERA.  Cishek has a 4 ERA.  Look an any roster from the 80’s or the 70’s and they will have plenty of guys with ERAs in the low 4’s.  My guess is Alex Cobb has a FIP better than virtually anyone on the Angels pitching staff in the 70’s or 80’s.  

Cobb 2.45 FIP

Heaney 3.62 FIP

Solid in both cases

Note: Tanana’s from 1975-1977 was 2.75.

Edited June 17, 2021 by Angel Oracle

[Mark PT]

1 hour ago, Stradling said:

Of course they would have made the rosters in the 80’s.  Watson before yesterday was a guy with a 3 ERA.  Cishek has a 4 ERA.  Look an any roster from the 80’s or the 70’s and they will have plenty of guys with ERAs in the low 4’s.  My guess is Alex Cobb has a FIP better than virtually anyone on the Angels pitching staff in the 70’s or 80’s.  

The problem, but check the stats is that these pitchers are taken out of game very quickly today whereas in prior decades, they were left in longer. So my guess is that a 4.00 ERA in today's game probably equates to a 5+ in past years. Plus, at least Angels pitchers, have obvious control issues and that seems to be systemic in this organization. Check the stats, it would be interesting to compare (I may be wrong) although I am not sure what stat would show this, maybe total innings pitched plus appearances.

[failos]

Seems like every day it’s a new person costing the Angels the game.

[eligrba]

10 minutes ago, foolios said:

Seems like every day it’s a new person costing the Angels the game.

That's called teamwork. 

[failos]

1 minute ago, eligrba said:

That's called teamwork. 

Nice

[ten ocho recon scout]

9 hours ago, tdawg87 said:

T. Watson.

Twatson?

[tomsred]

Twatson didn't choke tonight, and during the past month gave no indication that he would give up six consecutive hits in the last Oakland game.

The pitching staff has to change, you just can't sustain a nearly 5.00 team ERA and expect to go to the playoffs.  I just hope that Barria, Detmers, 
Chris Rodriguez, and Saurez, are ready to step in and sustain something more consistent performance wise than Cishek, Quintana, Schlegers, and Bundy.  I can live with Watson and Cobb a little longer.

[eligrba]

9 hours ago, tomsred said:

 I can live with Watson and Cobb a little longer.

[tomsred]

1 hour ago, eligrba said:

The problem is that there is no more pitchers who are ready in the system right now.

[eligrba]

47 minutes ago, tomsred said:

The problem is that there is no more pitchers who are ready in the system right now.

I know.....we have to live with them.

That doesn’t mean I have to like it.

[Mark PT]

1 hour ago, eligrba said:

I know.....we have to live with them.

That doesn’t mean I have to like it.

This should be the slogan for the team! Someone write a song with this title and play it after the national anthem.