OC Register: Even without Shohei Ohtani, Angels sticking to 6-man rotation for now

[AngelsWin.com]

NEW YORK — For years the Angels have used a six-man rotation, largely because of Shohei Ohtani.

Now what?

With Ohtani done pitching for the rest of the season, the Angels could go to a more traditional five-man rotation for the final month.

“Yeah, that’s a possibility,” Manager Phil Nevin said. “Right now we have six guys we want to see start, too.”

The Angels used Patrick Sandoval, Chase Silseth and Griffin Canning against the New York Mets, and Lucas Giolito, Tyler Anderson and Reid Detmers are scheduled start this week against the Philadelphia Phillies.

In the short term, though, there is some uncertainty.

Silseth was knocked out by a head injury in the fourth inning of his start on Saturday. He was checked at the hospital and released on Saturday night. Nevin said on Sunday he only has a headache, but they will continue to monitor him.

“He got hit pretty hard,” Nevin said. “I think we avoided something serious but with the head injuries you always want to be cautious with them. We’ll keep evaluating him through the day and see where we’re at.”

Anderson was listed in on the lineup card as a reliever on Sunday, just in case the Angels needed the extra coverage.

As long as the Angels have six starters, they will only have seven relievers. They’ve had at least eight relievers throughout the rest of the season because Ohtani doesn’t count against the roster limit of 13 pitchers because he’s a two-way player.

If the Angels choose to drop to five starters, it would mean some starts on four days rest instead of five. Anderson and Giolito have done that throughout their careers. Detmers had never done it until two weeks ago, when he took a no-hitter into the eighth inning. Sandoval had barely done it until earlier this month, and he liked how he felt when he did.

“I liked it a lot better,” Sandoval said. “I feel like my body recovered pretty well. It feels weird to say but maybe more time makes me feel a little too good in between, so I throw a little bit more and then by the start day I’m not as fresh.”

A POSITIVE CHANGE

Giolito, who is scheduled to start on Monday in Philadelphia, said he’s feeling good about the improvements he’s made since the nine-run debacle in his second Angels start, on Aug. 2 in Atlanta.

Giolito credited the Angels coaching and analytics team for an adjustment he made after the Braves start.

“I’ve never been able to make an adjustment to see immediate results so quickly when it comes to how the ball is coming out of my hand,” Giolito said. “Initially talking with (pitching coach Matt Wise) and going in and speaking with all the mechanics and analytics guys, I got a report that I wasn’t getting behind the ball the way I like, and we got a plan to get back behind the ball. I like the way I’ve been throwing the ball.”

Giolito has completed six innings in each of his subsequent starts, with a 4.00 ERA.

“Some unfortunate stuff,” Giolito said, explaining why the results don’t necessarily match how much better he’s felt. “I’m looking forward to finishing strong and having fun with it. That’s all you can do.”

NOTES

First baseman Nolan Schanuel was out of the lineup for a second straight day because of a stomach issue, Nevin said. “He’s pretty sick still,” Nevin said. “Hopefully it’s just a 24-hour thing.” …

First baseman C.J. Cron (back) still isn’t doing any baseball activity. …

Right-handers Sam Bachman (shoulder inflammation) and Ben Joyce (ulnar neuritis) are both throwing off a mound, but neither is facing hitters yet. Even though there isn’t much time in the season left, Nevin said they can gain valuable experience by getting back to pitching this season, provided they are “100% healthy.”

UP NEXT

Angels (RHP Lucas Giolito, 7-10, 4.32) vs. Phillies (RHP Taijuan Walker, 13-5, 4.02), Monday, 3:40 p.m., Citizens Bank Park, Bally Sports West, 830 AM

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[Jeff Fletcher]

12 hours ago, AngelsWin.com said:

Giolito credited the Angels coaching and analytics team for an adjustment he made after the Braves start.

“I’ve never been able to make an adjustment to see immediate results so quickly when it comes to how the ball is coming out of my hand,” Giolito said. “Initially talking with (pitching coach Matt Wise) and going in and speaking with all the mechanics and analytics guys, I got a report that I wasn’t getting behind the ball the way I like, and we got a plan to get back behind the ball. I like the way I’ve been throwing the ball.”

I’m surprised none of you guys commented on this. Maybe it was posted too early on a Sunday morning. 

[Tank]

46 minutes ago, Jeff Fletcher said:

I’m surprised none of you guys commented on this. Maybe it was posted too early on a Sunday morning. 

It tends to go against what most of us want to believe about our pitching department these days. 

[JVel17]

Is the takeaway that some of the starting pitchers could prefer the consistency or routine of a 5-man rotation?

The recent podcast included Victor touching on the potential negative aspects of a 6-man rotation and how all non-Ohtani starters continually need to adjust their routines around when Ohtani wants to pitch.

[Jeff Fletcher]

6 hours ago, JVel17 said:

Is the takeaway that some of the starting pitchers could prefer the consistency or routine of a 5-man rotation?

The recent podcast included Victor touching on the potential negative aspects of a 6-man rotation and how all non-Ohtani starters continually need to adjust their routines around when Ohtani wants to pitch.

I don’t think the adjustment between sometimes starting on 5 and sometimes 6 is an issue. All starters have to adjust between 4 and 5 a lot because of off days. 
 

Sandoval said he simply felt better with 4 because he didn’t throw as much between starts. (To me that sounds like something he could easily adjust to still work with 5 or 6 now that he knows what it does for him.) 

I didn’t get a chance to talk to the other starters. 

[BTH]

13 hours ago, Jeff Fletcher said:

I’m surprised none of you guys commented on this. Maybe it was posted too early on a Sunday morning. 

I saw it, but took it with a grain of salt since he came from the White Sox, who might be one of the few orgs more behind the curve than the Angels.

[jsnpritchett]

Just now, BTH said:

I saw it, but took it with a grain of salt since he came from the White Sox, who might be one of the few orgs more behind the curve than the Angels.

I took it with a grain of salt mainly because the Angels' pitchers have given up the 4th-most runs per game in the league this year, so whatever coaching and analysis they're doing still isn't ultimately leading to good results.  The only charitable way to look at that would be, "These guys would be EVEN SHITTIER without all the coaches have done for them."  Uh, congrats?  Ha.

[tdawg87]

13 hours ago, Jeff Fletcher said:

I’m surprised none of you guys commented on this. Maybe it was posted too early on a Sunday morning. 

We don't like our narratives being questioned here.

[UndertheHalo]

20 minutes ago, tdawg87 said:

We don't like our narratives being questioned here.

But.  Matt Dumb?

[jsnpritchett]

21 hours ago, Jeff Fletcher said:

I’m surprised none of you guys commented on this. Maybe it was posted too early on a Sunday morning. 

 

7 hours ago, BTH said:

I saw it, but took it with a grain of salt since he came from the White Sox, who might be one of the few orgs more behind the curve than the Angels.

 

7 hours ago, jsnpritchett said:

I took it with a grain of salt mainly because the Angels' pitchers have given up the 4th-most runs per game in the league this year, so whatever coaching and analysis they're doing still isn't ultimately leading to good results.  The only charitable way to look at that would be, "These guys would be EVEN SHITTIER without all the coaches have done for them."  Uh, congrats?  Ha.

So, yeah, I think today's outing exemplifies why nobody really paid much attention to Giolito's comments.