The Los Angeles Angels have a lot of pitching prospects who are drawing attention right now, especially given the team’s tendencies to rush prospects to the majors. Two who are showing out are starters Tyler Bremner and Caden Dana, according to Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com, who provided an update on their progress that included some important new developments.
Bremner was the No. 2 pick overall in last year’s draft, so expectations are high for him. There’s been speculation that he could be in the Angels rotation as early as this season, and he faced live hitters in a simulated game for the first time in two weeks, according to Bollinger.
The big development beyond this is about Bremner’s slider. He’s been working on it as a big add, and he threw some to first baseman Nolan Schanuel and infielder Denzel Guzman.
"I like it right now,” Bremner said. “I feel like it did well today. I got some strikes with it, got some swings with it, never really got hit. I just need to get it down a little bit. I had a few uncompetitive ones.”
The Angels have also slowed the pace of Bremner’s development a little, so perhaps they’ve learned a little from their past mistakes. New pitching coach Mike Maddux has been watching Bremner’s initial mound appearances, with fellow starter Alek Manoah and Schanuel giving him some pitching tips.
One intriguing inside moment occurred with Bremner’s changeup, which he uses as an out pitch. According to Bollinger, Schanuel told him he can’t start it off the plate and get swings and misses, and Maddux is also instructing him on how to read hitters’ swings.
“Obviously, I want to get in a game,” Bremner said with a smile. “That's not entirely up to me, but whatever they tell me I'm going to do, I’m going to do it.”
Dana, however, is slightly behind the other pitchers because he’s been recovering from a case of mononucleosis he sustained in late January. He’s been cleared to play catch and then throw a bullpen without any restrictions, though, and he likes the way his arm has responded to the work so far.
“It felt unbelievable,” Dana said. “Honestly, it felt like right where I left off. I didn't really think there was like any bumps in the road right there. I also felt really good coming into camp.”
Dana is emerging from prospect status in his third season, so this will be an important year for him. He hasn’t done well so far with an ERA of 7.17, so he, too, isn’t being pushed too hard.
“I definitely feel on track,” Dana said. “But I don't want to rush this process because I definitely don't want anything bad to happen down the road. I trust the Angels here and I trust their timeline.”