The Los Angels Angels have some holes in their pitching staff, and Grayson Rodriguez and Kirby Yates could fill them.
The Los Angeles Angels need pitching reinforcements, and they’re on the way. Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com provided an update about the rehab work of pitchers Grayson Rodriguez and Kirby Yates, and both are making steady progress that could bring them back on the mound in Anaheim soon.
Yates faced live hitters for the first tie since he landed on the injured list with knee inflammation on March 22, and he threw 26 pitches with no issues.
“We got through it,” Yates said. “Body felt good. The hard part is, I didn't get a chance to do anything with my legs for 12-13 days. So we're trying to play catch-up with that. The legs aren't as fresh as I'd probably like them to be. But, overall, I think it was good.”
Manager Kurt Suzuki observed the throwing session and indicated that everything went according to plan. Yates signed a $5 million deal to come across town from the Los Angeles Dodgers to the Angels, but right now he’ll probably slot in as the backup closer with Jordan Romero notching four saves with five scoreless innings so far.
“I thought he looked fine,” Suzuki said. “Obviously, first time in a while throwing to hitters, so it’s going to take time. Build his stamina, his legs back up, get his legs under him again. … But hopefully we’ll see him sooner than later."
Rodriguez would be the more important add right now, and he’s throwing from up to 150 feet with plans to progress to his first bullpen within the next week. He’ll join the Angels on their upcoming road trip to Cincinnati and New York to continue his throwing program, but according to Bollinger his return is still weeks away.
“The arm is definitely getting strong quick,” Rodriguez said. “When I feel like I’m ready to throw the ball as hard as I want to throw it, that’ll let me know. But with how I’ve been progressing the last week to two weeks, it’s really given me a lot of confidence.”
Confidence is a good thing, but the Angels really need another experienced pitcher to round out their rotation. So far they’ve been going with tryouts from young pitchers like Ryan Johnson and George Klassen, and getting Rodriguez back would go a long way toward stabilizing the rotation and keeping the bullpen from getting overtaxed. Yates will help the bullpen depth for sure, but getting a healthy Rodriguez could be one of the keys to their season going forward.