Amid a coaching shakeup and a historic slide, the Halos gamble on veteran Michael Fulmer and local product Hagen Danner to revitalize a struggling pitching staff.
In the midst of a season in which they may lose 100 games for the first time in franchise history, the Angels have made some significant changes to their pitching department in recent days. Just yesterday, the Halos cleared out their pitching staff, firing their pitching coach, assistant pitching coach, and bullpen coach.
Shortly after, interim general manager John Mozeliak went out and inked deals with two right-handers on minor league deals.
The first of which, Michael Fulmer, has pitched in the major leagues in eight different seasons, first bursting onto the scene with a tremendous rookie campaign in 2016 that saw him earn Cy Young votes and win the American League Rookie of the Year award.
After tearing his UCL in spring training of 2019, Fulmer returned for the 2020 season, but transitioned into a bullpen role in 2021. Since then, has tossed 196 innings of 3.58 ERA baseball.
Fulmer appeared in 37 minor league games in the San Francisco Giants’ organization this season, recording a sub-3.00 ERA in the process. Still, he found himself released by the Giants earlier this month. Now, the Angels have swooped in to give the 33-year-old another go in the bigs.
The other righty signed to a minor league deal on Tuesday by the Angels is Hagen Danner. Formerly a second-round selection in 2017 by the Toronto Blue Jays, Danner has the chance to appear for his hometown team if he’s able to find his way into the bigs before the season’s end.
The Orange County native has pitched just ⅓ of a major league inning back in 2023, bouncing around the league’s minor league systems in recent years. Now on his fourth organization in three seasons, Danner is looking to prove himself despite recent tough times.
In 30 relief appearances with the Triple-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds this year, Danner struggled to the tune of a 6.61 ERA, 2.14 WHIP, and 7.4 walks per nine innings. Nearly one month ago, Cincinnati released Danner due to his woeful numbers in Triple-A. Getting another shot in the Halos’ organization, the 27-year-old has a lot to prove.
Fulmer will report to the Triple-A Salt Lake Bees while Danner has been assigned to the Arizona complex.
Of the two, it’s more likely that we’ll see Fulmer on the mound at the Big A at some point before the season’s end, especially given the lack of importance in the remainder of the Angels’ season. Still, it could be a fun story to keep an eye on for the hometown kid.
