TEMPE, Ariz. — Being a Rule 5 Draft pick can lead to a stressful spring training because you either make the 26-man roster, or you get put on waivers. For left-hander Garrett McDaniels, he’s only focused on the things he can control.
“Just doing what I know I can do,” McDaniels said. “I'm really not trying to put too much emphasis on it, just trying to stay as normal as possible. Just go out there and do what I know I can do, and hopefully make the team and stay up there for the entire year.”
McDaniels was the Angels 2024 Rule 5 Draft selection as he was picked up from the Los Angeles Dodgers organization. He reached as high as Double-A in the Dodgers organization last year but spent the majority of the season as a reliever in High-A, where he posted a 2.49 ERA in 25.1 innings with 34 strikeouts and five walks.
So far this spring, McDaniels has pitched seven innings and has only given up one earned run with three strikeouts and two walks. It’s a small sample and spring training stats don’t hold much weight, but the Angels are pleased with what they’ve seen.
“(McDaniels) has been very impressive,” manager Ron Washington said. “He's been handling his business, and that's what he's supposed to do. So I just hope he continues.”
McDaniels’ success this spring stems from the soft contact and ground balls that he’s produced. Although he’s been getting more weak contact, his strength is still getting strikeouts. The strikeouts haven’t shown up in the boxscore yet this spring, but the process is there.
“I finally got the shape on the slider that I want,” McDaniels said. “I’m getting more swings and misses. My sinkers are finding more lanes to get some freezes and some takes.”
The slider is something that McDaniels has been working on this spring because he said it was a little too “depthy” because it was slower and had more drop than he wanted. He believes that was because he getting to the front of the ball too much so the pitch was blending with his curveball. To fix the issue, McDaniels emphasized keeping his hand behind the ball in catch play. With the adjustment, his slider is now a little bit harder and a little bit shorter.
While in Angels camp this spring, he’s been taking advantage of being surrounded by veterans on the pitching staff. The biggest lesson McDaniels has learned this spring from the veterans, is how important recovery is.
“Kenley (Jansen) has been a big help just picking his brain about how taxing a full season is on the body and about making sure you get your recovery in and knowing when to have a high-intent day and when to have a low-intent day,” McDaniels said.
With a week left of spring training games, McDaniels will have another opportunity to show the Angels if he’s ready for the big leagues or not. The Angels already have four other left-handed pitchers in the bullpen on the 40-man roster, but the Angels aren’t afraid of having a predominately left-handed bullpen.
“I think what's going to be in consideration is the best pitchers,” Washington said. “That's what we balance. We just want to take the best pitchers. If they're left-handers, that means we feel that they can get anybody out.”
CHASE SILSETH OPTIONED
Right-hander Chase Silseth was optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake City, the Angels announced Tuesday morning.
It’s not a surprising move considering he’s given up 15 earned runs in 13 innings with 10 walks. Silseth was also limited to just nine starts total last season before ending his season early with elbow surgery.
“The fact that he needs to pitch,” Washington said about what went into the decision. “We certainly don't want to put him in a position where he may not have a chance to succeed. He needs to pitch.”
Washington said Silseth’s struggles this spring are nothing physical. Washington explained that he’s been working on controlling his emotions and not overthinking things, which “isn’t an overnight thing.”
“We could see progress, but he's going to have to compete to really get to the point where he can control that,” Washington said.
With Silseth being sent down, the battle for the fifth starting spot in the rotation is now officially down to left-hander Reid Detmers and right-hander Jack Kochanowicz. Washington said that the Angels haven’t made a decision yet, but with just a week left in spring training, the decision is fast approaching.