Kirk Gibson's 10 Ks Bring Up Angels to Dominant Showdown!

The Los Angeles Angels have been waiting for starter Grayson Rodriguez to show the kind of potential that led the team to give up  outfielder Taylor Ward to get him from the Baltimore Orioles, and yesterday Rodriguez finally pulled it together in his fourth start of the spring as he shut out the Cleveland Guardians for 4-2/3 innings in the Angels’ 5-2 win. Rodriguez wasn’t exactly thrilled by his outing, though, according to Mark Feinsand of MLB. com.

He’s had a tough go of it so far this spring, given up seven runs in eight innings over his first three starts. “The walks are still a killer,” said Rodriguez, who has now walked 10 batters in 12-2/3 innings this spring. “We threw a lot of unnecessary pitches.

… Right now, that’s the work that’s going to be going on from here until the season starts, making sure we can get that fastball command down. ” The Angels aren’t nearly as critical, however. They know Rodriguez hasn’t pitched in a big-league game since 2024, and command can be the last thing to return after a long layoff due to injuries.

Manager Kurt Suzuki indicated as much in his post-game comments, which focused on the pitcher’s stuff and build-up process. “Consistency, sharpness of pitches and stuff; especially for Grayson, he didn't pitch much last year at all, so kind of seeing him work his way and get better and better,” Suzuki said. “There are some consistency things he needs to tighten up, but at the same time, the stuff is there.