After Tommy John Surgery LA Angels Tyler Skaggs Ready To Prove Himself

When LA Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs first went down with a UCL tear in his left elbow in July of 2014 he was hopeful of being ready to begin the 2016 season. Two setbacks later Skaggs finally took the mound in Kansas City on July 26th.

Skaggs was nothing short of amazing that night throwing seven shutout innings leading the LA Angels to an 8-0 victory.  His next outing was almost as good as Skaggs threw 5.1 shutout innings striking out eight batters. This start to his comeback had many Angels fans very excited.

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However, their excitement would be short-lived as Skaggs would have four straight poor starts where he gave up 19 runs in 17.2 innings for a 9.68 ERA losing three of those starts.  Then he came back with three great starts again giving up only three runs in 18 innings with a 1.50 ERA striking out 21 batters while only walking seven.

Just as quickly Skaggs’ season was in jeopardy with arm soreness which limited Skaggs to one more start on the second to last day of the season where he only pitched 1.2 innings and gave up only one run which was encouraging for the Angels going into 2017.

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For the season Skaggs went 3-4 with a 4.17 ERA.  Not great numbers, but still encouraging for Skaggs and the Angels.  So going into the 2017 season the Angels need a healthy Tyler Skaggs to help anchor a rotation that has been decimated by injuries last season with Nick Tropeano and Andrew Heaney having the same UCL tear that Skaggs had.  Both will not pitch until sometime in 2018.

With this being said what can we expect from Skaggs in 2017.  Skaggs will most likely be placed in the second or third spot in the rotation behind Garrett Richards and possibly Matt Shoemaker.  The Angels are hoping for 30 starts from Skaggs, but they will not push him too much if there is any sign of fatigue or soreness.

So my prediction for Skaggs is as follows: 13-8 record with a 3.56 ERA and 142 strikeouts in 162 innings pitched with a 1.22 WHIP in 28 starts.

I think Skaggs will get stronger as the season goes along and he should be firing going down the stretch as the Angels battle for a playoff spot. Yes, I said battling for a playoff spot.  I think this year’s Angels team is going to surprise a lot of people provided they stay healthy.

You gotta believe that this can happen and it will !!!