Angels Looking For Starting Pitching

Jerome Williams, the incumbent fifth starter from 2011, still hasn’t made his Cactus League debut due to a gimpy hamstring. Garrett Richards is having a nice spring, except for the 10 hits in nine innings, but the Angels seem reluctant to hand the 23-year-old the keys to the five spot. Brad Mills is also having a nice spring but he is still Brad Mills after all. So it’s not that big of a surprise that Ken Rosenthal and Jon Morosi are reporting the Angels are looking into acquiring some depth at SP.

"The team’s scouts are searching for available arms in Arizona and Florida, targeting out-of-options or non-roster starters who may be on the fringes of other rosters. In other words, they are focusing on lesser-known pitchers, rather than the likes of Washington’s John Lannan."

The market those fine reporter people are describing is thinner than John Waters’ mustache. *checks off Cecil B. Demented reference for the day* You can see the full list of out-of-option players at MLBTR. There aren’t many potential trade targets there. I suppose Ross Detwiler or Jason Hammel might be available but are they any better than giving Richards the shot until Williams is healthy? Doubtful.

Williams threw off a mound on Tuesday and will again on Thursday with an exhibition game scheduled for Monday. If there aren’t any setbacks, Williams could be ready by the time a fifth starter is needed.

In the meantime, it looks like Richards will be penciled into the rotation unless the Angels make a trade. I wouldn’t be surprised if Richards runs away with the fifth spot. The Angels “on lookout for starting pitching” might be nothing more than typical due diligence. Typical Due Diligence is the name of my acapella garage band.