Los Angeles Angels: Garrett Richards starting his throwing program.

Not all news is bad with the Los Angeles Angels this season. In fact today, i get the pleasure of writing about some good news. Not only that, i will break down what it means for next season.

Rejoice Los Angeles Angels fans, Garrett Richards has avoided Tommy John surgery. He is one of three Angels to avoid the curse of Tommy John this season. Andrew Heaney and Nick Tropeano are the two that are going to have the surgery. Richards avoided TJ surgery by undergoing stem-cell therapy.

Richards will most likely workout for the remainder of this season and continue his rehab into the winter. He clearly wants to play next season and he probably will. Richards talked to the press last evening, saying he doesn’t want to wait until 2018.

The Los Angeles Angels should work Richards in just as slowly as they did Tyler Skaggs. Skaggs has only pitched a handful games since returning from Tommy John this season. Skaggs and Richards are likely to be aces for the Angels next season. As a result, the Angels are going to rely heavily on those two in the rotation next season.

The starting rotation will remain a revolving door until the Los Angeles Angels have a clear cut ace. At the beginning of this season, Richards was the odds on favorite to take on that role. Richards had a 1-3 record with a 2.34 ERA in 6 starts for the Angels this season.

Richards return alone will not be enough for the Los Angeles Angels to be contenders.

The Los Angeles Angels will have to bring in a new starting pitcher to energize this rotation. First of all, C.J. Wilson and Jered Weaver are free agents making a combined $40 million this season. Assuming both of them play elsewhere next season, the Angels will most likely be able to sign another ace.

The list of starting pitchers that are upcoming free agents is long. Therefore, shifting through ideal candidates will be taxing. While signing a cheap pitcher is savvy, the Los Angeles Angels need to be more concerned with winning than saving money.

Sometimes in sports you have to go all in and spend way beyond the cap to win a title. The Angels were big spenders up until the past off-season. Now, they are close to have the worst record in all of baseball.

Next: Sosh has got to go

The Los Angeles Angels are on a path where the outcome is unclear. This path has caused Many Angels fans have lost faith in Mike Scioscia and Arte Moreno because of the win/loss record. If Billy Eppler can put together a contender next season, all will be forgiven. But, Eppler has his work cut out for him.