LA Angels: How is Julio Teheran going to fair in American League?

With the recent free agent signing of Julio Teheran, the LA Angels add more depth to the starting rotation. While Teheran isn’t the flashiest piece that has been added to the rotation, he does provide one thing the Angels desperately have needed, length from a starter.

The LA Angels have recently signed Teheran to a one year, $9 million deal which seems to be just another test that Billy Eppler has constructed. While this move makes sense from a durability stand point as he worked at least 174 innings pitched last season, his ERA wasn’t spectacular at 3.81.

Teheran will be coming into a whole new environment in terms of pitching, not just a new team, but a whole new league which he will have to adjust too.

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While this may not be a huge concern for many because we’ve seen pitchers switch leagues and still perform to the best of their abilities, the American League average for ERA was at 4.62 which we may see Teheran’s  spike up.

Something to keep in mind is that Angels stadium is frequently looked at as a pitchers ballpark, meaning that not a lot of offense happens there and the outfield is so large that some ball that look like home runs are just loud fly outs.

Another thing to consider is that highly talented pitching coach, Mickey Callaway, is on the Angels staff and he could help Teheran in adjusting to new players and challenges.

While many may like the move for Teheran for the length he gives, it should be a priority for the Angels that he pitches well too. Having him go 6 or 7 innings each start will certainly help out the bullpen, but making sure he can get to those innings without giving up much damage will be a concern for the Angels.

He may not be the ace of the staff and he may not also be the only free agent pitcher the Angels sign this offseason, but if he can give the Angels both quantity and quality each start he has, then this one year deal Billy Eppler made may finally pay off.