LA Angels: This new reliever needs more chances vs. Tampa Bay

The first game of the LA Angels vs. San Francisco Giants series could not have gone much worse for the Halos.

The Angels couldn’t hit, Andrew Heaney disappointed, and Justin Upton even got a little banged up.

There was one aspect of the game, however, that Angels fans should be holding their heads up for. A familiar face came off of the IL and looked like past versions of himself.

Jose Quintana came in for the LA Angels in the seventh inning and struck out three.

Jose Quintana had been on the IL for the LA Angels since May 31st. He was experiencing shoulder inflammation in his throwing (left) shoulder.

He had been having a really rough year, posting a 7.22 ERA in his nine starts.

It was time for him to go to the bullpen, where he had some success out of in limited action during his career.

There was a lot to like about his first bullpen outing since the injury.

It’s tough to come into a game down by five runs. It didn’t matter to Quintana, as he not only struck out all three outs, but only allowed one base runner.

He didn’t walk anybody, and threw just seven balls out of 22 pitches. He got the job done within four batters, and it shows that Quintana could very well find himself in the bullpen.

Coming into the game, Quintana had pitched out of the bullpen seven times. He posted a 1.89 ERA in those seven outings, and just improved upon that with his eighth.

The Angels’ starting rotation has disappointed this year, and it’s largely due to Quintana not being the signing he was counted on to be. If he can improve and find the zone in the bullpen, maybe he can make a comeback. Either way, we need better arms up and down the staff, as we owned the fifth-worst team ERA coming into our last game.

Whether Quintana eventually returns to the staff or not, he needs to be getting bullpen opportunities against a good team in the Tampa Bay Rays.