Former Angel Michael Lorenzen signs deal with Tigers

The Los Angeles Angels took multiple risks last offseason with starting pitchers, signing Noah Syndergaard and Michael Lorenzen to one-year deals. These weren't super high-risk moves as the contracts were only for one year, but they were both promised full-time rotation slots.

Syndergaard was coming off of two years on the sidelines due to Tommy John Surgery. Lorenzen was a risk also because he hadn't been a full-time starter since he first came up in 2015.

Former Angel Michael Lorenzen signs a one-year deal with the Tigers

Lorenzen wasn't horrible as a starter, going 8-6 with a 4.24 ERA in 18 starts and 97.2 innings pitched. He also wasn't anything more than what he would've been if the Halos opted to bring him back, a sixth starter.

Lorenzen walked too many (4.1 BB/9) and didn't strike out enough (7.8 K/9). He had a 95 ERA+ this season which again, isn't horrible, but isn't anything more than a back-end guy. He also missed two months due to injury and has hit the 100-inning mark once in his eight-year career and that came in his rookie season of 2015.

Lorenzen had said numerous times that he wanted to return to Anaheim and for that reason, and the fact that they still need a sixth starter, I thought a reunion was going to happen. I even came close on the money he got, as he signed a one-year $8.5 million dollar deal with the Tigers (I had predicted $8 million dollars).

The fact that they hadn't signed him earlier this offseason if he really did want to come back and that they didn't match this relatively cheap contract tells me they weren't interested in him at all which honestly isn't a bad thing.

The Angels are still in need of another starting pitcher and the free agents seem to be signing right now. They could opt to sign someone in the Lorenzen tier to be the sixth starter or they can pursue someone like Nathan Eovaldi, who is probably the best free-agent starter left not named Carlos Rodon. They can also look into a trade. They're a team that has been linked to Carlos Carrasco.

Lorenzen isn't a big loss by any means, but the Angels still do have to replace him. Running with Griffin Canning in the rotation after missing the entire 2022 season doesn't seem good enough to me.