Grading the first half of each Angels starting pitcher

A strength of this Los Angeles Angels team was supposed to be its starting rotation. Led by Shohei Ohtani, a guy who was in the Cy Young conversation last season, from top to bottom this rotation felt as formidable as it had been in years.

The Angels were sixth in rotation ERA last season in all of baseball, an unexpected development for a staff that included three youngsters. These three young left-handers were in the Opening Day rotation this season poised to continue developing, but you can argue all three took a step back.

Overall, the Angels rank tied for 23rd in baseball in rotation ERA this season. A major step back from where they were. The teams this Angels rotation rank ahead of are the Cardinals, Tigers, Royals, Reds, Athletics, and Rockies. There's one good team on this list. It's no surprise the Angels are under .500 with a rotation like this. Hopefully, we see some growth in the second half like we did last season.

LA Angels starting pitcher first half grade: Shohei Ohtani

When doing this, we're going to look at just Ohtani's pitching. Obviously, his hitting has been otherworldly this season, but Ohtani's pitching has taken a step back from where it was last season.

Ohtani's season pitching couldn't have started much better as he had an ERA of 0.64 through his first five starts. He had allowed just two runs in 28 innings pitched and despite some early-season control issues, Ohtani looked unhittable.

After that great start, Ohtani had an eight-start stretch in which he was unrecognizable on the bump. He had an ERA of 4.88 in 48 innings pitched, allowing a whopping 11 home runs. Ohtani had never allowed more than 15 home runs in a single season, and here he was allowing 11 in eight starts.

Ohtani had three straight solid starts, allowing just four runs in 19.1 innings of work before struggling his last time out in San Diego. Ohtani allowed five runs in just five innings before leaving with a blister. He gave up two more home runs, and has given up 14 longballs in his first 17 starts of the season.

Despite an elevated home run and walk rate, Ohtani has still been mostly good. A 3.32 ERA isn't bad, even if it isn't Ohtani-like. Expect him to kick things in gear in the second half.

Grade: B

LA Angels starting pitcher first half grade: Patrick Sandoval

Thanks to a great season in 2022, Patrick Sandoval was Phil Nevin's choice as the Angels second starter. He had earned it. Sandoval looked outstanding in the World Baseball Classic giving Angels fans reason to believe another step would be taken by this left-hander. Unfortunately, Sandoval has been a disappointment.

Through 16 starts, Sandoval has a 4.41 ERA in 85.2 innings pitched. He's had some good starts, but a lot of so-so to bad starts.

He's gone more than five innings just five times this season as even when he's pitched pretty well he's been hurt by elevated pitch counts. He's already allowed more than five runs in a start four times this season after doing so just three times in 2022.

Even when Sandoval clearly had to work on getting deeper into games and limiting the elevated pitch counts, he did a good job pitching effectively through trouble. This season, opponents are hitting .265 against him with runners in scoring position, a far cry from the .220 mark opponents hit last season in those spots.

His walk rate has stayed relatively the same, but his strikeout rate has plummeted from an above-average 23.7% in 2022 to 18.2% this season. Additionally, he's already given up six home runs this season after giving up just eight last season.

The 26-year-old hasn't taken the step many Angels fans hoped for, instead, he's taken a couple steps back. Hopefully he can rebound in the second half.

Grade: C-

LA Angels starting pitcher first half grade: Tyler Anderson

Tyler Anderson was the Angels biggest free agent signing. He was given three years and $39 million, which was the richest contract they signed by a healthy margin. There was justification for doing so, as Anderson had been a decent innings eater throughout his career, and he broke out in a big way for the Dodgers last season.

When looking at deals other starting pitchers got, the contract value of his deal felt like a steal made by Perry Minasian. Unfortunately, through the first half it's been anything but.

Anderson has an ugly 5.25 ERA in 16 appearances (15 starts) and 84 innings pitched. We talk about how Sandoval has struggled to get deep in games, but he's recorded five more outs than Anderson has in the same amount of appearances.

The most glaring part of Anderson's game that has just been missing all season has been his command. He's always been a strike thrower, which he has to be with below-average stuff. This season, he's seen his walk rate jump from 4.8% in 2022 to 6.6% in his career to 9.8% this season. He went from the 91st percentile in BB% last season to the 29th this season. Just an unfathomable dropoff.

Nobody expected Anderson to be an all-star again. If the Angels felt he'd be an all-star, he would've gotten more than $13 million annually. They expected a reliable innings eater and have gotten nothing close to that. The southpaw has yet to complete seven innings and has only pitched into the seventh once.

Among starting pitchers with at least 80 innings pitched, Anderson has the seventh-lowest ERA. If the Angels have any hope of competing down the stretch, they'll need much more from their entire rotation but particularly Anderson.

Grade: D

LA Angels starting pitcher first half grade: Reid Detmers

Reid Detmers is yet another Angel who has yet to find any consistency this season. He's looked unhittable at times followed immediately by a game-crushing inning.

It's easy to see why the Angels and Angels fans are so high on this guy. The stuff is legit. When he's on, he has the talent to be an ace or at least a number two. When he's off, you know he's off.

Detmers struggled through his first ten starts, posting an ERA of 5.15. It was the same story every night. He'd start out great, but when he saw hitters for a second and especially third time, he'd fall apart. He'd cruise through three or four before imploding.

In his next five starts, it looked like Detmers was finally turning the corner. A 1.42 ERA in 31.2 innings pitched with 43 strikeouts compared to just ten walks made him the Angels most reliable arm for a month. Unfortunately, a start in which he allowed seven runs thanks in large part to three home runs ended his first half on a sour note.

A 4.31 ERA is higher than anyone would like, but Detmers has shown more positive signs than a guy like Sandoval who has a comparable ERA. His strikeout rate has taken a massive leap from 22.6% last season to 29.2% this season, and he's been much better of late pitching later in games. Hopefully his most recent start was just a one-start blip and he can get back to dominating like he was prior.

Grade: C+

LA Angels starting pitcher first half grade: Jose Suarez

Jose Suarez was handed the fifth starter spot for this Angels rotation thanks in large part to his outstanding second half. Suarez went from a guy who was really only in the rotation because they had no other options, to a pitcher who had a 2.81 ERA in 11 second half starts. While nobody expected him to be a sub-3.00 ERA pitcher, especially as a starter, I don't think even the harshest critics had this in mind.

Through six starts, the young left-hander had an ERA of 9.62. Yes, he allowed more runs than innings pitched, giving up 27 runs (26 earned) in just 24.1 innings of work. He had one good start in which he delivered five scoreless innings against a Brewers team that can't hit left-handed pitching. That's it.

His last start came in a big rubber game at home against the Rangers. He was handed a 3-0 lead before giving it back immediately in the second inning and then allowing four more in the third. He was pulled after allowing seven runs while recording just eight outs and left the game with a trainer. He went on the IL with a shoulder injury and remains on the 60-day IL.

At just 25 years old coming off of such a good second half, Angels fans were hoping this guy could maybe stick at the back of the rotation. Th second half last season was made up mostly with starts against weaker competition, but even this season Suarez struggled against the bad teams.

Whenever he does return off the IL it's hard to imagine he'd slot into the rotation, and there's a good chance he's not even on the team next season. With all of the disappointment from this season, even with the limited sample, Suarez was an absolute disaster.

Grade: F

LA Angels starting pitcher first half grade: Jaime Barria

Jaime Barria opened the season as a reliever and pitched extremely well before getting what he's always wanted, a spot in the rotation. Barria earned the spot because Jose Suarez landed on the IL but even if Suarez hadn't been injured, it felt like either Barria or Tucker Davidson would take his spot.

His 4.94 ERA in six starts isn't great, but it also hasn't been fully indicative of how he's pitched in that role. For the most part, he's been fine.

It couldn't have started much better with Barria as a starter as he delivered five scoreless frames in a victory over Boston. He allowed three runs or fewer in each of his next three starts and the Angels were 4-0 in his first four starts. His last two have been rough.

Nine runs in eight innings combined in defeats against the White Sox and Padres. He gave up four home runs while striking out just five. The Padres start was better than the stats say as he was betrayed by his defense in the first when San Diego did score three against him, but it's also pretty clear that he's better as a long reliever.

Barria wasn't supposed to be a savior. He was never asked to go more than five innings in a start. His job was simple. Keep the Angels in games and be better than Suarez. For the most part, he's done that.

I think both Barria and the Angels are better with him in the bullpen. Maybe we'll see that change if the Angels acquire or promote a new starting pitcher. While he's better in the 'pen, he hasn't been bad in the rotation.

Grade: B-