LA Angels: Grading the 2021 bullpen

The LA Angels' bullpen was very disappointing this year.

Here's a numbers breakdown of just how bad the Angels' relivers were in 2021:

ERA: 4.59 (Seventh-worst in MLB)

BB/9: 4.04 (Tenth-worst in MLB)

BAA: .245 (Seventh-worst in MLB)

WHIP: 1.40 (Sixth-worst in MLB)

Luckily, the Halos re-signed Raisel Iglesias. They also went out and plucked Aaron Loup from the New York Mets. It's worth taking a look and reflecting on the rest of the regular bullpen pitchers who were in the Halo bullpen this year, regardless of if they'll be back or not next year.

With the Halo bullpen this season, it was a true tale of the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Grading the LA Angels 2021 bullpen: The Ugly

No. 9 2021 bullpen pitcher for the LA Angels: Sam Selman--F

Sam Selman was the only Big League pitcher that the LA Angels received at the time of the Tony Watson trade. Unfortunately for Selman, he ended up being the worst core bullpen pitcher for the team.

As of right now, it looks like we were fleeced in that trade, as Selman has posted a 6.35 ERA and 4.76 FIP since the trade while Watson has posted a 2.96 ERA and 2.64 FIP.

No. 8 2021 bullpen pitcher for the LA Angels: Junior Guerra--F

When thinking about LA Angels first-year reliever Junior Guerra, disappointment immediately comes to mind. After recording a 3.44 ERA and a 1.174 WHIP, while only surrendering 6.3 hits per nine innings in 2019 and 2020, it looked like the Halos were getting a good one in Guerra this year.

Instead, they got a 6.06 ERA pitcher who posted a 1.730 WHIP and gave up 9.2 hits per nine innings. Hopefully Guerra won't be back with the team next year.

No. 7 2021 bullpen pitcher for the LA Angels: Alex Claudio--F

Unfortunately, the LA Angels threw Alex Claudio the fourth-most times as anybody this season. Last year certainly was ugly for Claudio, as he somehow gave up 10.2 hits per nine frames and recorded a 5.51 ERA. His 5.10 FIP was just as disgraceful.

Grading the LA Angels 2021 bullpen: The bad

No. 6 2021 bullpen pitcher for the LA Angels: Andrew Wantz--D

Andrew Wantz didn't have an ugly rookie year for the LA Angels, but it certainly was a below-average season from Wantz. Wantz posted a 4.94 ERA, a 91 ERA+, and a 4.30 FIP. That sounds ugly, but it's necessary to go a bit deeper than that with Wantz.

He also struck out 12.5 batters per nine innings, which is far from ugly. His 1.244 WHIP wasn't particularly 'good,' but it also certainly wasn't ugly. Wantz was in that second tier of Angels core bullpen pitchers this season.

No. 5 2021 bullpen pitcher for the LA Angels: Jose Quijada--D

Jose Quijada was a similar type of pitcher for the LA Angels in which he gave up too many runs, but some of his other numbers did look good. He had a lackluster 4.56 ERA, as well as a disappointing 5.3 BB/9 rate. That being said, he struck out 13.3 batters per nine frames, and recorded a 3.09 FIP.

We can work with what Quijada gave us this season. I'm not making any excuses for his sub-par season, but the 26-year-old could've been worse and has potential. He showed improvement this season.