Can Reid Detmers Win A Spot In The Angels Rotation In 2022?

CARLSBAD, Calif.—Reid Detmers rocketed up the minor leagues in his pro debut. The 10th overall pick in the 2020 draft jumped straight to Double-A to begin his pro career, earned an invitation to the Futures Game and made only one Triple-A start before the Angels called him up for his major league debut, barely a year after he was drafted.

Detmers found the major leagues to be much more of a challenge. The 22-year-old lefthander went 1-3, 7.40 in five starts and allowed a .295/.386/.524 opponent slash line. Still, Angels general manager Perry Minasian said Tuesday at the GM meetings that Detmers, the No. 17 prospect on the BA Top 100, will be in the mix for a spot in the Angels’ Opening Day starting rotation next year.

“I think he’s going to come into spring training and compete for a job,” Minasian said. “Obviously he got his feet wet this season and had a chance to see what the big league level is and I expect him to have a really quality offseason. Knowing Reid and what he’s made of and how much he cares and how much he puts into it, I think he’s going to come into camp ready to go and compete for a job.”

Angels starting pitchers posted a 4.78 ERA last year, 22nd in the majors, and pitched 776.1 innings, fifth fewest in the majors. The club is expected to pursue multiple starting pitchers in free agency this offseason, but the present rotation outlook is uncertain.

Righthanders Alex Cobb and Dylan Bundy are free agents, leaving two-way star Shohei Ohtani and young big leaguers Jose Suarez, Patrick Sandoval, Griffin Canning and Jaime Barria as the Angels’ only starting pitchers under contract for 2022. Canning and Sandoval both missed the end of the season with back injuries and none of Ohtani, Suarez or Barria has pitched more than 131 innings in a season. The Angels pitching depth took another hit when Minasian announced Monday that righthander Chris Rodriguez, the club’s No. 3 prospect, had shoulder surgery and will miss most of 2022.

Given that uncertainty, even if the Angels add multiple starters in free agency as expected, there will still be an opportunity for Detmers to break camp in the rotation.

“I think developing as a young starting pitcher is one of the most difficult things to do in the game,” Minasian said. “I think if you asked him he’d tell you ‘I didn’t pitch as well as I wanted to.’ But I think he’ll look back at this experience and whether that’s a year from now, two years from now and say ‘Hey, I’m glad that happened. I learned a lot and made some adjustments and it changed my career.’ ”