It was a tale of two halves for Los Angeles Angels closer Carlos Estévez in the 2023 season. In the first half — 43.0 innings through July 30 — he posted a 1.88 ERA, a 1.326 WHIP and 11.0 strikeouts per nine innings.e was named an All-Star for the first time in his career on the back of this effort. But when the calendar flipped to August, he — along with many other Halos players — fell apart.
In 19.1 innings from the start of August through the end of the season. Estévez’s ERA skyrocketed to 8.38. His WHIP was 1.862 and he allowed an opponent OPS of .887, turning virtually every batter he faced into an elite hitter. Advanced stats like fielding-independent pitching (FIP) suggests that the two halves of his season were close than they appear, but the results speak for themselves.
This led the Angels closer to evaluate what went wrong for him the second half and what he’s done in the months since to reverse those fortunes and set himself up for a successful 2024, according to Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com:
“I focused on doing a lot of the same things body-wise and training, but did more interval exercises that were more intense,” Estévez said. “Just because the way the game is going and things like the pitch clock. But I didn’t change too much because, percentage-wise, I was a top-three closer in the league last year.
“I felt fine, but I was thinking too much,” Estévez said. “It was more of a tough season, a lot of guys hurt. It is what is. I just think if I bring the mentality of attacking hitters, it’ll pay off well.”
Estévez, fortunately is not going to see fewer opportunities because of how last season ended. Angels manager Ron Washington has confirmed that he will be closing for the Halos in 2024.
“Right now, we’ve got him as a closer,” Washington said. “So we don’t need to talk about that.”
That type of confidence from a manager, especially a new one that did not originally sign the player, is huge for a player as they enter a season. Estévez clearly has the backing of the organization as he looks to right the ship. Already a one-time All-Star in one season as an Angel, everyone knows what Estévez can bring when he’s at his best/
Angels’ Patrick Sandoval not happy with his 2023 season
Another player looking to turn the page from 2023 is Angels starter Patrick Sandoval, who had his worst full season as a pro in 2023 after breakout campaigns in 2021 and 2022.
“I’m not happy at all with the results of just my season personally and obviously how we ended up last year,” Sandoval said. “But I think consistency is key for me and being able to stay level-headed and not letting innings get too big. Just damage control, I guess.
