Amid some more injury concerns with the Los Angeles Angels bullpen, they called up No. 9 prospect Ben Joyce to add youth and upside to a group in desperate need of arms.
Joyce hadn’t pitched above Double-A since the Angels picked him in the third-round of the 2022 Major League Baseball Draft, however, his potential is through the roof. Through 15.2 innings with the Rocket City Trash Pandas, the 22-year-old posted a 4.60 ERA with 24 strikeouts and a .135 batting average allowed.
His walk rate in Double-A was a fairly large concern, but when manager Phil Nevin called his number in the seventh inning of Monday’s game against the Chicago White Sox, he attacked the strike zone. Joyce tossed 12 pitches, 11 of which were fastballs that clocked in above 100 mph, his fastest coming in at 102.2 mph.
Joyce came away with a clean inning in his MLB debut, putting a stamp on a successful night, earning a hold and officially beginning his big league career, per Jeff Fletcher of the O.C. Register:
“It felt awesome,” Joyce said. “I felt very comfortable, a lot more comfortable than I thought I’d feel. Just went out and trusted my stuff and threw strikes and it worked out. It was it was an amazing feeling.”
Joyce stayed in the zone, displaying a very solid approach to let his stuff play. His low arm slot coupled with the unbelievable run he has on his four-seam fastball makes for a crazy combination that garnered praise from his battery mate behind the plate:
“Wow,” marveled Thaiss, the catcher, when asked to assess Joyce’s outing. “He was very cool and calm and just dotting 102. It was cool to see.”
Although the Angels will likely be conservative in his usage, joining a Major League staff will expose him to the best competition in the sport, which can only push his game to another level and force him to adapt:
“The impressive thing is how much extension he gets,” Thaiss said of the 6-foot-5 pitcher. “He’s a big guy. When he releases the ball it feels like I can touch him. You don’t see it very long. And it’s 103.”
His fastest pitch came to Chicago White Sox catcher, Yasmani Grandal, which induced a flyout to left field, ending a scoreless inning. The Angels were lucky enough to snag Joyce in the third round, but they’ll have to take a progressive approach in his development.
Making Major League Debut ‘means everything’ to Ben Joyce
The right-hander impressed in Spring Training, and his MLB debut meant a lot to the prospect.
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