Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Chase Silseth has definitely made a positive impression on the franchise in his first five starts. Things have not always been perfect, of course, but his fast delivery and ability to force grounders have made him an intriguing option.
So far, his biggest issue has been hard contact. He’s allowed a hard hit rate of 53.1%, meaning that percentage of his allowed hits have had an exit velocity of over 95 mph. Through five MLB starts, issues like that are to be expected, and they can certainly be fixed.
And it appears the Angels are going to give him the opportunity to improve at the Major League level. For the time being, Silseth looks to be staying in the team’s rotation, according to J.P. Hoornstra of The O.C. Register:
“I thought (Silseth) threw the ball extremely well (Tuesday) until the fifth inning,” Montgomery said. “Ran into some trouble. He was great up until that point. Hope to get some more innings from him.”
In his five starts, Silseth has a 5.23 ERA, a 1.403 WHIP, and 17 strikeouts in 20.2 innings of work. He came out of the gates hot when his MLB debut saw him pitch six scoreless innings in a win over the Oakland Atheltics.
On June 28, he pitched 4.1 innings, allowing five hits, three runs, and a home run while striking out six batters. All things considered — the performance came in an eventual 11-4 loss — it was a solid outing for Silseth after a few weeks in the Minor Leagues.
Clearly, the Angels felt that performance was worthy of a second opportunity. It’s unclear exactly what day that will take place, but it will almost certainly be during the team’s four-game away set against the Baltimore Orioles.
Noah Syndergaard and Shohei Ohtani are the probable starters for the team’s two-game set against the Miami Marlins on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week.
Michael Stefanic making MLB debut
In the series finale against the Houston Astros, Michael Stefanic is manning the middle of the infield. He’ll start at second base in his MLB debut after several years of strong play at the Minor League level.
The Angels are desperately looking to improve the back-end of their lineup, as well as the offensive production from the 2B, SS, and 3B positions with injuries to Anthony Rendon and David Fletcher.
