The Los Angeles Angels had a less than ideal return from the All-Star break against the Oakland Athletics on Friday. Starter Griffin Canning allowed six earned runs on six hits and two walks in 3.1 innings before being removed from the game with elbow discomfort. Roansy Contreras and Matt Moore proceeded to give up another seven earned en route to a 13-3 loss in the series opener.
Any time a pitcher leaves a game with an elbow injury, the worst case scenario immediately gets pushed to the forefront. Canning has also dealt with injury issues in the past and had been having one of his healthiest seasons to date prior to Friday.
But the 28-year-old Orange County native believes his removal was simply precautionary due to some discomfort, not a full-scale injury, according to Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com:
“My slider was just bugging my elbow a little bit, so just give it a rest for the night and see how I feel tomorrow,” Canning said. “Not too much [concern]. Sometimes you just have to be smart and come out of the game.”
“It’s just the ebbs and flows of baseball,” Canning said. “I just want to get back to being myself and having fun out there. Usually, things turn around when you do that.”
Canning was smart to be preemptive and remove himself from the game before his elbow discomfort turned into something worse. But elbow injuries are nothing to mess around with and the Angels are going to have to be very careful with Canning moving forward.
As of now, there is no major concern. Canning even threw on the field prior to Saturday’s game against the Athletics and there appeared to be no issue. But with the Angels having lost a majority of their starting pitchers at some point this season due to injury, they cannot afford to take any risks.
It’s possible that Canning could get an extra day off before his next start, or skip his next start entirely. The Angels’ plan for their fifth-year starter is sure to be revealed in the coming days.
Angels pitchers focused on their work ahead of trade deadline
The MLB Trade Deadline is nearing, with July 30 at 3:00 p.m. PT serving as the bell for teams to make their final trades of the season. And the Angels figure to be an active team in the days leading up to that. They have not made any deals yet, but are reported to be major sellers with players like Carlos Estévez, Tyler Anderson, Taylor Ward, Luis Rengifo and more on the block.
Estévez is considered the most likely Angels player to be dealt, and he is taking the time to focus on controlling what he can control and let the business side of things play out however they will.