The Angels announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Shaun Anderson. Fellow righty Jack Kochanowicz has been optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake in a corresponding active roster move. To open a 40-man spot, infielder Scott Kingery has been designated for assignment.
This is the second time this year Kochanowicz has been optioned down to the minors. The first was just before the All-Star break, reducing the number of actual games he would miss with the 15-day minimal stint. He was recalled in late July and has made three more starts since then. The most recent one was yesterday, which did not go well. He allowed seven runs, six earned, in just three innings against the Tigers.
Long reliever Carson Fulmer came in and tossed five innings to get the Angels through the rest of the game, throwing 85 pitches in the process. Presumably, Fulmer won’t be available for a few days, so they’ve made these moves to get Anderson into the mix. He’s been starting in Triple-A and should be able to absorb some innings out of the bullpen, if the Angels need such a performance while Fulmer is out of action.
Anderson has tossed 10 2/3 innings over six appearances for the Halos this year, allowing nine earned runs on 16 hits and three walks while striking out ten opponents. In his 81 Triple-A innings, he has a 6.44 earned run average, 17.9% strikeout rate and 7.6% walk rate.
The Halos will have to replace Kochanowicz in the rotation but not immediately. José Soriano, Tyler Anderson and Kyle Hendricks are slated to start the next three games. The club is off on Thursday and could go with Yusei Kikuchi on Friday, followed by Soriano, Anderson and Hendricks on normal rest. That means the Angels could postpone the decision on a fifth starter/spot starter for about a week.
They are also off on the two following Thursdays, so perhaps they could survive for a while with a four-man rotation and occasional bullpen days. They also have guys like Caden Dana and Víctor Mederos on the 40-man and starting in Triple-A, so calling one of them up for a spot start or two is a possibility.
Kingery, 31, has mostly been in a depth role for the Angels this year. He has appeared in 14 big league games, producing a .160/.222/.200 line in 27 plate appearances. His minor league work has been better but still subpar. His .271/.337/.452 line at Triple-A this year looks nice but actually translates to a 91 wRC+ in the context of the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.
Once a notable prospect with the Phillies, Kingery signed a pre-debut extension with that club, though he never developed into the regular player the Phils were hoping for. That deal has since expired. The Halos acquired him ahead of this season and agreed to a $770K salary to avoid arbitration. Kingery has more than three years of service time but less than five. That means he has the right to reject an outright assignment but has to forfeit his remaining salary commitments in order to do so.
Back in March, Kingery cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A Salt Lake. He accepted that assignment, which allowed him to get selected back to the roster in May. It’s possible the same sequence of events plays out in the coming days, which would allow the Angels to keep him as non-roster depth for the rest of the season.
Photo courtesy of Cary Edmondson, Imagn Images