It was clear that Phil Nevin did not want to go to Ryan Tepera on Saturday night in Cleveland. He trusted Andrew Wantz and wanted him to get through two innings. So much so that the Angels manager pushed Wantz to 39 pitches before declining effectiveness forced a move.
In came Tepera with the tying runs on base with one out in the eighth inning. The Angels led by two. Two pitches in, Tepera served up a three-run blast. A shot that Josh Naylor admired with glee. Then he allowed another homer to give the Guardians some insurance.
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It would end up being his last outing with the Angels. General manager Perry Minasian officially gave up on the well-established and well-paid reliever who’s still owed millions of dollars. Tepera was designated for assignment Sunday morning.
“You’ve got to find guys to get the outs to (Angels closer Carlos) Estévez,” Nevin told reporters in Cleveland after the 8-6 loss. “I’m hoping that Wantz can give you two (innings) right there. He just probably got a little tired. Four straight hits. You’ve got to stop the bleeding and find some more outs.”
Tepera did not stop the bleeding. Quite the opposite. And the statement from Nevin indicated the desperation it took for him to turn to the beleaguered righty.
The 35-year-old had a 7.27 ERA and 2.08 WHIP in 8 2/3 innings this season. He was throwing strikes just 58 percent of the time.
It’s been established many times before. The Angels’ front office is comfortable cutting highly paid and underperforming players. Albert Pujols made nearly $30 million from the Angels after signing with the Dodgers. Justin Upton made nearly $28 million from the Angels last year after he was cut. He went to the Mariners. David Fletcher is set to make another $20 million over the next three years. He’s in Triple A and off the 40-man roster.
Tepera and the $7 million he’s owed this season is chump change by comparison. But it’s still a lot of money. And it’s another failed investment by the Angels in the free-agent market.
The question now: Was giving up on this particular investment a smart decision? There are several factors to weigh.
Tepera pitched in 10 games this season, and all of his runs came in three of those games. His expected ERA was a mere 2.87, according to FanGraphs — more than 4 1/2 runs worse than his actual ERA.
Some of his underlying metrics, however, had regressed. Expected batting average, slugging and wOBA (weighted on-base average) were all worse in 2023. He wasn’t getting hitters to chase as often and wasn’t generating as much swing-and-miss.
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And his fastball velocity had dipped, particularly so in his final outing when he averaged just 90.6 mph on eight pitches.
For as frustrating as his results were. And for as unreliable as he’d been through his first 8 2/3 innings, this is still a somewhat surprising move.
The team’s relief depth was already thinned by the news that José Quijada and Austin Warren will both need season-ending Tommy John surgery. It’s worth noting that the Angels’ bullpen flexibility has been limited by a lack of optionable relievers. This assists in fixing that issue. But it also takes away one bullpen option with nearly five months left in the season.
Zack Weiss pitches against the Giants in spring training on March 19. (Rick Scuteri / USA Today)
The Angels called up Zack Weiss, who pitched well for them last season with a 3.38 ERA in 13 1/3 innings. He also had a 6.75 ERA in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League this year. The Angels don’t have a ton of proven relief depth in their system, which has to be a consideration when making a move like this. A lack of established options could rear its head more and more as the season progresses.
Tepera came off of an injured list stint due to shoulder inflammation earlier this month. In his first three outings, Tepera pitched four scoreless innings with seven strikeouts, zero walks and three hits. Then came Saturday’s implosion.
The concern and consideration for the Angels will be obvious. Unless they can find a suitable trading partner for Tepera — a trade that would likely have the Angels eating almost the entire contract — he’ll clear waivers. And once that happens, he’ll be able to sign with any team for the league minimum. It’s probable that Tepera’s best days are behind him. But there remains a possibility that the right-hander settles into a role with a new team and performs well at the Angels’ expense.
The brash Tepera, though, was no longer a fit with the Angels. It was a quick trigger to make a move like this. And it will be interesting to see what happens with his friend Aaron Loup, who has also pitched poorly this year.
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Loup is on the IL. And his 7.00 ERA in nine innings is on par with the struggles of Tepera. The Angels are serious about competing this year. It’s driving every decision. That doesn’t mean blindly cutting underperforming players. But it’s clear players are being held accountable.
The Angels have to weigh many factors in decisions like these, for any player. Contract. Performance. Projectability. Clubhouse fit. And more.
There might be a significant risk in cutting Tepera. There’s an inherent failure in giving up on someone who has still not collected millions owed. And there’s a scenario in which he improves, meaning that he wasn’t given enough runway this year.
But there’s also another, much more simple fact: Tepera wasn’t cutting it. And for the Angels to be serious contenders this season, they can’t carry players that aren’t cutting it.
That seems to be the factor that overrides all else. And that’s why Tepera is no longer on the team.
(Top photo of Ryan Tepera: David Richard / USA Today)
Sam Blum is a staff writer for The Athletic covering the Los Angeles Angels and Major League Baseball. Before joining The Athletic, he was a sports reporter for the Dallas Morning News. Previously, he covered Auburn for AL.com and the University of Virginia for The Daily Progress in Charlottesville.
