The Angels optioned Wantz to Triple-A Salt Lake on Friday.
The Angels stretched Wantz out this spring but he didn't pitch well, allowing seven runs on 14 hits and four walks over 10 innings. He seems likely to return to a relief role at Salt Lake.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Shifting to starter role
Rotowire
Manager Ron Washington said Thursday that Wantz will be used as a starter by the Angels this spring, Sam Blum of The Athletic reports.
Wantz started a Cactus League game this past weekend and went two innings and will remain stretched out for the time being. The 28-year-old hasn't been deployed extensively as a starting pitcher since 2019 in the minors, but the Halos are in need of rotation depth. Ultimately, if Wantz makes the Opening Day roster it would still likely be as a reliever.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Opening Sunday
Rotowire
Wantz will start Sunday's game against the Twins, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.
Wantz made his only start of the season Sept. 13 in Seattle and covered two scoreless frames, and he'll likely have a similar workload for Sunday's bullpen game. The right-hander has a 3.93 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 29:13 K:BB across 34.1 innings this season.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Serving as opener Wednesday
Rotowire
Wantz will serve as the Angels' opening pitcher Wednesday in Seattle, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.
The Angels haven't designated a bulk reliever to work behind Wantz, but Jose Suarez (shoulder) -- who was activated from the 60-day injured list Monday -- could be the top option to fill multiple innings out of the bullpen. Wantz holds a 4.13 ERA and 24:11 K:BB over 28.1 frames for the Halos this season.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Recalled from Salt Lake
Rotowire
The Angels recalled Wantz from Triple-A Salt Lake on Friday.
Wantz returns to the majors as a middle-relief option with rosters expanding to 28. The right-hander has registered a 4.56 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 22:9 K:BB through 23.2 big-league innings this year.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Optioned to Salt Lake
Rotowire
Wantz was optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake by the Angels on Friday.
Wantz gave up four runs over two innings in his only appearance with the Angels in June, and he'll head back to Salt Lake with the Angels adding Victor Mederos to the bullpen in a corresponding transaction. Wantz is likely to be up and down for Los Angeles throughout the summer.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Back with big-league club
Rotowire
Wantz was recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake on Sunday.
Wantz has spent the past month in the minors and will rejoin the Halos after he posted a 4.22 ERA in nine outings for Salt Lake. The right-hander has a 3.32 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 20:8 K:BB across 21.2 frames in the majors this year.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Sent back to Salt Lake
Rotowire
The Angels optioned Wantz to Triple-A Salt Lake on Sunday.
Wantz allowed two runs over two innings out of the bullpen in Saturday's 6-2 loss to the Twins, so the Angels will swap him off the 26-man active roster for a fresh arm heading into Sunday's series finale. The right-hander has now been demoted three times this season, despite delivering a 3.32 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 20:8 K:BB in 21.2 innings with the big club.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Recalled from Triple-A
Rotowire
Wantz was recalled Friday from Triple-A Salt Lake, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.
He will replace Aaron Loup (hamstring) in the Angels' bullpen ahead of Friday's series opener against the Rangers. Wantz holds a sharp 0.79 ERA with 12 strikeouts through 11.1 major-league innings this year.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Goes back to Triple-A
Rotowire
The Angels optioned Wantz to Triple-A Salt Lake on Tuesday.
The fact that Wantz has minor-league options remaining seems to be working against him, as his performance at the big-league level (0.79 ERA, 12:4 K:BB in 11.1 innings) certainly didn't warrant a demotion. He should be back up with the big club soon.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Nabs first win of the season
Rotowire
Wantz (1-0) earned the win over the Yankees on Tuesday, striking out two and walking one while allowing no hits over 1.2 innings of relief.
Wantz entered the game in the fourth with one out and the bases loaded and walked home a run before allowing a second to score on a sacrifice fly. Both runs were charged to starter Jose Suarez. Wantz then retired the next four batters he faced to put him in line for the win with the Angels up 5-2 after the fifth inning. The 27-year-old has made five appearances thus far and has yet to give up an earned run while sporting an 8:1 K:BB over 8.1 innings.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Rejoins big club
Rotowire
Wantz was recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake on Sunday.
The 27-year-old was optioned to Salt Lake on Tuesday but will quickly rejoin the major-league club with Ryan Tepera (shoulder) headed to the injured list. Wantz has made three appearances for the Angels this season and has a 6:0 K:BB with just one hit allowed over five scoreless frames.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Optioned to Triple-A
Rotowire
The Angels optioned Wantz to Triple-A Salt Lake on Tuesday, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.
Wantz is being moved down to make room for Griffin Canning (groin), who'll come off the injured list to start Wednesday's game against the Nationals. The right-hander will likely be up as a middle reliever for the Angels in the coming weeks.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Wins final spot in bullpen
Rotowire
Wantz will be a part of the Angels' Opening Day roster, Adrian Garro of MLB.com reports.
Wantz made the decision easy for the Angels with a 0.00 ERA and 1.10 WHIP over 6.1 innings in the Cactus League. The 27-year-old right-hander will be a middle-innings option for the Angels to open the 2023 season.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Favorite for final bullpen spot
Rotowire
Wantz remains the favorite for the final bullpen spot on the Angels' Opening Day roster, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.
There are seven relievers -- Carlos Estevez, Jimmy Herget, Jaime Barria, Aaron Loup, Ryan Tepera, Jose Quijada and Matt Moore -- who are seen as locks to break camp with the club, potentially leaving just one more bullpen spot available. Wantz appears to be the favorite for the opening, and he hasn't done anything to hurt his chances this spring, pitching 4.1 scoreless innings during which he's allowed three hits and posted a 4:2 K:BB. The biggest threat to Wantz's opportunity could be hard-throwing youngster Ben Joyce, who has opened eyes with a strong spring and a fastball that has reached 104 mph. While Joyce is the flashier pitcher, he's not currently on the 40-man roster and has yet to pitch above the Double-A level, while Wantz has two big-league seasons under his belt and was effective for the Angels in 2022, posting a 3.22 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 52:21 K:BB over 50.1 innings while picking up eight holds.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Hit with first big-league loss
Rotowire
Wantz (2-1) was charged with the loss and a blown save against Houston on Friday, allowing two runs on two hits while striking out one batter over one inning.
Wantz came into the contest with the Angels up by a run in the seventh inning. He began the frame by allowing Trey Mancini to single, and Chas McCormick followed with a two-run home run to flip the lead in favor of the Astros. Though Wantz bounced back by retiring the next three hitters, the damage was done, and the righty reliever took his first loss in 55 career outings. Wantz has allowed three runs over his past two innings after going six straight appearances without surrendering a run or a hit.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Making strides with cutter
Rotowire
Wantz has been throwing his cutter more often over the past few months, and it has helped him post a 2.08 ERA over 16 games since July 3, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.
The cutter wasn't part of Wantz's arsenal early in his professional career -- he began to develop it during the 2020 season, when he worked out at home due to the cancellation of the minor-league campaign. The right-hander didn't use the pitch much early this season, but he's turned to it frequently over the past few months, and his ERA has improved from 4.00 to 3.06 since July 3. Per Fletcher, Wantz attributes his improvement this season to the cutter in addition to more focus on his command.
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Angels' Andrew Wantz: Serves up two homers in return
Rotowire
Wantz was reinstated from his three-game suspension Saturday and made a relief appearance in the Angels' 9-1 loss to the Astros, giving up two runs on two hits over an inning while striking out two of the five batters he faced.
Wantz was handed the three-game suspension for throwing pitches at Seattle's Julio Rodriguez and Jesse Winker in a June 26 spot start, with his actions inciting a benches-clearing brawl. The 26-year-old returned to his familiar bullpen role Saturday, but he provided little relief behind starter Patrick Sandoval, as Wantz served up solo home runs to Martin Maldonado and Jose Altuve.
Wantz received a three-game suspension for his actions in Sunday's brawl with the Mariners, Sam Blum of The Athletic reports.
Wantz was ejected from Sunday's game after hitting Jesse Winker with a pitch and inciting the further incident. He is not appealing the discipline, so will be unavailable for the team's three-game set with the White Sox.
