Mike Maddux fixes broken pitchers, and the new pitching coach will have his hands full this spring with the Los Angeles Angels. The Angels are collecting castoffs and wounded pitching warriors as fast as they can sign them, and it will be up to Maddux to turn this collection of broken-down arms into the pitching version of chicken salad.
So why should Angels fans have faith in Maddux’s ability to do this? Because he’s done it before. The skepticism of the fan base is justified, but here are a few examples of starters Maddux helped in his last job under Texas Rangers’ manager Bruce Bochy.
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Jack Leiter. Leiter came into the game as an elite prospect, but he struggled with his control early on. His pitch counts were high, and as a rookie with the Rangers he walked 17 batters in 35-2/3 innings. There were viable concerns about his long-term future as a starter, but Maddux had Leiter simplify his pitch usage, change his sequencing against right handers and work on weak contact over strikeouts.
The results were noteworthy. Leiter threw just over 151 innings last year for Texas, lowered his walk rate and posted a 3.86 ERA. He’s now viewed as a useful back-end starter, which is exactly what the Angels could use from a pitcher like Alek Manoah.
Tyler Mahle. Like many of the Angels’ recent acquisitions and signees, Mahle was attempting to come back from Tommy John surgery last year. It was Maddux who set up Mahle’s usage plan and helped clean up his mechanics and pitch shape, and Mahle responded with a 2.18 ERA over 86-2/3 innings for Texas last year. He’s now seen as an effective mid-rotation starter when he’s healthy, and oh, by the way, Mahle just happens to be a free agent with a connection to Maddux.
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Patrick Corbin, right handed starter. Corbin was considered one of MLB’s least effective starters when he was with the Washington Nationals, but Maddux helped him become something of an innings-eater in Texas last year. The numbers may not be off-the-charts impressive—a 4.40 ERA and a WHIP of 1.36—but those 155-1/3 innings stuck out.
It’s important to keep in mind that we’re not talking about a loaded staff here. But if Maddux can transfer his approach of focusing on what works, cleaning up mechanics and actually getting outs to the new acquisitions and some of the holdovers, the Angels pitching could look very different this year.