Los Angeles Angels

Young pitchers making their way with A's, Angels (Aug 04, 2017)

Published Aug. 4, 2017 4:35 a.m. ET

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- By now, Los Angeles Angels fans have heard about the saga of Parker Bridwell, who was, as Bob Dylan might sing, a complete unknown.

Bridwell, slogging through the Baltimore system since 2010, was designated for assignment (i.e., about to be released) in April.

Angels general manager Billy Eppler knew of him from his days with the New York Yankees and gave the Orioles a modest amount of cash for Bridwell. Lo and behold, Bridwell got an emergency start in May, pitched his way into the rotation, and the Angels are now 9-1 in games he has pitched.

Now here's the story of Troy Scribner, who had been tangled up in Houston since 2013 after being undrafted out of college. The Astros lost interest after a bad 2015. Eppler knew something about Scribner since the kid grew up a Connecticut Yankee, so he traded the Astros another modest amount for Scribner.

Voila. Last season, he matured and went 12-5 with a 3.41 ERA for Double-A Arkansas and Triple-A Salt Lake. He was 10-3 with a 4.16 ERA in 2017 when the Angels called him up last week from the Bees. He got the win in his first major league appearance, pitched an inning of relief Tuesday, and will get his first start Friday against the A's.

Eppler has yet to make a stir with the Angels, getting the job in October 2015, and it's hard to stir up anything when the farm system is broken and the major league roster is out of balance. But he did make trades for Yunel Escobar and Cameron Maybin, and we now know he can see something in players others miss.

"The key for me is always the fastball command," Scribner said after his first appearance and win. "It has to be there every time. I have to throw to the four corners of the strike zone with my fastball and then be able to mix in my other stuff off that. That's always been the key."

"He's throwing the ball very well," manager Mike Scioscia said of Scribner. "He's got some length in him, which is important right now. I think that we have an opportunity to see how the game sets up and not necessarily put too much pressure on Scribner."

Oakland's starter Friday, Jharel Cotton, has his own backstory. The Los Angeles Dodgers started following him when he was a teenager pitching in the Virgin Islands, and they signed him out of college. But at the trade deadline a year ago, Cotton was one of the prospects sent to Oakland in the deal that netted the Dodgers Rich Hill. Some Dodger fans thought it was a bad deal.

"Jharel Cotton reminds me of myself. Nasty changeup, nice cutter, same arm angle and rotation, and same grip I used to have," Pedro Martinez said on MLB Network.

The Dodgers traded Martinez, a future Hall of Famer, after two seasons because some scouts thought he was too small at 5 foot 11.

Cotton went 2-0 with a 2.15 ERA in five starts for the A's last season after the trade. This year, he has been inconsistent -- 5-8, 5.49 ERA, 37 walks and 15 home runs allowed in 80-plus innings. But the A's consider him a fixture in the rotation with a high ceiling, especially once he gains command of his changeup. He's 1-2 with a 7.47 ERA in three career starts against the Angels.

If it doesn't work out, the A's can expect a call from Eppler.