TEMPE, Ariz. — Patrick Sandoval is not going to sneak up on anyone now.
The Angels’ lefty enjoyed a breakout season in 2021, and then he followed up with an even better season in 2022, which brings him to 2023 with the weight of expectations.
“It’s exciting,” Sandoval said. “What you aim to do is come into camp with really high expectations for myself and for the team. I’m here to be the best I can, and every year I try to be better than I was the year before.”
Sandoval, 26, cut his ERA from 3.62 in 2021 to 2.91 in 2022, while increasing his innings from 87 to 148-2/3.
His hopes for further improvement in 2023 are based on an uptick in the metrics that his pitches have shown so far in early bullpen sessions.
“Just added a little to each (pitch),” he said. “I’m excited to get some hitters in the box.”
Sandoval throws an unspectacular fastball, averaging just 93.1 mph last season. Opponents hit .372 against the pitch.
Despite those numbers, he’s able to succeed because his changeup and slider are both outstanding. The changeup had been his best pitch, but he lost it for chunks of last season, which allowed for his slider to emerge.
Opponents hit .201 against his slider, whiffing at the pitch on 33.6% of their swings. He held hitters to a .215 average on the changeup, with a whiff rate of 44.5%.
“This is a guy who pitched to a sub-3.00 ERA really without what his bread and butter has been his whole career, the changeup,” manager Phil Nevin said. “It made the slider better. And then when he kind of found that changeup the last few starts, boy …”
Sandoval pitched his first career shutout on Aug. 19 at Detroit, starting a season-ending stretch in which he had a 1.85 ERA over eight starts. He struck out 45 and walked just 11 over those last 48-2/3 innings.
Walks normally are the root of Sandoval’s undoing.
“It’s a mindset thing,” Sandoval said. “Sometimes I lose it, but just staying on the attack and not trying to be…
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