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Angels Lose Struggling Starter to Season-Ending Surgery
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- Angels Lose Struggling Starter to Season-Ending Surgery
The Los Angeles Angels have lost one of their starting pitchers for the rest of the year.
Jack Kochanowicz , who was placed on the 15-day injured list on Sunday with elbow inflammation, told the media that he will be undergoing Tommy John surgery. An MRI on his right elbow revealed a torn UCL. The 25-year-old righty will be sidelined until the second half of the 2027 season at the earliest.
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Kochanowicz was coming off a brutal 2025 season, in which he registered -0.6 fWAR in 23 starts. The 6-foot-7 hurler went 3-11 with a 6.81 ERA, striking out only 72 batters while allowing 58 walks and 21 home runs in just 111.0 innings.
Looking to put that terrible season in the rearview mirror, Kochanowicz showed improvement over his first seven starts of the year. After pitching four innings in his very first start of the season against the Houston Astros on March 29, he pitched into the sixth inning in six consecutive starts . Kochanowicz's best start saw him twirl seven innings of one-run ball against the Cincinnati Reds on April 10, allowing just two hits in the process. His strikeout-to-walk ratio was still middling at 1.43, but he had a 3.05 ERA over 41.1 innings pitched.
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Unfortunately, Kochanowicz's season took a significant turn for the worse. Over his next six starts, he logged a ghastly 11.91 ERA and 6.91 FIP, allowing 30 earned runs in just 22.2 frames. His final start before landing on the IL was a complete disaster, as the Los Angeles Dodgers chased him in the first inning; the righty gave up seven runs and retired just one batter.
The torn UCL can perhaps explain why Kochanowicz struggled over his last couple of starts, despite not seeing a dip in velocity. Overall, he will finish the season with a 6.19 ERA and 4.98 FIP over 13 starts, with 47 strikeouts and 36 walks in 64.0 innings.
Losing Kochanowicz is a brutal blow to the Angels' rotation despite his subpar numbers, as the unit has the fourth-worst ERA in MLB at 4.76. Jose Soriano, Reid Detmers and Walbert Ureña have each shown flashes of brilliance; the 22-year-old Ureña is holding his own in his first taste of MLB action, with a 2.77 ERA in nine starts. However, Los Angeles ' pitching continues to be plagued by a lack of depth, and the loss of Kochanowicz further exacerbates this issue along with Yusei Kikuchi being sidelined for the foreseeable future.
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The Angels currently have the worst record in the American League at 25-42, and are looking to avoid their first 100-loss season in franchise history. They will try to get back on track against the Astros in the middle game of a three-game set on Tuesday.
This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Jun 9, 2026, where it first appeared in the MLB section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
