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Johnson Continues Second Half Surge With Another Fine Start
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- Johnson Continues Second Half Surge With Another Fine Start
(IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)
The Los Angeles Angels clinched a rare series win with their 2-1 win over the Seattle Mariners , and their starting pitching continues to be a strength as Ryan Johnson turned in yet another strong start as he continues to make his claim for a spot in next year's rotation.
Johnson went six innings and gave up one run on six hits along with seven strikeouts, and this kind of start is starting to be the norm rather than the exception for him. He's lowered his ERA from 7.63 to 4.88 since the beginning fof August, and manager Kurt Suzuki said this one in particular stood out.
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"That might be the best game he's pitched this year, honestly," manager Kurt Suzuki said in a piece by Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com . "What was it, [16] straight to start the game going for strikes? I thought he did a great job of mixing and matching, and he really attacked the strike zone."
The right-hander has been a different pitcher over his last eight starts. Per Bollinger, he's posted a 2.03 ERA with 33 strikeouts in his last 44-1/3 innings as he continues to make his case.
There was some adversity, though. Johnson was hit in his left foot by combacker off the bat of Julio Rodriguez in the second inning, but he expects to be able to make his next start.
"I was feeling great going into it," Johnson said. "I really liked where my stuff was at, attacking the zone. I was feeling in control of what I was doing. Even after I got hit, I still felt like I was in the zone and putting pitches where I wanted to."
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The key to Johnson's resurgence is his work with pitching coach Tim Leveque, who has allowed the right-hander to resume his unorthodox throwing routine between and before starts. Johnson throws long tosses from one foul pole to the other, which definitely is different.
Thats' given him the ability to execute pitches and produce results, which were a long time coming. The Angels initially did a lot to hinder his development, but things seem to be on track right now.
"It's execution and consistency," Suzuki said. "He's got a great routine that he's doing in between starts. You can just see him kind of growing and growing up each day, each start, every time he touches the ball. So it's been awesome."
