Angels sign left-handed reliever Tony Watson

New York Mets v Pittsburgh Pirates

The Los Angeles Angels increased their bullpen depth on Monday by the signing of reliever Tony Watson of Sioux City, IA according to the Associated Press. The Angels will become Watson’s fourth Major League Baseball team. He has previously played for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Los Angeles Dodgers, and San Francisco Giants.

Watson’s contract is for one season and worth $1 million. Last season with the Giants, Watson had a record of one win and zero losses in 21 games with two saves, 10 holds, and an earned run average of 2.50. In 18 innings pitched, he gave up 13 hits, five earned runs, three walks, and one hit batsman, to go along with 15 strikeouts, and a WHIP (walks and hits per innings pitched) of 0.89.

Watson’s win in 2020 came in a 4-1 Giants win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on August 30. He only pitched one-third of an inning and four pitches in the contest, but came in the right situation to pick up the victory.

Watson also had two saves in the month of September. The first came on September 5 in a 4-3 Giants win over the Diamondbacks, and the second came on September 8, three days later, in a 6-5 Giants win over the Seattle Mariners.

In 2014, Watson was a National League All-Star. While with the Pirates that season, he led the National League with 78 appearances, and had a record of 10 wins and two losses, with a sizzling earned run average of 1.63, and a career-high 81 strikeouts. Then in 2015, Watson had an earned run average of 1.91 in 77 games, and led Major League Baseball with 41 holds.

In addition to signing Watson, the Angels also signed sidearmer Steve Cishek to a one-year deal worth $1 million. Despite his unorthodox delivery, Cishek struggled in 2020, with an earned run average of 5.40 with the Chicago White Sox. Cishek has a history with Angels manager Joe Maddon, as they were both with the Chicago Cubs in 2018 and 2019.

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