The Los Angeles Angels have designated veteran pitcher Johnny Cueto for assignment. With a raised ERA of 7.15, a record of 0-2, and a WAR of -02. The Dominican pitcher signed a minor league contract with the Angels in July after opting out of his deal with the Texas Rangers. The 38-year-old recorded a 2-1 record with a 5.71 ERA in nine starts for Round Rock (the Rangers Triple-A Affiliate team), including a win when he allowed three runs over six innings against El Paso.
Cueto signed a minor league contract with the Angels in July. This was after opting out of his deal with the Texas Rangers. He recorded a 2-1 record with a 5.71 ERA in nine starts for Round Rock (the Rangers Triple-A Affiliate team), including a win when he allowed three runs over six innings against El Paso. He had 34 strikeouts and eight walks in 41 innings since agreeing to a minor league deal with the Rangers on April 24.
#Angels DFA Cueto after two startshttps://t.co/guWzBGfIoQ pic.twitter.com/HBj0ktbbWO
— MLB Trade Rumors (@mlbtraderumors) August 30, 2024
Angels Let Go of Veteran Pitcher
The Highs And Lows Of Cueto’s Recent Seasons
The Angels are the sixth team that Cueto has played for. He is 144-111 with a 3.50 ERA in 368 big league games. Early in his career, Cueto showed success when he played for the Cincinnati Reds on April 3rd, 2008. This was when Cueto made his major league debut. He only gave up one hit and struck out 10 against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Cueto, who led the NL in strikeouts in 2014, showcased some struggles with his contact rate in 2022.
But he still posted an ERA of 3.22 with the Chicago White Sox in the 2022 season across 158.1 innings of work. However, focusing on his recent relief work, he gave up six runs against the Detroit Tigers. This is where he handed a loss to the Angels. Cueto is a former All-Star who another team could claim. Cueto succeeded against the Royals a week ago in returning to the majors.
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