Jack

Kochanowicz

Kochanowicz gets the ball after limiting Cincinnati to one run over seven innings last Friday. The 25-year-old righty holds a 3.24 ERA and 12/11 K/BB ratio over 16 2/3 innings. It’s an extremely challenging matchup, which means he can be ignored in most fantasy formats.

Kochanowicz held the Reds to just one hit through the first five innings, but three-straight one-out walks in the fifth loaded the bases for T.J. Friedl, who grounded out but managed to drive in Will Benson for the Reds’ first run of the night. Despite a tough fifth inning, Kochanowicz would pull things together to pitch two more scoreless frames, putting together another strong outing after pitching 5 2/3 innings of scoreless ball in his last start. Kochanowicz will look to put together another strong outing in his next start, which is scheduled for Wednesday against the Yankees.

Kochanowicz was shelled in his start against the Astros, and there was an awful lot of hard contact allowed in this one, too. Fortunately for him, he was able to see much of it land in the gloves of outfielders, and he did do a decent job of missing bats with the seven strikeouts and 12 swings-and-misses generated. It would be a mistake in process to see if Kochanowicz can do this again versus the Reds on Friday.

Kochanowicz also issued five free passes on the day while punching out three. The Astros got to him early and often in this one, pushing four runs across (three earned) in the second inning. Kochanowicz then allowed a double and a walk to start the fifth inning before giving the ball to the bullpen — and both of those runs scored as well. The 25-year-old hurler got 11 swings and misses on 94 pitches on the day, posting a CSW of 32 percent. He remains an unappealing option for fantasy purposes for Saturday’s matchup against the Mariners.

With his velocity up by 1.5 mph and some extra movement on his sinker, Kochanowicz might rank as one of the Cactus League’s most improved players. Still, he was so bad last year that he could take two steps forward and still be below average for the Angels. He’s in line to start in Houston against the Astros on Sunday.

As expected, Rodriguez will open the regular season on the shelf after experiencing shoulder fatigue during the late stages of spring training. The 26-year-old former top pitching prospect was plagued by injuries during his Orioles tenure and it’s a troubling sign that his Angels run is starting to have the same vibes. It’ll be Ryan Johnson and Jack Kochanowicz taking the final spots in Los Angeles’ rotation to kick off the season.

Rodriguez is currently dealing with dead arm, and while the right-hander told reporters that the injury was “not serious,” it’s bad enough that he won’t be ready for the start of the season. Ryan Johnson and Jack Kochanowicz have been named the fourth and fifth starters for the Angels to begin the campaign. There should be an update on how long Rodriguez will be out in the coming days.

Johnson and Kochanowicz will be a part of the Angels’ roster, but their roles are yet to be defined. It’s worth noting that Alek Manoah has a fingernail issue and Grayson Rodriguez is currently experiencing a “dead arm” phase, so it’s feasible those two are the replacements for those arms. Johnson was a disaster in his MLB action in 2025, but there’s considerable upside in his right arm. Kochanowicz offers no fantasy upside.

Kochanowicz was one of the AL’s worst pitchers last year and didn’t enter the spring with much chance of making the Angels, but he has a 2.08 ERA after three outings. He’s one of a number of the team’s alternatives if Alek Manoah flops or Grayson Rodriguez can’t stay healthy.

The 24-year-old right-hander was blasted for 11 runs (10 earned) over 3 1/3 innings in a loss to the Rangers on Wednesday. He’ll head back to Triple-A with Tyler Anderson returning from the paternity list on Thursday. Kochanowicz sports a miserable 6.81 ERA and 1.75 WHIP across 111 innings with the Angels this season.