Ryan

Johnson

The Angels let Johnson off the hook by scoring four times in the top of the sixth tonight, but they went on to lose 8-4. Johnson ends the year 5-9 with a 5.04 ERA, but there’s still more reason for optimism here than there was a year ago. He just needs to figure out something with his sinker if he intends to keep throwing it. It’d be better if he does, but it was such a liability while his four-seamer, slider and splitter were all solid this year.

Johnson was actually quite good today in striking out six and walking none. He allowed seven hits, but they were all singles, and he gave up only three hard-hit balls. The loss makes him 5-9 with a 4.53 ERA, but he’s made nice gains this year and he should be a legitimate rotation option next spring. First, he’s likely looking at one more start against the Mariners.

Johnson was excellent against the Mariners on Tuesday, holding Seattle to just one run over six innings. The lone run came on a pair of hits in the sixth. Johnson would finish his day scattering six hits in all while issuing zero walks and striking out seven. The 24-year-old right-hander will take a 4.88 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, and a 70/39 K/BB ratio across 90 1/3 innings into a start against the Twins in Anaheim on Sunday.

Johnson’s velocity was up a couple ticks across the board on his entire arsenal as he managed to cruise in the early stages of this one, carrying a shutout into the fifth inning before Roman Anthony took him deep for a two-run blast. He also surrendered a solo shot to Wilyer Abreu in the ensuing frame. He finished with five strikeouts and only issued one walk. He’s allowed three earned runs or fewer in each of his last seven starts dating back to August 6. He draws a favorable home matchup against the Mariners his next time out on Tuesday.

Johnson gave up four hits, walked two and struck out six. He fell to 3-8 in 18 appearances (15 starts). Johnson had a 1.71 ERA in five starts in August and continued his excellent run of pitching in his first start of September. It’s still difficult to really buy into Johnson as he still has a 5.17 ERA and 5.36 xFIP on the season. He’s lined up to face the Red Sox on the road next week.

Johnson gave up two hits, walked five and struck out two. The walks remain a concern, though Johnson mostly pitched out of trouble for five innings Saturday. He has a 1.72 ERA with 16 walks and 15 strikeouts in 26 1/3 innings in August. Johnson is lined up to face the Pirates on the road next weekend.

Johnson gave up one hit, walked two and struck out three. He improved to 3-7 with the win. While the results were excellent, there’s not much in Johnson’s profile that suggests they’re repeatable. Johnson lowered his ERA to 5.75 and still has a 5.38 xFIP. He’s not lined up for another start at the moment.

Johnson gave up just a pair of solo homers, but that was two more runs than Noah Cameron allowed in his one-hitter Sunday. Johnson has pitched well in his three August starts, giving up just four runs over his 14 1/3 innings to lower his overall ERA to 6.41. He’ll try and keep it going over the weekend against the Rangers.

Johnson held the Rangers to one run into the fifth inning on Tuesday. The one run came on a leadoff homer by Joc Pederson in the first inning. Johnson scattered two more hits and two walks, striking out five before departing at 84 pitches with one out in the fifth inning. The 24-year-old right-hander will take a 6.71 ERA, 1.56 WHIP, and a 43/27 K/BB ratio across 55 innings into a start against the Royals in Anaheim on Sunday.

All five walks happened in the first three innings, but the only extra-base hit the Orioles were able to muster against the Angels was Yohel Pozo’s solo homer. None of the underlying numbers look particularly good for Johnson -- 17 percent whiff rate, five hard-hit balls -- and he and his 7.11 ERA would be a tough player to trust against the Rangers next week.