Anderson starting to get extended at halfway point of Cactus play

PHOENIX, Ariz. -- Even when he uses an afternoon spring game to experiment with pitches, Tyler Anderson looks strong.

The veteran, about to open his 10th season in the big leagues and third with the Angels, was dealing on Saturday. He allowed just two hits -- solo home runs by Christian Yelich and Rhys Hoskins -- in 3 1/3 innings and, as he said, could have gone longer in the Angels¡¯ 6-2 win over the Brewers at American Family Fields of Phoenix.

¡°I felt good. A couple pitches that I probably wouldn¡¯t have thrown in games but just throwing them in spring to throw strikes,¡± he said. ¡°For the most part my command was pretty good.¡±

Facing a Brewers starting lineup of four lefties and five righties, Anderson walked one, allowed those two long balls, and struck out two in his longest outing yet this spring.

¡°Honestly I felt like I probably could have thrown another 35, 40 pitches,¡± he said.

Anderson spent time on the mound developing drop-down four-seam fastballs, which he normally doesn¡¯t throw to right-handed batters. He also gave lefties different looks on versions of his cutters and curveballs.

¡°During the season when your delivery feels good, you can do all that stuff because you can get ahead in the count,¡± Anderson said. ¡°In spring, you¡¯re trying to get your delivery to a good spot where you can control the counts, and then you can do that stuff.¡±

He also got run support and got it early, something that wasn¡¯t always the case in an up-and-down -- albeit All-Star -- season a year ago.

His 10-15 record in 2024 looks a bit deceiving when considering that in 10 of his losses, the Angels¡¯ offense scored two runs or fewer.

On Saturday, center fielder Jo Adell belted a three-run homer in the top of second inning to plate Jorge Soler and Yo¨¢n Moncada. First baseman Nolan Schanuel added a solo homer in the third.

Anderson tossed a career-high 179 1/3 innings last season and earned his second All-Star nod after posting eight wins and a 2.97 ERA before the Midsummer Classic. But a 5.43 ERA and seven losses followed in the second half.

But those late struggles don¡¯t worry Angels manager Ron Washington heading into 2025.

¡°This guy¡¯s been pitching for a long time,¡± Washington said. ¡°There¡¯s nothing I can specifically point out that he needs to be doing at this point in his career. He just needs to be consistent, as he always is. That¡¯s all that matters with a guy like that.¡±

Anderson had the extra benefit this offseason of staying ahead of Spring Training reporting dates in February. He makes his home in nearby Scottsdale, and though the Angels¡¯ facility in Tempe wasn¡¯t available during its extensive winter renovation, Anderson worked a lot with Banner Health in Arizona and was ready to go by camp.

¡°It¡¯s nice because our [Arizona] guys come in and keep eyes on us sometimes, come watch you work out,¡± he said. ¡°I think it¡¯s a great advantage.¡±

With Saturday¡¯s game, the Angels are officially more than halfway through their Cactus League schedule. Now 16 games in, the Angels (6-8-2) have 14 remaining before the Freeway Series games in Southern California.

¡°You¡¯ll see more of our regular guys out there. They¡¯ll start playing a little deeper into ballgames, they¡¯ll start getting most of the at-bats,¡± Washington said of the second half of Cactus play. ¡°Now it¡¯s time to start grinding and start finding out where you are.¡±