The Angels made several roster moves this afternoon, selecting Shaun Anderson’s contract and recalling Matthew Lugo from Triple-A. To make room on the active roster, they optioned Ryan Johnson to High-A and placed Gustavo Campero on the 10-day injured list. In addition, they made room for Anderson on the 40-man roster by transferring Ben Joyce to the 60-day IL.
Anderson, 30, signed a minor league deal with the Angels over the offseason. From 2019-22, the right-hander threw 135 2/3 innings over 63 games (16 starts) for five different teams: the Giants, Twins, Orioles, Padres, and Blue Jays. He struggled to limit baserunners or to strand them, pitching to a 5.84 ERA and 5.24 SIERA. He then spent the first half of the 2023 campaign as a starter for the Kia Tigers of the KBO. He pitched well, putting up a 3.76 ERA and 3.83 FIP in 14 starts, but lost his job halfway through the season to another former big leaguer, Thomas Pannone. After finishing out 2023 in the Phillies’ minor league system and briefly playing in the Mexican League in early 2024, Anderson returned to the majors, pitching for both the Rangers and Marlins last season. It didn’t go well. He gave up 19 runs (15 earned) over 16 1/3 innings, striking out just 10 of the 85 batters he faced. Nevertheless, the Angels saw something to like in his arm. He has a 5.06 ERA and 5.77 FIP in seven starts at Triple-A this season, and he will presumably offer a bit of depth to a bullpen that has been something of a disaster as of late.
Lugo, 24 today, was added to L.A.’s 40-man roster over the offseason to protect him from the Rule 5 draft, but this marks his first promotion to the major leagues; he’ll be making his MLB debut as soon as he gets in a game. A second-round pick by the Red Sox in 2019, he was traded to the Angels ahead of the deadline last summer as part of the return for Luis García. Interestingly, he is now the third player from that seemingly minor trade to appear for the Angels, following first baseman Niko Kavadas and right-handed reliever Ryan Zeferjahn, who is currently in the big league bullpen. Initially an infielder, Lugo started playing the corner outfield in 2023 and ’24 and has exclusively played center field this season. He is struggling at the plate this year, with just a .656 OPS and 66 wRC+, but he showed impressive power last season, posting a .291 isolated power between Double and Triple-A. With Campero injured, he’ll take over as the backup outfielder on the bench.
Campero, 27, made it into just five games for the Angels this season before injuring his ankle during an at-bat. He has been placed on the 10-day IL, retroactive to Wednesday, with left ankle inflammation. The fact that the injury has been diagnosed as inflammation seems to be a good sign that Campero won’t miss too much time. While he has a .605 OPS and 71 wRC+ in 18 big league games, he has crushed minor league pitching throughout his career. With Mike Trout on the IL, the Angels are short on outfield depth, so they’ll hope Campero can get back on the field before too long.
Johnson, 22, was yet another prospect the Angels promoted shockingly quickly. The team took him in the second compensatory round of the draft (74th overall) just last summer, and he made his big league debut on Opening Day 2025. There’s no doubt he has promise, as evidenced by his 3.35 SIERA and 3.60 xERA through 14 appearances. However, he has also given up 15 runs (12 earned) on 24 hits, including six runs and nine hits in his last four appearances. There’s no doubt he could benefit from some time in the minor leagues. It’s not every day that you see a player optioned from the big leagues all the way down to High-A, but then again, it’s not every day you see a player debut in the majors before he’s pitched a single game in the minor leagues.
Last but certainly not least is the news about Joyce. The 24-year-old with a triple-digit fastball has not pitched in over a month. In mid-April, he went on the 15-day IL with what the Angels initially believed to be relatively minor shoulder inflammation. The team hasn’t offered an update, but he is now ineligible to return for another month. In other words, no matter what, the word “minor” is no longer an accurate descriptor of his injury. According to Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register, Joyce tried to throw earlier in the week, but his shoulder “still didn’t feel right.” He will go for further evaluation next week. The Athletic’s Sam Blum adds that Joyce is “obviously concerned,” though Blum stresses the point that there will not be a formal update until Joyce meets with a doctor. It’s always concerning to hear that a hard-throwing young pitcher has suffered a setback, but the Angels will hope their promising fireman can avoid surgery and get back on the bump later this season.
Bong Latson
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