Contreras notched his second career save in Sunday's 3-2 win over the Mariners, striking out one batter in a perfect ninth inning.
Contreras had started in each of his last three appearances, but he never got fully stretched out for a rotation spot, as he covered between two and three innings in those outings while delivering an 8.22 ERA and 2.35 WHIP. The Angels ended up turning to Carson Fulmer to replace Contreras in the rotation Sunday, but the latter still ended up being part of the team's pitching plan for the day. With all of Carlos Estevez, Luis Garcia and Ben Joyce having pitched both Friday and Saturday, the Angels turned to the well-rested Contreras to close out the game. Contreras got the job done without much drama, but he'll likely serve in more of a middle or long-relief role for the Halos once the team returns from the All-Star break.
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Angels' Roansy Contreras: Likely to work behind Fulmer
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Contreras is expected to be the Angels' primary pitcher out of the bullpen behind starter Carson Fulmer in Sunday's game against the Mariners, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.
The Angels are planning to treat their final game before the All-Star break as a bullpen day, with Fulmer and Contreras likely on track to cover the bulk of the innings. Fulmer tossed three innings in relief in his last outing Monday and has covered as many as four innings in an appearance this season, so he should be able to give the Angels a decent amount of length as an opener before Contreras is likely summoned from the bullpen. Contreras had started in each of his last three appearances, tossing between two and three innings on each occasion while turning in an 8.22 ERA and 2.35 WHIP.
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Angels' Roansy Contreras: Another short start
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Contreras allowed four runs on five hits and a walk while striking out one over two innings in a no-decision versus the Rangers on Tuesday.
Contreras continues to function more as an opener than a true starter -- he threw just 37 pitches (26 strikes) in this short outing. He's given up six runs (five earned) over 7.2 innings across his last three appearances. For the season, he has a 4.78 ERA, 1.54 WHIP and 33:19 K:BB over 37.2 innings between the Angels and the Pirates. If he stays on turn, he would likely pitch versus the Mariners this weekend, though at this point, he should not be expected to exceed three innings against any opponent.
Angels' Roansy Contreras: Struggles versus Athletics
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Contreras (1-1) allowed three runs (two earned) on three hits and three walks while striking out one across 2.2 innings to take the loss versus the Athletics on Thursday.
Contreras lasted three frames in his previous start, also against Oakland, but he ran into trouble in the third frame Thursday. The right-hander has pitched to a 3.72 ERA and 1.29 WHIP over 19.1 innings across 11 appearances with the Angels, though none of those outings have been longer than three innings. He's started his last two games since the Angels lack few in-house options for their rotation. Overall, he's at a 4.04 ERA, 1.46 WHIP and 32:18 K:BB through 35.2 innings between the Angels and the Pirates this year. If he receives another start, it's projected to be at home versus the Rangers early next week.
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Angels' Roansy Contreras: Drawing another start
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Contreras will start Thursday's game against the Athletics in Oakland, Doug Padilla of The Orange County Register reports.
The Angels will get Jose Soriano (abdomen) back from the injured list Tuesday, but with Patrick Sandoval (elbow) getting ruled out for the season last week and with Zach Plesac getting sent down to Triple-A Salt Lake on Saturday, Contreras and Davis Daniel will both get at least one more turn through the rotation. Since he had been working exclusively out of the bullpen this season before being called upon to start last Wednesday in Anaheim versus the Athletics, Contreras was capped at three innings and 61 pitches in the outing. Though he likely won't be stretched out quite enough to handle a typical starter's workload, Contreras should at least be able to give the Angels five innings if he's more efficient with his pitch count in the rematch with Oakland.
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Angels' Roansy Contreras: Goes three frames in spot start
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Contreras didn't factor into the decision Wednesday against Oakland, allowing one run on four hits with two walks across three innings. He struck out two.
After coming out of the bullpen in his first nine outings as a Halo, Contreras was expected to get up to four or five innings in Wednesday's start. However, he threw 61 pitches across three innings before getting yanked. Three of the four hits Contreras allowed went for extra bases. On the year, Contreras owns a 3.82 ERA with 31 strikeouts over 33.0 innings. It's unclear if he'll make another start, but there's not many alternate options on the active roster at the moment. If he does stick in the rotation, he'd likely pitch Tuesday in a rematch with the A's.
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Angels' Roansy Contreras: Set to start Wednesday
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Contreras will start Wednesday's game against the Athletics, Sam Blum of The Athletic reports.
The 24-year-old was acquired from the Pirates in May and has worked out of the bullpen for his first nine appearances for the Halos. Contreras has pitched to a 3.29 ERA and 0.95 WHIP over 13.2 innings with Anaheim, and manager Ron Washington said the club is hoping the right-hander can cover about four or five innings versus Oakland, per Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com.
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Angels' Roansy Contreras: Dealt to Anaheim
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The Pirates traded Contreras to the Angels on Thursday in exchange for cash considerations, Alex Stumpf of MLB.com reports.
Contreras was designated for assignment by Pittsburgh on Saturday after posting a 4.41 ERA and 1.65 WHIP across 16.1 innings. The 24-year-old right-hander will replace Davis Daniel in the Angels' bullpen, though Contreras could also be moved into the starting rotation at some point.
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Pirates' Roansy Contreras: Designated for assignment
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Contreras was designated for assignment Saturday, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.
Contreras was out of minor-league options and had a 5.05 FIP and 1.65 WHIP in 12 appearances out of the big-league bullpen, so he was deemed expendable. At the peak of his fantasy value in 2021, Contreras sat 95-97 mph with his fastball as a starting pitcher, but he has averaged under 95 mph in back-to-back seasons, even while working in shorter stints out of the bullpen.
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Pirates' Roansy Contreras: Rejoins club Sunday
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The Pirates activated Contreras (personal) from the paternity list Sunday.
Contreras stepped away from the team for a few days to be with his family, but he's now back with the Pirates. The 24-year-old has shifted to a relief role to begin the season and will likely be utilized in lower-leverage spots.
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Pirates' Roansy Contreras: Goes on paternity list
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The Pirates placed Contreras (personal) on the paternity list Thursday.
Contreras will be away from the team between one and three days while he tends to more important matters. Jose Hernandez was recalled from Triple-A Indianapolis in a corresponding move.
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Pirates' Roansy Contreras: Shifting to relief
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Contreras will begin the 2024 season as a reliever, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Contreras competed for a final spot in the Pirates' rotation, but he struggled to find the strike zone throughout spring training -- walking 13 batters across just 12.1 innings. While he won't fit the roster as a starter, Pittsburgh showed some desire to keep him in the organization, as he is out of minor-league options.
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Pirates' Roansy Contreras: Not making case for rotation spot
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Contreras walked six batters across four innings of work in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Blue Jays.
Contreras is in competition for a rotation spot but has had an unimpressive showing this spring. Across four outings and 10.2 innings, he has just a 4:10 K:BB while giving up nine earned runs. Assuming he fails to secure a rotation spot, Contreras's tenure in Pittsburgh may be over as he is out of minor-league options.
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Pirates' Roansy Contreras: Struggling with command
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Contreras allowed one hit and walked three while striking out one across scoreless 2.1 innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Tigers.
Contreras managed to work his way out of trouble, but he walked a batter in all three innings he pitched. Per Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Contreras also averaged 94.3 mph on his fastball, down around two ticks from the top velocity he's shown in the majors. He's now walked four batters across 4.1 innings of work this spring, which won't help his chances of securing a rotation spot to begin the new campaign.
Manager Derek Shelton announced Thursday that Contreras has been shut down for the year, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Contreras could have maybe been recalled from Triple-A Indianapolis for the Pirates' final regular-season series against the Marlins, but the 23-year-old right-hander will instead get an early start to his offseason regimen. He posted a disappointing 6.59 ERA over 68.1 major-league innings this year and also held an underwhelming 4.96 ERA in 32.2 innings at Triple-A.
