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Angels Sign Veteran Reliever to Bolster Bullpen Depth

J.P. Hoornstra|
Jun 17, 2022; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Sean Poppen against the Minnesota Twins at Chase Field.
Jun 17, 2022; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Sean Poppen against the Minnesota Twins at Chase Field. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

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Los Angeles Angels

Sean Poppen signed a minor league contract with the Angels, giving the team a veteran right-handed relief option to bolster a bullpen that has the worst ERA in the American League.

Poppen made his MLB debut in 2019 with the Minnesota Twins. He holds a career ERA of 5.08 over 67.1 major-league innings with the Twins, Arizona Diamondbacks, Tampa Bay Rays and Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Virginia native was originally a 19th-round draft pick out of Harvard by the Twins in 2016. He made the Midwest League All-Star Game the following year, but was dabbling in relief pitching at the Double-A and Triple-A levels before reaching the big leagues in June 2019.

Poppen pitched 8.1 innings across four games, all in relief, for the Twins in 2019. He allowed 10 hits and seven runs — all earned — finishing his first big league season with a 7.56 ERA.

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In 2020, Poppen participated in his first major league spring training. He did not have a minor league season to participate in because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and so was limited to 7.2 innings in six games with the Twins.

After the season, the Pirates claimed Poppen off waivers from the Twins. He relieved full-time at the Triple-A level in 2021 and also appeared in three games with Pittsburgh, allowing seven runs (four earned) in 4.2 innings.

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On May 13, Poppen was designated for assignment by the Pirates and acquired by the Tampa Bay Rays for cash five days later. His time in the Rays' organization was brief.

Poppen produced a 1.59 ERA in 19 games with Triple-A Durham, and also retired the only two batters he faced in one game with Tampa Bay.

On July 30, Poppen was designated for assignment by the Rays and claimed off waivers by the Diamondbacks.

Poppen finished the season in Arizona and pitched to a 4.67 ERA in 20 games out of the Diamondbacks' bullpen.

In 2022, Poppen made 29 appearances out of the Arizona bullpen and logged a 4.40 ERA across 28.2 innings.

After the season, Poppen was claimed off waivers by the San Diego Padres. He spent all of 2023 at Triple-A El Paso, logging a 6.33 ERA in 47 innings.

Poppen became a free agent after the season and signed a minor league contract with the Seattle Mariners with an invitation to spring training.

After being released by the Mariners in April 2024, Poppen had been pitching in Mexico.

Poppen is one of 35 players from Harvard to appear in a major league game.

For more Angels news, head over to Angels on SI.

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J.P. Hoornstra
J.P. HOORNSTRA

J.P. Hoornstra is an On SI Contributor. A veteran of 20 years of sports coverage for daily newspapers in California, J.P. covered MLB, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Los Angeles Angels (occasionally of Anaheim) from 2012-23 for the Southern California News Group. His first book, The 50 Greatest Dodgers Games of All-Time, published in 2015. In 2016, he won an Associated Press Sports Editors award for breaking news coverage. He once recorded a keyboard solo on the same album as two of the original Doors.

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