Angels' Latest Motivational Tool: Having Pitchers Face Themselves

The team is trying something new to coax more strikes out of its pitching staff.

Mar 31, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Los Angeles Angels relief pitcher Jose Soriano (59) impressed himself with his own pitches. | Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

The Angels were hoping to get their pitchers to throw more pitches in the strike zone entering the 2024 season. So far, the hope hasn't materialized. Through Thursday, their percentage of pitches in the zone (41.5) ranks 24th out of the 30 MLB teams.

It's one thing to give a pro athlete instructions on how to perform, but visibly demonstrating the idea of why it works can be an even more powerful motivator. As motivational tools go, few hold more potential power than having a pitcher stand in the batter's box against himself.

It's possible thanks to the Trajekt pitching machine, which simulates the precise repertoire of any pitcher. Typically, hitting coaches use this tool to prepare their hitters for that night's starting pitcher. It gives a club a chance to "face" their opponent in a virtual setting before facing him in the game.

The Angels are putting their own twist on this practice, according to Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register. According to Fletcher, the Angels are having their pitchers stand in the box against themselves using the Trajekt machines, an object lesson aiming to show pitchers that their stuff is good enough to attack the strike zone.

“Wow, it’s amazing,” Jose Soriano told Fletcher through an interpreter. “I knew my pitches were good, but when I faced myself, I find out they’re really good. So I have more trust in my stuff now.”

Easy for him to say. Soriano throws harder than almost any starting pitcher in the game (he's been clocked up to 101 mph) and has a 3.72 ERA. As a staff, the Angels' ERA sits at 4.77. Their first-pitch strike percentage is the second-lowest in the game..

But left-hander Reid Detmers and right-hander Griffin Canning also praised the technique for helping them better understand how their spin can fool a batter. According to the report, the Angels' bullpen (which ranks 30th in MLB in ERA) will try the technique on the team's upcoming homestand.