Joel Hurtado Talks About His Outing Against the Giants

Joel Hurtado made his Angels debut on Tuesday against the Giants. On the day Hurtado pitched 1.2 innings and gave up one run. In camp as a non roster invite, Hurtado has a plus fastball and a really nice slider and is on track to make his MLB debut at some point in 2026.

Following his 36 pitch outing, Hurtado lifted some weights then sat down to talk with Angels on SI from the team's locker room in Tempe. On the afternoon we discussed his path to signing with the Angels and through the minor league system as well as the difficulties in adjusting to life in America.

This is the first part of the interview.

First a little background on Hurtado

Hurtado is a 25 year old right handed pitcher from the Dominican Republic. Most prospects in the DR are signed as teenagers but it took Hurtado longer to develop. Signed at age 21 for only $10,000 Hurtado went to the Angels facility in the DR in 2022.

From there he advanced to A ball Inland Empire in 2023 then High A Tri City in 2024. While at Tri City he led the league in innings pitched with 138.2 and strikeouts with a whopping 134. Blessed with a high 90s fastball, Hurtado developed a plus slider while he worked on his command.

Last season Joel started the year at AA Rocket City where he pitched to a 2.70 ERA in 18 starts. That earned him a promotion to AAA Salt Lake City where he got one more start and gave up 2 runs over 5 innings.

Steadily rising through the ranks, he received a non roster invite to big league camp where he is hoping to impress the Angels coaching staff. Here's a visual to help you understand just how nasty Joel's pitches can be.

Joel Hurtado overlay

FB vs SL#Angels pic.twitter.com/o6NcDfhmMi
— Jared Tims (@Jared_Tims) September 6, 2023

And now for part one of the interview.

A big thanks to Melissa Rodriguez for acting as interpreter for us.

Q: Joel, thank for your joining us. You just pitched in the Cactus League. How are you feeling?

Joel: Thank you. Yes, I'm feeling good.

Q: What was it like putting on an Angels uniform and getting into a big league game today?

Joel: It was very exciting. I always go out there with just a mindset to go and compete. You know, give the best of me while I'm out there. But, yeah, it felt really good to be a part of that.

Q: You got into two innings today. Were you expecting to get into that much game action?

Joel: Not Really. I think the plan today was for me to just go one inning but I came out of the game, they asked me how I was feeling, and I said "honestly great" so they let me go out there for another one.

Q: They've used you as a starter quite a bit but today you came out of the bullpen. Do you care which role you're in or do you just want to pitch?

Joel: I like being a starter but if they are going to throw me in there in relief I'm going to make the best of that. I'm going to give the best of me and I'm going to work regardless.

In the next segment of the interview we discuss how the Angels found Hurtado in the Domincan Republic and his journey through the minor leagues.