What Ryan Johnson Adds to the Angels Pitching Staff

Last year Ryan Johnson showed up to Spring Training as a freshly drafted pitcher and earned himself a spot on the Angels Opening Day roster. His funky delivery worked well in the Cactus League and he even had some success early in the season.

Over time it was clear Johnson was rushed to the majors and he spent the remainder of the year being developed as a starting pitcher. The Dallas Baptist alum dominated the High A Northwestern League in a dozen starts. He posted an ERA of 1.88 in 57.1 innings; striking out 65 batters with a WHIP of 0.890.

There were signs of hope in Johnson's brief MLB time, though. He did strike out 22.2% of the batters he faced and 49% of the balls hit off him were grounders. Unfortunately, the Angels had the worst infield defense in baseball and that hurt him.

Ultimately, Johnson needed to work on adding movement to his pitches if he wanted to have success at the top level. He's added that this spring and once again earned himself a roster spot.

Johnson has added 5 inches of horizontal break to his splitter.

Spring Training is the ideal testing ground and Johnson has been working on his splitter. By adding the additional horizontal movement, he is inducing whiffs and an unreal 40% on the pitch. Look at the graphic below.

Ryan Johnson added 5” of horizontal break to his splitter and it’s gone from a 0.0% whiff% in the majors last season to a 40% whiff% this spring.

Gives him a weapon to combat lefty’s that he struggled against last season (.556 wOBA).

Overlayed below, the new splitter is darker. pic.twitter.com/bdbwcHzGEF
— BTH (@BeyondTheHalo) March 18, 2026

5 inches is a ton of movement to add in one off season. He's one of several Angels throwing new pitches this year and getting good results. I know Sam Aldegheri can thank a former Angel for teaching him a new change up. I'll have to find out if anybody helped Johnson with his sinker.

The righty says he is now gripping the splitter tighter than in the past and throwing it with the same arm speed as his other offerings. Last year his arm speed lagged a bit on the pitch and hitter picked up on it. Now it comes out of his hand looking just like his cutter and slider which keep hitters off balance.

Improving his success against left handed hitters is huge. Last year MLB lefties crushed Johnson to the tune of a .455/.480/.909 slash line. He needs to dramatically improve on that to have any hope of success.

The new splitter gives Johnson two plus pitches to go with plus command.

Prior to this season Johnson's slider was his highest rated pitch. It is too early now to tell if the splitter will also rate a 60 on the 20 to 80 scale. By the eyeball test it looks like it is close.

Overall, Johnson has a slightly above average four seam fastball and split fingered fastball. Now with a plus splitter to go with his plus slider, he has a very lethal arsenal. Of course, having good stuff and being able to control it are two different things but Johnson has 60 grade command.

As you can see in the video below, Johnson is controlling multiple pitches with tons of movement. Hitters, at this point, are simply guessing which pitch is coming. The strikeout looking to Brent Rooker is on the new splitter.

Ryan Johnson vs. the heart of the A’s batting order in the 4th inning:

Tyler Soderstrom: ꓘ
Brent Rooker: K
Jeff McNeil: K

(@MLBPipeline)

pic.twitter.com/OT7524P9GR
— SleeperAngels (@SleeperAngels) March 7, 2026

He should be effective as a starter or reliever.

The real question with Johnson is durability. He was shut down a little early last year due to arm fatigue. His high water mark for innings in college was 106 in 2024. The Angels may want him to start but his ultimate role might be as a multiple inning reliever.

His role on the 2026 squad has yet to be defined but Ryan Johnson looks to add some really high upside in whichever role Kurt Suzuki deems is best.