ANAHEIM, Calif. — This summer has been an electric one for Angels rookie Ben Joyce.
In his second season with the team, the 23-year-old right-handed pitcher has held opponents scoreless in 18 straight outings since June 14, which is the sixth longest streak by a rookie pitcher in franchise history.
“Ben Joyce's confidence has been growing since he came up to the big leagues. That's why you see him putting up what he's putting up,” said Angels Manager Ron Washington.
On Saturday, Joyce struck out the New York Mets’ J.D. Martinez in the bottom of the ninth, earning the Angels a 5-4 victory with a 104.7 mph four-seam fastball that was fired on an 0-2 count. The pitch not only secured Joyce his first career save and set a new career top speed, but it was also the fastest strikeout pitch since pitch-tracking became the MLB standard in 2008 and the fastest pitch thrown by a major leaguer this season.
Ben Joyce dials it up to 104.7 MPH to get the final out of his first career save! 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/RLfbJUEGRm
— MLB (@MLB) August 4, 2024
“It was very exciting,” said Joyce, the Angels’ 2022 third round draft pick out of the University of Tennessee. “That's kind of what I've been working toward.”
Of the 395 pitches that Joyce has thrown across 21 appearances this year, 41.3% of them have clocked 100+ mph. He also leads MLB with 35 pitches that have come in at 103 mph or higher.
Since Carlos Estévez was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies and Luis García was traded to the Boston Red Sox ahead of the trade deadline, the Angels have taken a red pen to their bullpen strategy, shuffling players to fill the gap and get the job done later in the game. This is the change that gave Joyce an opportunity to step into the closer role.
Faced with such a shift, Joyce said he’s putting his focus on education, picking up everything he can from Washington and the other pitchers to continue to strengthen his performance and implement changes that will elevate his game.
“As I said last night, he's a special kid. When you give him education on the sideline, he takes it to the field and that’s very hard to do,” said Washington.
Joyce said that there are several people who have helped him grow toward the closing role, including Estévez, who posted a 2.38 ERA with 20 saves, 32 strikeouts and five walks in 34 innings with the Angels before he was traded. The heat-throwing rookie also said that Hunter Strickland, Matt Moore and Carson Fulmer have offered their advice and support as he learns to navigate new scenarios on the mound.
“You got some guys that have been through a lot of different situations here, especially out in the bullpen. So I’ve just been picking their brains every day,” said Joyce.
Beyond just learning as much as he can, Joyce is putting what he learns into action. In addition to his increased velocity this season, he’s bolstered his repertoire with the addition of a new pitch known as a “splinker.” Developed with the help of Angels Pitching Coach Barry Enright, the “splinker” is a unique pitch that combines the velocity of a sinker with the movement of a splitter.
“I’m just trying to learn something every day,” explained Joyce, who has achieved a 1.82 ERA in 21 games this year. “Especially in the game of baseball, you gotta stay humble and realize that you never know everything. There's always something you can learn.”
He noted the important role that Washington has played in helping him boost his mental strength while working through high adrenaline situations.
“He's always in the go mode. You know, run through a wall type thing, and in the major league level, you can't be like that. You got to learn how to control that inside of you and let it go when you throw that baseball. He’s figuring that out,” said Washington. “I go out there now, and his heartbeat is not jumping through his shirt. It’s calm.”
Though Joyce is fresh off his first career save, he’s already setting goals for the future that focus on consistency and continuing to be a lifelong learner on the field: “My goal this year is just to be consistent and get better every day.”