SEATTLE -- Flamethrowing reliever Ben Joyce's season is over, as he was placed on the 15-day injured list with right shoulder impingement before Thursday’s series opener against the Mariners.
Joyce, who underwent shoulder surgery in May 2025, returned to the bullpen in early August and displayed he still possesses elite velocity, but the Angels were careful with him by never pitching him on back-to-back days. He last pitched on Saturday, and when he played catch on Tuesday, he didn’t feel right. When he felt the same way on Wednesday, the Angels decided to shut him down as a precaution.
Right-hander Trevor Martin was recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake as the corresponding move, while right-hander Ryan Watson is expected to serve as closer the rest of the way, and he earned the save in the Angels' 6-4 win at T-Mobile Park.
“Just didn't feel like it bounced back very well when I was trying to play catch and was having a hard time,” Joyce said. “Just felt like it really flared up, so I was down Tuesday. Kind of the same symptoms, yesterday and today, so with four games left, I don’t know if we'll be able to get it to a good enough spot to be able to throw again.”
Joyce, 26, posted a 4.11 ERA with 18 strikeouts and nine walks in 15 1/3 innings while picking up a team-leading five saves. He didn't lose velocity despite the surgery, as his four-seam fastball averaged 101 mph in '26 after averaging 101.1 mph last year. He never quite reached as high as 105.5 mph like he did in ’25, but he still proved he could light up a radar gun.
“It was encouraging to know that I still have it in there,” Joyce said. “I still have the velo and stuff. When I first came back, it was probably some of the best I've felt pitching. I think it just kind of caught up with me, I guess. But I'm excited going into the offseason to have a relatively healthy offseason.”
Joyce said he’ll be shut down from throwing for now, though he would have shut it down for several weeks after the season even if he were healthy. But he anticipates it being a normal offseason and has been encouraged by his recovery. He had trouble with his offspeed stuff, especially his slider, but he believes it’ll get better the further removed he is from the surgery.
“I'm just trying to take the positives right now,” Joyce said. “It's been a hard two years. It's been a long time away and I showed that I have the stuff still in there. I've got the velo still there, and it's just being healthy for a full season, and I think I have a good opportunity this offseason to set myself up to do that.”
Joyce, the club’s third-round pick out of the University of Tennessee in 2022, is looking to recapture his form from '24, when he had a 2.08 ERA in 34 2/3 innings, including a 0.83 ERA over his final 32 2/3 innings. But the Angels are optimistic that he’ll pitch more like that again next year after he gets through a full offseason.
“The biggest thing is he's going into the offseason and will be healthy preparing for Spring Training,” manager Kurt Suzuki said. “He'll be able to work on things like pitch shapes and things like that. Having that is going to be really, really huge for him just because he hasn’t had one in quite some time, so I think to be able to work on some stuff and to improve his pitches is going to be big.”