ARLINGTON – It wasn’t quite Odysseus returning to Ithaca, but Ryan Johnson’s homecoming Saturday night was plenty memorable.
The lanky 6-foot-6 right-hander came home to Dallas-Fort Worth, and he delivered the longest start of his career and arguably his best, holding Texas to one hit over seven scoreless innings.
Johnson, a former Dallas Baptist University standout who was raised in the area, walked two and struck out three in earning his third win of the season in a 3-0 victory at Globe Life Field on Saturday.
Michael Fulmer pitched the eighth, and right-hander Ryan Watson worked a perfect ninth for his second save of the season.
Mike Trout, Moisés Ballesteros and Vaughn Grissom had run-scoring hits in the first, sixth and eighth innings for the Angels, respectively. Zach Neto went 3-for-5 with two doubles, a triple and two runs scored for Los Angeles (52-78).
“I didn't feel much pressure,” Johnson said about pitching in front of friends and family. “I was kind of just free. I felt like it's the preparation that got me here. I was able to trust in that and go out there, play and have fun.”
Johnson (3-7) was in complete control while continuing to show marked improvement over his past four starts. During that stretch, Johnson has posted a 1.69 ERA, allowing four earned runs and 12 hits over 21 1/3 innings. He has walked 11 and struck out 13, producing a 1.08 WHIP.
He also lowered his season ERA to 5.75.
His best outing came Saturday.
Johnson breezed through the Rangers’ lineup the first time around, facing the minimum number of hitters. His only hiccup was hitting Jake Burger with the third pitch of the third inning, but he was erased when Danny Jansen grounded into a 5-4-3 double play. Johnson walked Joc Pederson to start the fourth, but retired the next three hitters, thanks partly to Christian Moore’s fantastic sliding stab of Corey Seager’s hard ground ball.
After retiring the Rangers in order in the fifth on eight pitches, Johnson gave up his first hit of the game on Cody Freeman’s single to lead off Texas’ half of the sixth. It also began a timid Rangers threat. Johnson retired the next two hitters, but walked Seager to put runners on first and second with two outs and Wyatt Langford coming to the plate.
Johnson, though, induced a dribbler out of Langford, which the pitcher picked up on the first-base side and tossed to first to end the inning.
“I thought he was great,” said manager Kurt Suzuki. “I feel like he's been trending up. Stuff's getting better. He's getting more consistent. He's believing in himself. I think tonight was just a culmination of him believing in it, trusting it. When you throw with confidence, you tend to kind of keep getting better and better.”
Moreover, the Angels' rotation continued a good stretch. Since firing pitching coach Mike Maddux on Aug. 11, Los Angeles’ starting pitchers have been elite. Over the five most recent starts, the rotation has allowed only three earned runs in 32 innings – a 0.84 ERA.
Lefty Yusei Kikuchi will make his return to the mound on Sunday after almost four months on the IL with left shoulder inflammation.
“They've been good,” Suzuki said of the starting pitchers before stopping himself. “They've been better than good. They've been outstanding and consistent. Everybody's feeding off each other and they got a really good thing going on in there right now.”
Johnson, selected by the Angels with the 74th overall pick in the 2024 Draft – the compensatory pick they received after Shohei Ohtani signed with the Dodgers – made the Halos’ 2025 Opening Day roster nine months later without appearing in a Minor League game. He became only the 24th drafted player to go directly to the Majors, and the first Angel to do it since Jim Abbott in 1989.
Johnson won a place in the Angels’ rotation this spring, but missed more than a month because of a viral infection. Before Saturday, Johnson’s best career start came June 23 against Baltimore. He pitched six scoreless innings, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out a career-high eight.
In his brief career, Johnson has been plagued by inconsistent command, home runs and an unsettled pitch mix. Even after Saturday’s gem, he has walked 31 batters and allowed 16 home runs in 67 1/3 innings this season, contributing to short, inefficient outings.
Suzuki and Johnson both said they believe a simplified pitch mix has been central to Johnson’s turnaround.
He has leaned more heavily on his cutter and reduced his use of the sinker over his past two starts, an adjustment Suzuki said allows Johnson to emphasize what he does best. Johnson said his ability to command the cutter to both sides of the plate has opened up the rest of his repertoire. On the other hand, he has not quit on his sinker, merely only looking to identify better spots for it.
“There's nothing like coming back home and being able to play in front of tons of friends, tons of family,” Johnson said. “The support from them is awesome.”
Even a bit overwhelming, he added. The Rangers could relate.