Los Angeles Angels fans agitated as Cleveland Guardians come from behind late to win game 8-6: "I wish I was surprised by this" "Tepera to Mars"
The Los Angeles Angels lost a tough one on Saturday to the Cleveland Guardians. They were in control for much of the game, until the team had to go to their bullpen late into the game.
Up four runs going into the eighth inning, the Angels ran into some problems. Relief pitcher Andrew Wants gave up four runs to tie the game. Los Angeles then turned to Ryan Tepera out of the bullpen, who gave up two runs of his own. The Angels would go on to lose the game, 8-6.
FINAL: Angels 6, Guardians 8 https://t.co/GkO6sWwyd0
The loss has split the series at one apiece. The Angels took the series' first game, 5-4, before losing on Saturday. Whoever wins the final game of the series on Sunday will take the series.
Patrick Sandoval will get the ball for the final game on Sunday. He's been impressive in his outings thus far, compiling a 3-1 record with a 3.41 ERA. Cleveland will hand the ball to Tanner Bibee, who is 1-1 on the year.
"I wish I was surprised by this. Plz cut Tepera," one fan tweeted.
@Angels i wish i was surprised by this. plz cut tepera
"Tepera to Mars," tweeted another fan.
@Angels Tepera to Mars
@Angels How many games are you going to let Tepera and Loup cost us
They just don’t have the velo to succeed in a major league bullpen anymore
@Angels You are unbelievable and deserve that L for bringing in Tepera in that situation. He’s the worst reliever in baseball
Los Angeles Angels fans are furious with their team's performance, especially from the bullpen. They're tired of the bullpen costing them games.
@Angels It’s honestly time to start cutting these pitchers that are consistently not pulling their weight. #GoHalos
@Angels 40 pitches from Wantz & bringing in Ryan Tepera in a high leverage 8th inning situation? Phil Nevin is an absolute embarrassment.
@Angels I am so sick of this team doing this. Tomorrows an early day game on a Sunday, we don’t perform well in either day games or on Sunday’s. You can already book the loss before watching the game.
@Angels This should've been an easy win. Wantz let it get away, but Tepera straight up lost it for us. He needs to go. This is absolutely freaking ridiculous.
@Angels how many games has the bullpen costed us so far? We’d be 1st in the division by a large margin if we even had average pitching
Fans don't have much hope going into the series' final game the way their bullpen has performed. They're tired of cringing every time Nevin goes to the bullpen.
Los Angeles Angels need to reinforce their bullpen
The Los Angeles Angels can't continue to let their bullpen beat them. When they are out in front late in the game, they need their relief pitchers to shut the other team's bats down.
This season is too important for the team to mess around. They need to be competitive this year so they can have a chance to re-sign superstar Shohei Ohtani. He's in the final year of his contract, and many believe he'll explore free agency given the Angels miss the postseason again.
Currently, they find themselves in third place in the American League West. The Angels are 3.5 games behind the Texas Rangers and a half-game behind the Houston Astros.
They've put themselves in a good position so far, but it could be better if their bullpen was stronger. It will be interesting to see how the team manages the bullpen the rest of the way.