Angels' offseason signee being evaluated for elbow soreness

The Angels are dealing with a bit of a scare involving offseason signee Robert Stephenson. 

The righty reliever departed Saturday’s Triple-A rehab outing after facing one hitter, whom he walked. While details are still sparse, the team told reporters, including Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com, this afternoon that he’s headed for further testing after experiencing soreness in his throwing elbow.

Stephenson has spent the entire season on the injured list, but the elbow issue seems to be new. His original IL placement came as a result of some shoulder discomfort that arose during Spring Training. The abbreviated rehab appearance was his first official game action as a member of the Los Angeles organization.

The Halos signed Stephenson to a three-year, $33M pact that represented their biggest investment of the winter. While they more or less overhauled the entire bullpen, Stephenson was the only player to whom they made a multi-year commitment. 

They envisioned him stepping in as a high-end setup arm in front of Carlos Estévez, but his Angels tenure has gotten off to a rocky start. Stephenson was arguably the best reliever in MLB for the final few months of the 2023 season. After being traded from the Pirates to the Rays in early June, he threw 38 1/3 innings of 2.35 ERA ball with a massive 42.9% strikeout rate.

It’s far too soon to know whether he’s in danger of missing significant time. If there is a long-term elbow issue, however, it could have an impact on Stephenson’s contract status. 

His three-year deal includes a provision that the Halos would receive a $2.5M club option for the 2027 campaign if he suffers an elbow ligament injury that knocks him out of action for 130+ days.