Los Angeles Angels pitching prospect Ryan Johnson has been called up to the big leagues — without ever playing in the minors. Johnson, a 22-year-old right-hander, has been named to the Angels’ Opening Day roster, heading straight to the majors after being drafted by the team in July.
Johnson was selected by the Angels in the second round of the 2024 draft with the compensatory pick earned from the team losing Shohei Ohtani to the Los Angeles Dodgers in free agency. He is the 24th player in MLB history to go straight to the majors.
Angels general manager Perry Minasian told reporters Tuesday that the team expects Johnson to eventually become a starter.
Johnson said Tuesday that it has been “surreal” to have his career progress so quickly.
“Not even now do I really think it’s possible,” he said. “There wasn’t really a point where I was just like, ‘I’m close. I think I’m almost there.’ It never even crossed my mind.”
Johnson played well for the Angels during spring training, pitching 11 1/3 innings across six games to an ERA of 3.97 and a WHIP of 1.059.
Before the draft, Johnson spent three seasons pitching at Dallas Baptist University, starting 16 games in his junior season while posting a 2.21 ERA and 0.915 WHIP.
Johnson’s promotion marks a trend of Angels who have been fast-tracked to the majors. Recent players including shortstop Zach Neto and right-handed pitchers Chase Silseth and Ben Joyce were called up from the minors after one year. First baseman Nolan Schanuel was brought up to the Angels’ major-league roster after just 40 days in the minors.
Johnson will be the first MLB player to skip the minors since Garrett Crochet, who made his major-league debut with the Chicago White Sox two months after being drafted in 2020. (Crochet was traded to the Boston Red Sox this offseason after four years in Chicago.) Prior to that, the only other player to skip the minor leagues in the past two decades was right-handed pitcher Mike Leake, who debuted for the Cincinnati Reds in 2010.