Angels claim Jacob Rhame off waivers from the Mets

The Angels claimed right-handed pitcher Jacob Rhame off waivers from the Mets on Wednesday, and added him to their player pool.

The 27-year-old right-hander has pitched parts of three seasons in the majors with New York, posting a 6.23 ERA in 44 games, all relief appearances, with 40 strikeouts and 24 walks in 47⅔ innings.

Rhame had his 2019 season ended early by ulnar nerve transposition jersey in August.

His most time spent in the majors was 2018, pitching in 30 games with the Mets. He placed in the 96th percentile in the majors in fastball spin rate and the 95th percentile in curveball spin rate, per Statcast.

The Angels’ 40-man roster is full, so ordinarily they’d need to make a corresponding roster move to add Rhame. But this year, players on the COVID-19 related injured list don’t count against the active roster, 40-man roster, nor player pool, so that would open up a spot. So far in camp the Angels have placed six players on the injured list, but other than Dillon Peters, who is dealing with an oblique strain, the team hasn’t said what injuries the other players have.

Teams are not allowed to disclose non-employment-related medical information about a player without their consent, so it’s unknown which, or if any Angels players have yet tested positive for COVID-19.

Because Rhame, who was in Mets camp in New York, is joining the team from elsewhere, he’ll need to undergo intake testing again before he’s cleared to join the Angels for workouts in Anaheim.

Rhame is out of options, after using option years in each of the last three seasons. So if he’s not on the active roster once the regular season starts, Rhame would need to be placed on waivers before he is sent down. He was drafted by the Dodgers in the sixth round in 2013.