1995 Season
In many ways, the California Angels' organization had been scarred by Whitey Herzog's callous 1992 trade of folk hero Jim Abbott to the New York Yankees for J.T. Snow and two since-forgotten pitchers. The Angels' new regime tried to turn around that blow to their karma, making a late-season deal with the Chicago White Sox to bring Abbott back to Anaheim Stadium. He made some big starts for California--including a three-hit shutout at Texas to end a nine-game losing streak on September 24--keeping the Angels in the hunt with the Seattle Mariners for the American League West title.
Pitching
Abbott's good fastball was wasted in his youth. He simply does not have the stuff that helped him win 18 games during his first stint with the Angels back in 1991. He struggled to throw strikes with his curveball, forcing him too often to try and get by with just two pitches--his fastball and a cut fastball. At this point in his career, Abbott is forced to paint the corners to survive. He doesn't throw hard enough anymore to allow him to change speeds. Right-handed hitters almost never swing and miss his pitches--as his totals of 3.9 strikeouts and 2.9 walks per nine innings would indicate.
Defense
Despite having only one hand Abbott remains a solid fielder. He's worked hard to keep runners close, and it showed in 1995, as he held potential basestealers to a respectable 63 percent success rate. His reactions on the mound remain quick. Few pitchers have his overall presence.
1996 Outlook
California was expected to re-sign Abbott, who played on a one-year contract last season. He'll need some magic to repeat the 3.70 ERA he compiled with the White Sox and Angels last year. Unless his velocity returns (and there's no reason to expect it will), this could be an ugly season for Abbott. Though only 28, he's entering the post-fastball "Frank Tanana" stage of his remarkable career.
Data Source: STATS, Inc.