Kirby Yates: Everything you need to know

Yates blew a save chance against the Astros on Monday, allowing one run on one hit and one walk while striking out one batter over one inning. With the Angels up 5-4 entering the ninth inning, manager Kurt Suzuki turned to Yates to shut the door. The veteran right-hander couldn't do so, as Jeremy Pena led off the inning with a walk, stole second base and came around to score on a one-out Christian Walker single. Monday marked Yates' first save opportunity since he logged his lone save May 23, but that's largely due to the Angels' struggles as a team, as the club as a whole has zero saves since then. Though Yates has pitched to a poor 5.23 ERA this season, Suzuki seemed to commit to giving him more ninth-inning opportunities moving forward, saying after the game, "We signed him to be our closer, and we're going to give him a chance to close," per Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com.

Yates struck out one in a perfect inning to earn the save in Saturday's 5-2 win over the Rangers. Yates was the early favorite for saves, but a knee injury kept him out until early May. The right-hander was eased back into action in low-leverage spots, and the Angels' overall poor performance has led to limited opportunities to close. Yates squandered his first chance at a save Wednesday versus the Athletics, but he bounced back with a scoreless outing and Thursday before getting the save Saturday. He's pitched to a 4.26 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 9:3 K:BB through 6.1 innings this season. Ryan Zeferjahn is the only other pitcher on the roster to have a save for the Angels in 2026 -- Jordan Romano had four before he was designated for assignment in late April. Yates is likely the lead candidate for saves moving forward thanks to his past experience as a closer, though he could face increased competition once Ben Joyce (shoulder) is ready to make his season debut.

Yates was charged with a blown save after retiring two batters and allowing one run on one hit and one walk in Wednesday's 6-5 extra-inning loss to the Athletics. Upon being activated May 5 following a season-opening stint on the injured list due to left knee inflammation, Yates was deployed in lower-leverage spots for each of his first four appearances with the Angels. After the veteran right-hander tossed a pair of clean innings while striking out four of the six batters he faced over his last two outings, manager Kurt Suzuki felt comfortable turning to Yates on Wednesday to protect a one-run lead in the top of the ninth inning. Yates immediately squandered the opportunity, serving up a leadoff home run to Jeff McNeil to tie the game. He was able to induce a groundout and then struck out Lawrence Butler, but Yates was pulled from the game after putting two more runners on via a walk and hit batsmen. Though the Angels' closer situation remains unsettled, Yates' poor showing Wednesday could hurt his case for seeing another save chance anytime soon.