Moseley virtual lock as Halos enter final weekend in Tempe

Written by: William Martinez on 27th March 2009

Moseley virtual lock as Halos enter final weekend in Tempe | read this item

The participants have entered the home stretch, and what originally looked like it would be a four-way race for a long-term slot in the starting rotation has instead evolved into a three-way race to instead hold down the fort for a little more than a month.

With Ervin Santana and Kelvim Escobar both expected to be back sometime in early May, the Angels will break camp on Wednesday with only one member all but assured a roster spot: right-hander Dustin Moseley.

The 27-year-old has been rock solid in his last two outings, allowing three earned runs in 11 innings of work with two walks and seven strikeouts.

As the only member of the group with significant major league experience, Moseley was widely expected to make the club anyway, even if it was once again as the long man/emergency starter. However, his stuff has been impressive, giving him a good shot at staying around.

As for the other slot, Shane Loux has been by far the more impressive in terms of raw numbers, allowing just three runs (one earned) in 10-2/3 innings over five appearances.

However, 22-year-old phenom Nick Adenhart may end up being the fifth starter if for no other reason than because of the workload that he has seen. The youngster has worked 19-1/3 innings, which is second only to Moseley and has a Cactus League ERA of 3.14 with four walks and 13 strikeouts.

Adenhart’s last appearance continued his recent trend of solid outings, as he allowed only one earned run in six innings on five hits with two walks and three strikeouts.

Loux, meanwhile, has only made two starts in his previous four appearances, though he is scheduled to start on Friday against the Diamondbacks at Tucson Electric Park.

Based on the workload, Adenhart looks to make the rotation with Loux in the bullpen as the long man. However, both would realistically end up back at Class AAA Salt Lake once Santana and Escobar return.

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