The Los Angeles Angels are still deciding on who will replace Joel Pineiro in the rotation

The Angels are deciding between moving 36-year old lefty reliever Hisanori Takahashi from the pen to the rotation or promoting 23-year old righty starting pitcher Garrett Richards to replace Pineiro in the rotation. Takahashi has pitched in 43 games (0 starts) for the Angels so far this year and he is 3-2 with 1 save, a 3.35 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. He has now pitched in 96 games (12 starts) in his first two years in the majors and he is 13-8 with 9 saves, a 3.54 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. The Angels might deem Takahashi too valuable out of the pen to move him into the rotation. Garrett Richards came into this season as the Angels’ #7 prospect according to Baseball America. He has started 21 games in AA-ball so far this year and he is 12-2 with a 3.06 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP. He has now pitched in 55 games (all starts) in his first three years in the minors with the Angels and he is 27-8 with a 3.10 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP. Richards has pinpoint control as he has only walked 87 batters i...