Angels Pitcher's Call-up Delayed Due to Embarrassing Flight Malfunction

Maren Angus-Coombs | Jun 8, 2024

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

The Los Angeles Angels recalled reliever Ben Joyce on Sunday ahead of the series finale in Seattle against the Mariners but unfortunately, Joyce sat on the tarmac for hours and arrived in the eighth inning of a 9-0 loss.

His flight was literally delayed on the runway for several hours on Sunday, thanks to an unfortunate issue.

“I think the toilets on the plane, something happened, and we couldn’t fly,” Joyce told reporters including MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger. “So we sat on the runway for several hours. I finally made it, but it was pretty crazy.”

He made his season debut with the Halos on Wednesday in the eighth inning against the visiting San Diego Padres. He surrendered a leadoff single to Fernando Tatís Jr. before retiring the next three batters to preserve the one-run lead.

Think Ben Joyce is amped up to be back in The Show? 🔥

The @Angels' No. 4 prospect averages 101.8 mph on 15 heaters over a scoreless frame and maxes out at 103.3, his hardest in the big leagues 😲 pic.twitter.com/hJ3ppAboYS

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) June 6, 2024

The 23-year-old had the opportunity to make the big league club out of spring training but struggled with his command. He began the season in Double-A Rocket City where he worked out the kinks and locked in. He finished his stint with the Trash Pandas posting a 1.59 ERA with 21 strikeouts and three walks in 11.1 innings since May 4.

He also made the most of his season debut hitting 103.3 mph with his fastball.

“I’ve just been trusting my stuff every time I go out there and not getting ahead of myself,” Joyce said. “Just staying with the pitch that I'm on. And putting my full energy into that one pitch and trying to execute that pitch and then moving on to the next one. I think it's been a big thing, and my overall confidence has gone up in my stuff. I know that I can get people out, and trust that every time I go out there.”