Joyce allowed a hit and a walk over two shutout innings as the opener Sunday. He struck out three while the Angels lost to San Francisco.

EDGE Analysis

Joyce threw 22 of 42 pitches for strikes and also hit a batter during his appearance but managed to keep the Giants off the board. The Angels bullpen went on to allow 13 runs in six innings in the ugly loss. Joyce lowered his ERA to 7.94 with a 5:4 K:BB through 5.2 frames since being promoted from Double-A Rocket City earlier this month. He's thrown 3.2 scoreless innings over his last two outings.

Joyce is expected to operate as an opener for Sunday's matchup with the Giants, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

EDGE Analysis

Joyce will make his first career major-league start Sunday as the Angels will try to get two innings out of him before going to the bullpen. The right-hander has allowed five runs on eight hits and three walks while striking out two batters over 3.2 innings in four appearances with Los Angeles this season. After Joyce serves as the opener, Jose Suarez and Carson Fulmer are considered candidates to handle the bulk role on the mound in the series finale with the Giants.

Joyce earned a hold by tossing a scoreless inning while allowing one hit against San Diego on Wednesday.

EDGE Analysis

Joyce was called up from the minors Sunday and was deployed in a high-leverage situation in his first outing with the big club, getting the eighth inning with the Angels up one run. The fireballing reliever immediately got into trouble when Fernando Tatis led off the frame with a single and advanced to second on a wild pitch, but Joyce calmed down to retire the next three batters without Tatis advancing further. Joyce didn't notch any strikeouts, but he had his heater working in the outing, reaching 103.3 mph, per Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com. The right-hander fanned 34 batters over 19 frames in the minors this season and could certainly be a big bullpen asset (and perhaps a future closer) in the majors if he learns to harness his control. In 10 innings with the Angels as a rookie last season, Joyce fanned 10 batters but also issued nine free passes.

Joyce was recalled from Double-A Rocket City on Sunday.

EDGE Analysis

Joyce was unable to earn place on the Halos' Opening Day roster but will join the MLB club early in June. He has a mediocre 4.26 ERA and 5.2 BB/9 at Rocket City this season but has been much better since early May, posting a 1.59 ERA, 0.62 WHIP and 21:3 K:BB over his last 10 appearances and 11.1 innings.

The Angels optioned Joyce to Double-A Rocket City on Friday.

EDGE Analysis

The hard-throwing reliever held an 8.59 ERA and 6:9 K:BB over 7.1 innings this spring. Joyce could still be a key cog in the Angels' bullpen at some point this season, but he'll work on tightening things up in the minors first.

After yielding five earned runs and five walks over his initial 1.1 innings this spring, Joyce has since allowed two earned runs and two walks over his subsequent six frames.

EDGE Analysis

Joyce is expected to be part of the Angels' bullpen on Opening Day, but there may have been some initial doubt about his readiness after he struggled to harness his control in the early portions of Cactus League play. The flamethrower has since settled down, with his most recent outing being a scoreless one-inning appearance against the Cubs on Saturday. Joyce's improved results have coincided with a lowering of his strikeout rate -- over his past five frames, he's struck out a modest three batters. Though he consistently throws a triple-digit fastball, these results may suggest that the key to Joyce's success in the majors may be him learning how to use his impressive heater to generate poor contact rather than always relying on punching batters out.

Through two Cactus League appearances this spring, Joyce has given up five earned runs on three hits and five walks while striking out two batters over 1.1 innings.

EDGE Analysis

It's been a struggle for the fireballing reliever early in spring action, as he's had trouble finding the strike zone. In his first game, which came against the Giants on Feb. 26, Joyce served up three walks and a homer to yield four runs while getting just one out. He was able to complete a full inning his next time out but still gave up two walks, two hits and a run. Joyce issued nine walks in 10 innings in his first taste of the majors last year, and he was only slightly better at corralling his command in the minors. The right-hander's ability to throw triple-digit heat has him tabbed as a future closer and gives him a good chance of landing an Opening Day bullpen spot this season, but he'll need to get much better at limiting walks eventually if he's to find substantial big-league success.

Joyce earned a hold with a scoreless inning against Cleveland on Sunday. He walked one batter and didn't collect any strikeouts.

EDGE Analysis

Joyce was activated from the 60-day IL earlier Sunday after missing three months with an elbow injury. The rookie didn't have pinpoint control in his return to game action -- he threw just seven of 15 pitches for strikes -- but was able to work a scoreless frame around a two-out walk. Joyce is among the organization's top pitching prospects and should get a good look as the non-contending Angels play out the string down the stretch.

Joyce (elbow) was reinstated from the 60-day injured list Sunday.

EDGE Analysis

The right-hander has been sidelined since early June by an elbow injury, and he's been cleared to rejoin the Halos after a two-game rehab assignment with Single-A Inland Empire. Joyce is one of the organization's top prospects and allowed two earned runs with a 5:4 K:BB over four frames in his first taste of the big leagues before going down with the injury.

Joyce (elbow) began a rehab assignment with Low-A Inland Empire on Tuesday.

EDGE Analysis

Joyce struck out one in a scoreless inning in his first appearance in nearly three months as he works his way back from ulnar neuritis in his right elbow. Given the long layoff, the hard-throwing right-hander figures to require a handful of rehab appearances before rejoining the Angels' bullpen.