Strickland struck out one in a perfect inning to earn the save in Tuesday's 10-7 win over the Rockies.
Strickland got the first save after the trade deadline, which saw the Angels ship out Carlos Estevez to the Phillies over the weekend and Luis Garcia to the Red Sox earlier Tuesday. Strickland has limited experience as a closer -- his career high for saves in a year is 14 with the Giants in 2018, and he logged seven saves over 66 appearances with the Reds in 2022 before failing to appear in a big-league game in 2023. It's unclear if Strickland will get a chance to run with the closer role, though he's pitched well this year with a 3.06 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 41:13 K:BB over 50 innings while adding six holds. Ben Joyce also figures to be in the mix, but he worked in the eighth inning Tuesday in a high-leverage spot against the middle of the Rockies' order.