Cubs right-hander Jameson Taillon delivers 'decent' start in Cubs' 2-0 loss to Angels

Cubs right-hander Jameson Taillon’s first start of the season Tuesday wasn’t perfect, but it was a step in the right direction after a poor spring training.

In the Cubs’ 2-0 loss to the Angels, Taillon more resembled the pitcher he has been throughout his career. He allowed two hits, walked four and struck out three in 4⅔ scoreless innings.

In spring training, Taillon posted a 17.55 ERA with 12 strikeouts and nine walks in five starts. The results were startling enough that he had to reconsider what he was doing on the mound.

After the game against the Angels, Taillon said he just wanted to get out of Arizona and back to Wrigley Field.

‘‘It felt good to just get back out there and start the year on a decent note,’’ Taillon said.

Most veteran starters use spring training to work on their arsenals, sharpen a pitch or get stretched out. That Taillon felt the need to tinker with his delivery was a sound-the-alarm moment for him and the Cubs.

Aside from right-hander Edward Cabrera, who dazzled in his Cubs debut Monday, and right-hander Cade Horton, who allowed two runs and four hits in 6⅓ innings Saturday, the starting pitching has been a bit suspect early on. Opening Day starter Matthew Boyd had a shaky first outing, fellow left-hander Shota Imanaga allowed four runs Sunday and Taillon entered his first start with question marks after his subpar spring.

Taillon’s spring struggles raised questions about whether the Cubs have enough starting pitching to make a run deep into October. Their offseason need for starting pitching was so great that they traded prized outfield prospect Owen Caissie to the Marlins for Cabrera.

But even if Cabrera and Horton are on the right track, the Cubs will need Boyd, Imanaga and Taillon to give them quality outings, as well.

Taillon dealt with traffic on the bases early. With two outs and a runner on third in the first inning, Taillon struck out Jorge Soler on a 1-2 sweeper.

In the second, Taillon allowed a one-out single to Jo Adell and walked Josh Lowe on five pitches. But he maneuvered out of potential trouble by getting Logan O’Hoppe to pop out and Oswald Peraza to ground out.

Trouble found Taillon again in the fifth, when he allowed a one-out walk to O’Hoppe and a line-drive double to Peraza. He struck out Zach Neto after a seven pitch at-bat before intentionally walking Mike Trout. Left-hander Hoby Milner came on to face left-handed-hitting Nolan Schanuel and got him to ground out on an 0-2 sinker.

‘‘[Taillon] navigated [the traffic], and then there was very little hard contact,’’ manager Craig Counsell said.

Taillon’s biggest strengths are his dependability and consistency. He doesn’t have the velocity of Cabrera or Horton, but he wins with guile and incorporates many pitches to keep hitters off-balance. That’s why the number of hard-hit balls he allowed in spring training was alarming.

The average velocity on Taillon’s fastball against the Angels was down 1.5 mph from his average fastball last season, a continuation from spring training. He has been trying to recapture that velocity, which he said led to many of his spring struggles.

Instead, Taillon leaned on his cutter, which wasn’t successful for him last season.

‘‘Hopefully as the weather warms up and we keep working, [the velocity will] come,’’ Taillon said. ‘‘But I just needed to get back to executing and finding a way to get big-league hitters out.’’