Categoria: MLB

TEMPE, Ariz. — When manager Phil Nevin was watching the USA-Venezuela game on Saturday night, he had an idea what was going to happen.

Angels left-hander José Quijada struck out Kyle Tucker to help Venezuela escape the seventh inning with a lead, leaving the mound on an emotional high. Venezuela then brought Quijada back out for the eighth.

“We’ve seen Q pitch before, and you saw what he did afterward,” Nevin said Sunday, referring to Quijada’s on-field celebration after the strikeout. “Putting him back in the game the next inning was not the best idea.”

Quijada walked two and hit a batter in the eighth, loading the bases just before Trea Turner hit a game-changing grand slam against Silvino Bracho.

Nevin suggested that Quijada has trouble getting back to the same level after such an emotional moment. Last year, Nevin said Quijada tended to be less effective in less electric moments — like pitching in front of a small crowd in Oakland.

Obviously, a big league reliever needs to be reliable in any atmosphere, and Nevin said Quijada is getting there.

“I think he did a better job of it at the end of the season last year,” Nevin said. “Then early this spring a couple games he pitched here, the velocity was up. I like the way he went about his business and he threw well. … I think he’s going to be fine. He’s learning what he needs to do to prepare to get outs when he leaves the bullpen.”

Quijada, 27, had a 3.98 ERA for the Angels last season, throwing almost entirely fastballs. This season he is trying to add more changeups to his repertoire.

EJECTION FOLLOWUP A day after the first time Ryan Tepera was ever ejected from a spring training game, the Angels right-hander was eager to explain what happened.

Tepera had allowed a pair of runs in the fifth inning against the Texas Rangers, including a Marcus Semien two-run homer. He was walking off the mound when plate umpire Bill Miller approached him to check for foreign substances.

“Obviously frustrated with my outing a little bit,” Tepera said on Sunday. “Give up four hard hit balls and walking off the mound. I get checked. He checks my hand, like most umpires do. I take a couple steps to the dugout and he says, ‘Hey, come back here, son.’ So I’m like ‘What?’

“He proceeds to check my hand again. Check my glove. Like every inch of my glove. Every lace. He put his hand inside of it. And I said ‘Is this necessary?’ And he says, ‘I’m the head chief crew umpire, I can do whatever the (expletive) I want.’  I said ‘Oh, is that right?’ And then he says, ‘Let me see your hat.’ So he checks my hat.

“Then he says, ‘While you’re at it, let me check your belt.’ So I started taking my belt off and he says ‘Son, if you take your belt off, I’m going to throw you out of this game.’ I took my belt off and hand it to him and he tossed me.”

Umpires have been checking pitchers for foreign substances since 2021, but last season they were quick, perfunctory checks only of the pitcher’s hands. Major League Baseball reportedly sent teams a memo this week letting them know the checks would be more thorough this season.

Tepera didn’t appreciate a check, in that manner, at that time.

“It’s being disrespectful honestly, man to man,” Tepera said. “It has nothing to do with me being checked. It’s the way he did it and what he said to me. I’m a grown man. Don’t treat me like a child. That’s my problem with it.”

FLETCHER RETURNS David Fletcher was back in the Angels clubhouse on Sunday after playing for Italy in the World Baseball Classic, including a matchup against Shohei Ohtani in Italy’s loss to Japan in the quarterfinals. Fletcher had a hit in two at-bats against Ohtani.

“It was fun facing him,” Fletcher said. “He was definitely competing out there and giving everything he had. He was into it. Getting to be on the other side of him was definitely something that I was kind of looking forward to.”

NOTES Infielder Brandon Drury was not in the lineup for a second straight day because of a bruised calf. Nevin said that Drury was ready to play, but the manager opted to have him take one more day off. Drury still hit and did defensive drills in the morning. …

Nevin said Patrick Sandoval may not pitch as scheduled next Sunday in the Freeway Series at Dodger Stadium. Nevin said the Angels may decide that Sandoval needs a less intense atmosphere — like a minor league game — in between pitching for Mexico in the semifinals of the WBC on Monday and his first regular season start, on April 2.

TEMPE, Ariz. — The question of Jared Walsh’s performance against lefties once again hangs over the Angels’ first baseman.

The Angels now have more answers, though.

Walsh has a career .834 OPS against righties and a .600 OPS against lefties. Even though he’s struggled most of the time against lefties, he has had enough big moments — like a grand slam against Aroldis Chapman — to support the idea that he will hit lefties if given enough opportunity.

Walsh certainly believes that. Manager Phil Nevin also expressed confidence in Walsh, although he added that they have alternatives.

“I think he’s capable of hitting (lefties),” Nevin said. “We’re going to put our best lineup out each day that gives us the best chance to win. If we feel the matchup is right for Jared to face those guys then he will. We certainly have an abundance of right-handed hitters that have a history and a track record of being very successful against lefties.”

Brandon Drury, who played 48 games at first in his career, will start at first for the Angels on Saturday. Gio Urshela has never started a game at first in his big league career, but he’s played there in winter ball, and Nevin said he’s confident in his ability to do it because he “knows what kind of athlete he is.”

Drury has a career .770 OPS against lefties, including .955 last season. Urshela has a .764 OPS against lefties.

Walsh shrugged at the suggestion that there are now more challengers that could send him to the bench against lefties.

“I’ll cross that bridge when I get there,” Walsh said.

For now, Walsh said he’s just focused on hitting, period.

This spring Walsh is 8 for 25 (.320) with a .934 OPS. He is 3 for 7 against lefties. After striking out in his first four at-bats against lefties, he has three straight hits.

“I’m just going to get squared away against any pitcher, and get to the lefty thing,” he said. “I work regularly on angle flips against righties and lefties. I think if I stay through the ball more against lefties, there will be more hits in there.”

RENGIFO’S ROLE One certainty in the way the Angels construct their lineup against lefties is that Luis Rengifo will be playing.

“I would anticipate him being out there all the time against lefties,” Nevin said.

Rengifo, a switch-hitter, produced a .909 OPS against lefties last season, compared with .629 against righties.

Where Rengifo will play remains to be seen. He could play second or short, with Drury and Urshela joining him in the infield. Nevin also said he wants to see more of Rengifo in the outfield, including center field.

For now, the Angels would just like to see Rengifo play. Nevin conceded that he is concerned that Rengifo has played in just two of Venezuela’s games in the World Baseball Classic, coming to the plate just five times.

Nevin said he understands that Venezuela is going with its best lineup, and not as concerned with getting Rengifo ready for the season.

“I know that’s part of it,” Nevin said. “They are trying to win games. I’m a little partial. I think he should be out there. Of course when he comes back we’ve got to get him a lot of at-bats, which we can do.”

Venezuela is playing Team USA in a quarterfinal game on Saturday in Miami, so the soonest Rengifo is likely to be back in Angels camp is Monday.

NOTES Nevin said the Angels will use their sixth starter for the first time on April 12, which is their 12th game of the season. He said that they still have four candidates for the role: left-hander Tucker Davidson and right-handers Jaime Barría, Griffin Canning and Chase Silseth. Davidson and Barria are both out of options. Nevin said any of the four could pitch out of the bullpen when he isn’t starting, even though Canning and Silseth haven’t done that yet as professionals. “It’s a difficult decision,” Nevin said. “They are all pitching well.” …

Left-hander José Suarez is scheduled for the Angels’ fifth game of the season. Shohei Ohtani and Patrick Sandoval are pitching the first two games, at Oakland on March 30 and April 1. That leaves the uncertainty surrounding Tyler Anderson and Reid Detmers. Anderson pitched the day before Detmers this week, so presumably the Angels are lining up Anderson to start April 3 in Oakland and Detmers the next day in Seattle.

TEMPE, Ariz. — It was no mystery to Chase Silseth why he was so much more hittable the deeper he worked into big-league games last season.

The Angels right-hander said he could feel his legs tightening after a few innings, to the point that he’d be “just dead with my legs. I couldn’t even walk.”

Silseth said he spent the winter putting an emphasis on strengthening his legs.

After 10 innings over three Cactus League games, Silseth said he can tell that those extra sprints and extra hours on the bike will help him avoid what was one of his biggest issues in his rookie season.

“It was really frustrating to be lights out in the first four innings, then all of the sudden the fifth comes, and we’d be up 3-1 and I’d give up a three-run jack,” Silseth said.

Silseth held opponents to a .784 OPS over his first 60 pitches, but after that opponents had a 1.351 OPS against him. His average fastball went from 95.4 mph in his first 60 pitches to 94.4 mph.

The average exit velocity he allowed went from 92.1 mph to 95.7 mph.

The difficulty as he got deeper into games spoiled some promising outings, leaving him with a 6.59 ERA after seven big-league starts in 2022.

There was some thought within the organization that Silseth may just be better as a reliever because he was unable to maintain his stuff over longer outings.

Silseth, a 22-year-old who was less than a year removed from the draft when he made his big-league debut in May, said the issue was simply that he needed to change the way he was conditioned.

“Just attacked (my legs) in a whole different way,” Silseth said. “If I had sprints, do a couple extra. Add an extra leg day. I’d have two lower leg days and one upper body, then I’d have a core day but I’d add lower body, just to get them stronger. If I had reps on the bike to do, I’d do a couple extra. Every leg workout I do is going to help me have some stamina. It’s done wonders.”

Silseth learned another trick to maintain his stamina just a couple weeks ago. Pitching coach Matt Wise and Angels veterans finally got the admittedly high-strung Silseth to just relax in the dugout between innings instead of pacing up and down.

“I was telling Reid (Detmers), ‘Holy cow this makes a difference,’” Silseth said. “And he said ‘Why do you think we do it?’”

Silseth has also added a cutter to his repertoire this spring. He said it’s given him “a different dimension,” particularly against lefties.

“I’m loving it right now,” Silseth said. “I’m going to continue to grow with it. I just started throwing it. It surprises me how comfortable I am with it. I just can’t wait to keep working at it.”

The combination of stronger legs, a new approach to energy conservation and a new repertoire has helped Silseth make a strong impression as he fights for a job in the Angels’ rotation. He is battling left-hander Tucker Davidson and right-hander Griffin Canning for the No. 6 spot.

All three have pitched well this spring. Silseth is probably last among the group because Davidson is out of options and Canning has more experience, but obviously the Angels will have a need for him at some point.

“I’m excited for whatever this year has in store,” Silseth said. “Wherever I pitch, I’m ready to go.”

A PREVIEW? Manager Phil Nevin went to Chase Field on Wednesday night to see Mike Trout drive in all three runs in Team USA’s World Baseball Classic victory, and then he woke up at 3 a.m. to see Shohei Ohtani pitch Japan to a quarterfinal victory over Italy.

“Watching Mike, watching Shohei on these stages, you can’t help but look forward to the future and understand these are big-time players, and look forward to what they’ll be on the big stage of the playoffs too,” Nevin said.

After Ohtani worked 4 2/3 innings on 71 pitches for Japan on Thursday, Nevin would not comment on what’s next for him. Ohtani is not expected to pitch again in the WBC, instead making his next start for the Angels in an exhibition March 24, then pitching in the Angels’ March 30 opener in Oakland.

“I think out of respect for the Japanese team and the way they plan out their games, we’ll leave it up to them (to announce),” Nevin said. “We know what he’s going to do, but we’ll keep that between us.”

NOTES Left-hander Tyler Anderson was able to get his work done with a 70-pitch simulated game Wednesday, despite the rain that fell for much of the day during the Angels’ off day. Anderson had been scheduled to work in a minor-league game. …

Outfielder Jordyn Adams is 8 for 20 (.400) with an 1.150 OPS in spring training. “He’s translated some swing changes he’s made into games,” Nevin said. “We feel really good about it. Obviously, he’s still in camp, which is a credit to him. We made some moves to get some more guys some more at-bats, but there’s still some at-bats for him to have here. There’s still some looks we want to take of him. He’s an exciting player. I think there’s a lot in there. Somebody that we really think can impact us down the line in the future.”

TEMPE, Ariz. — Although Reid Detmers has dived into the analytics of pitching that are now mandatory for any big-leaguer, he is also somewhat of a throwback.

The Angels’ 23-year-old left-hander has set a simple goal for himself this year.

“I just want to get 20 wins, honestly,” Detmers said. “That’s always a goal. … That should always be the goal for a pitcher. You see the top guys get 19, 20, 21 wins every year. You want to be that guy.”

The Atlanta Braves’ Kyle Wright was baseball’s only 20-game winner in 2022. In the previous four full seasons, excluding the pandemic-shortened 2020, there have been a total of five pitchers to win 20 games.

Detmers won seven games last year, including a no-hitter, in 25 starts. His 3.77 ERA suggested he could have won more with better support from the offense or bullpen, both of which the Angels expect to be improved this year. There is also reason to believe Detmers could make a significant jump in what he can control.

And it starts with numbers on a radar gun.

“I got to catch him a few times last year, and he was outstanding,” Angels catcher Matt Thaiss said. “And I’ve caught him this spring, and the stuff just jumped from last year to this year.”

Detmers’ fastball averaged 93.2 mph last season. When he started Friday in a Cactus League game against the Dodgers, his fastball was consistently at 95-97 mph.

Last season, the evolution of his slider was well chronicled. He was throwing it 82-84 mph early in the season. After he was sent to Triple-A, he made an adjustment and returned throwing the pitch 86-88 mph.

Last week against the Dodgers, his slider was 89-91 mph.

“It’s a pretty big difference,” Angels pitching coach Matt Wise said. “With all the guys, if you can increase the stuff, it gives you more margin for error.”

Detmers’ slider is particularly effective because of the way it spins. Many sliders have more of a diagonal spin, which makes the ball go down and toward the pitcher’s glove side. Detmers’ slider has a gyro spin, like a quarterback throwing a spiral, so it drops straight down.

“It’s extremely tough,” Thaiss said. “It comes out looking just like his fastball. As a hitter, as a lefty I wouldn’t want to face that. It’s probably his best weapon. It’s a really good pitch.”

It became a much better weapon when he increased the velocity last season, so now that it’s increased even more, there is reason to believe Detmers could have a breakout season.

“It will definitely make a difference,” Detmers said of the extra velocity. “Obviously it’s good to have, but I’m not out there thinking I want to throw this hard, because then your mind is not in the right spot. You’ve still gotta make pitches.”

Detmers said he didn’t set out to increase his velocity. He did spend some time last winter working with Driveline. He also worked out with Eric Cressy, the well-known training guru who runs a facility in Florida.

“I said I just want to get stronger and more explosive,” Detmers said. “We made up a program for the whole offseason and I just stuck to that. And the velo came.”

FIGHTING FOR A JOB Non-roster invitees Jake Lamb and Kevin Padlo have made impressions on manager Phil Nevin this spring. Lamb is hitting .333 with a .941 OPS in 24 plate appearances, and Padlo is hitting .321 with a .976 OPS in 30 plate appearances.

Lamb, 32, is a left-handed hitter who plays primarily first and third. He’s played parts of nine years in the big leagues. Padlo, 26, is a right-handed hitter who also plays the corner infield spots. He’s been up and down with four organizations in the majors over the past two years.

The Angels seemed to be set with six infielders: Anthony Rendon, David Fletcher, Luis Rengifo, Brandon Drury, Jared Walsh and Gio Urshela. Barring an injury, it would be surprising for the Angels to keep Lamb or Padlo over any of those players, and the Angels would need to be creative with their roster to keep a seventh infielder.

Nevin is not closing any doors, though.

“We’re gonna take our best players,” Nevin said. “Jake has a history of doing a lot of good things at the big-league level. Padlo’s had a lot of great seasons in Triple-A. People don’t realize he’s 26 years old. He’s still got a lot of baseball in front of him. I’d be surprised if both of them didn’t help us at some point this year.”

NOTES Jaime Barría rejoined the Angels on Tuesday after pitching for Panama in the World Baseball Classic in Taichung, Taiwan. Barria pitched one game for Panama, allowing one run in 2 2/3 innings. He also pitched an inning in an exhibition game. Barria said he’s expecting to return to Cactus League action sometime this weekend. The Angels are trying to decide if Barria will be strictly a reliever or bounce between the rotation and bullpen. …

Angels’ 19-year-old catcher Edgar Quero, one of the organization’s top prospects, has caught 18 innings in seven big-league exhibition games this spring. He’s come to the plate seven times, going hitless with three walks. “He’s caught a lot of our guys and we’ve been impressed with what he’s been able to do,” Nevin said. “As far as game-planning and sticking to what our game plans are, that’s what’s impressed me the most. I know he’s gonna hit. I know he can catch. It’s the game-planning, the mental side of getting behind the plate that impressed me this spring for a 19-year-old guy. …  He’s gonna be a good big-leaguer some day.”