Angels unhappy about unfavorable outcomes
The Angels not only lost a game Sunday, but they also lost twice in the second inning of that game.
And manager Mike Scioscia wasn’t pleased afterward.
“I’ll tell you what it was, it was a missed call on the field and it was a missed call in New York,” he said. “That’s a shame.”
The Angels initially thought they had retired Andrew Toles on a ground ball to first. The call on the field was overturned, however, upon the Dodgers’ challenge.
Moments later, the Angels were convinced they had Toles on a pickoff, the throw from pitcher Deck McGuire and tag from first baseman Jefry Marte appearing to be on time.
After first-base umpire Hunter Wendelstedt ruled Toles safe, the Angels challenged, only to lose again when the call was upheld.
“I don’t know how they missed that play,” Scioscia said. “He was out in real time and he was out on the replay. I don’t know what is going on. But that is a play that absolutely should not be missed.”
Following the review, Toles advanced to third on a Chris Taylor single and scored the Dodgers’ second run on a sacrifice fly. That fly out, with the Toles call reversed, would have been the third out.
Clayton Kershaw then followed with an RBI single, putting the Angels in a 3-0 hole when they were sure the inning should have been over with the score still 1-0.
“It totally changed the course of that second inning for Deck,” Scioscia said. “That’s unfortunate. That definitely had an impact on today’s game.”
Ohtani to be re-evaluated Thursday
Having reached the All-Star break, the Angels don’t have to wait until they play again for their next notable result.
That will come Thursday when Shohei Ohtani meets with Dr. Steve Yoon for a re-evaluation of his damaged right ulnar collateral ligament.
The examination should determine if the injury has healed enough for Ohtani to begin the process of resuming his pitching career.
On June 7, he had platelet-rich plasma and stem-cell injections to treat a grade 2 sprain of his UCL. Three weeks later, Ohtani was cleared to swing a bat. He rejoined the Angels as a designated hitter July 3.
The progression to return as a pitcher will be much more extensive and time consuming, given the amount of work needed to build the necessary arm strength.
If Ohtani is OK’d to start throwing, Scioscia said that work should not interfere with his continuing to hit for the Angels.
“We wouldn’t want his rehab for pitching to affect the hitting side, and I don’t think it will,” Scioscia said. “We can do everything in-house … There will be some things we’re going to have to balance.”
Scioscia defends Upton’s defense
One day after left fielder Justin Upton struggled defensively, his manager defended his defense.
“Justin’s got great range out there,” Scioscia said. “He works hard on his defense, when he’s able to. You have to balance how much work a player can do with making sure they’re ready to play a game and (are) fresh.”
On Saturday, Upton failed to catch a Toles fly ball that was scored a double and also had a drive by Yasmani Grandal sail over his head for a double.
“He does a good job in left field,” Scioscia said of Upton. “It’s just, occasionally like with any outfielder, you’re going to get a misread here or there.”
Tropeano could make one more rehab start
Nick Tropeano (shoulder) is still being re-evaluated coming off his second rehabilitation start Friday. The right-hander threw 71 pitches in four innings for single-A Inland Empire.
He could make one more rehab start this week before rejoining the rotation after the break. Pitching every fifth day would put Tropeano in line to start the Angels’ fourth game, July 23 against the Chicago White Sox at home.
Etc.
Backup catcher Rene Rivera (knee) continues to progress but has been slowed in his return. The Angels still have not determined when he’ll be ready to begin his rehab assignment … Reliever Eduardo Paredes was recalled from triple-A Salt Lake and infielder Jose Fernandez was optioned down. This marks the ninth time Paredes has been promoted to the Angels this season … Reliever Jim Johnson (lumbar strain) threw a pregame bullpen session at Dodger Stadium and will be re-evaluated before the Angels decide his next step.
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