Column: Mike Scioscia and the Angels will keep grinding

Mike Scioscia is in his 17th season as the manager of the Angels and he isn’t about to change now.

His pregame conversation with reporters Wednesday included a customary series of Sciosciasms, from the importance of taking the same approach into every game to how he hasn’t thought about his future beyond this season.

It was predictable.

It was repetitive.

It was also the right message for a team that is staggering its way through its most difficult season in a generation.

“Our coaches have done a phenomenal job this entire year, not jumping to conclusions, not panicking, not buying into what I like to call all the outside noise,” closer Huston Street said.

And, really, Scioscia doesn’t sound much different than he did when his team was winning division championship after division championship.

The same even-tempered demeanor that was criticized in better days for draining the clubhouse of fun is now preventing a lost season from unraveling into a complete joke.

The Angels were a season-high 19 ½ games out of first place on July 1. They were down multiple starting pitchers. Their lineup consisted of Mike Trout, a 36-year-old version of Albert Pujols and not a whole lot else.

Right when the season looked like it was about to turn into something really ugly, the Angels responded by winning 10 of their next 12 games, including a 7-4 victory over the first-place Texas Rangers at Angel Stadium on Wednesday night.

By completing a three-game sweep of the Rangers, the Angels moved to within 11 1/2 games of them.

“Probably the last 10, 11 games you’ve seen that this team can go up against good teams and still win games,” Scioscia said. “That gives you confidence.”

One scout who watched the Angels this week remarked that he didn’t know how they were scoring as much as they are.

Asked for an explanation, Street pointed to the manager’s office.

“There’s many examples of guys who haven’t had the best seasons or haven’t had the best stretches and he typically doesn’t give up on people, which, as players, we appreciate,” Street said.

Jered Weaver, the longest-tenured player on the team, said Scioscia has managed to remain upbeat while on pace to lose more games than he ever has in a season.

“He keeps us all positive, keeps us in the right mind-set,” Weaver said.

Especially in team meetings.

“It’s never about the results,” Street said. “It’s about the process and sticking with the process and believing the process and trusting the process.”

Basically, it’s similar to what Scioscia says in public.

“This game, at times, is very, very tough, and, at times, you get on a roll and everything’s going in the right direction,” Scioscia said. “But to key to all of this is understanding that if you want to be a championship-caliber team, the challenge in front of you is the game at hand and how you’re going out there to try to win situations, try to put yourself with the chance to set the game up on your terms. I think when that’s your focus, whether we’ve won five games in a row or lost five games in a row, we’re not going to approach this game any differently.”

“Losing is not fun. But the prospect of another chance and a chance to win the next day is what you have to put your focus on after a loss, especially a tough loss.”

Doing that requires more effort on some days, even for Scioscia.

“Especially if you’re a manager, it’s all results-oriented, it’s results-based, what you feel your performance is,” Scioscia said. “When you’re not winning games, we take it very hard.”

An uncharacteristically sentimental Scioscia said he was proud of how his players have responded to the season’s ups and downs, which have included injuries to starting pitchers Garrett Richards, Andrew Heaney, Tyler Skaggs, C.J. Wilson and Nick Tropeano.

“We’ve got some guys that are banged up playing every day,” Scioscia said. “We’ve got some guys that have been needing a day off, but they keep grinding and want to stay in the lineup.”

He pointed to Pujols, who was hit by a pitch on his face Tuesday night.

“He’s adamant that he’s ready to go, he wants to play,” Scioscia said.

Scioscia continued, “These guys, as hard as they play, they inspire us. It makes what we need to do easier. I think we feed off each other. These guys, it’s a fun group. They practice the game hard, they want to do well.”

The Angels are making a statement: If they’re going to go down, they’re going to go down with dignity.

dylan.hernandez@latimes.com

Twitter: @dylanohernandez