Shields makes progress

Scot Shields is dealing with a number of issues as he tries to rebound from the worst slump of his career, a 12-appearance stretch in which the reliever has given up 15 earned runs in 11 1/3 innings for an 11.91 earned-run average.

Arm strength is definitely not one of them.

Two-thirds through a 40-pitch simulated game Tuesday afternoon, Shields was so frustrated with his breaking ball he took a few steps toward second base and heaved a ball into the right-field bleachers. Estimated distance of the toss: about 320 feet.

“I didn’t know anyone saw that,” Shields said later. “It wasn’t the most professional thing to do, but I was really frustrated, and I had to get it out. As dumb as this may sound, right after that was when I started bearing down and throwing the ball well. The couple pitches before didn’t go very well, and I snapped.”

If channeling Bob Knight helps Shields regain the form that made him one of baseball’s most dominant setup men, Angels Manager Mike Scioscia is all for it.

“Everything was worth the last nine pitches he threw,” Scioscia said of Shields, who was demoted from his setup role Monday. “He was experimenting with some things that you could see were taking him in a direction that wasn’t going to help him. . . and the first two-thirds of the workout he struggled with some things.

“But once he found his rhythm, the last nine pitches he threw were incredible. I think he’s found something that hopefully will give him the rhythm he needs to not worry about mechanics. Pitching is an athletic motion, and he was getting a little disjointed. He has to get back to that natural flow.”

For now, Shields’ work will come in less-stressful situations than his last outing, when he failed to protect a 5-4 lead and gave up an eighth-inning grand slam to Hank Blalock in Sunday’s 8-7 loss to Texas. The demotion, with orders to throw a simulated game, was a blow to Shields’ ego and reputation, but not his sensibilities.

“There wasn’t anything else going right, so I was OK with it,” said Shields, who also apologized to reporters for not speaking Monday. “It kind of hurts that they have to do this on Sept. 4, but they feel like it was needed, and I feel it helped out. . . .

“I understand it. I’m going to work hard to get my old role back. Justin [Speier] is very qualified to do it, but I definitely want that role back. . . . I think things are going in the right direction, where I’ll be back to normal pretty soon, throwing strikes, getting ahead and putting people away.”

Registration will begin today at www.angelsbaseball.com for an on-line lottery to buy tickets for potential playoff games in Angel Stadium. There will be random drawings for each of the three playoff rounds, and winners will be eligible to purchase up to four tickets for each game in the round they were selected.

There is a limit of one entry per person per household, and the one-time registration will be good for all three rounds. Fans selected will be notified by e-mail, and available tickets may be purchased on a first-come, first-served basis. No tickets will be available at the stadium or through Ticketmaster.

Third baseman Chone Figgins took batting practice on the field Tuesday for the first time since suffering a bruised left wrist on Aug. 21 and could return by the weekend. . . . Infielder Erick Aybar was activated from the disabled list, and the Angels added reliever Marc Gwyn from triple-A Salt Lake.

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mike.digiovanna@latimes.com