Angels put Andrew Heaney on the disabled list because of a muscle strain

In a blow to their rotation, the Angels put left-hander Andrew Heaney on the 15-day disabled list Wednesday because of a flexor muscle strain in his left arm.

The Angels said that Heaney complained of tightness in his forearm after a six-inning start against the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday night and an MRI exam confirmed the strain. He will be shut down from throwing for an indefinite period.

Heaney, 24, called for a trainer after his first pitch of the second inning and went into the dugout, but it was to treat a bloody nose. He had cotton stuffed up his left nostril and continued to pitch after a four-minute delay.

At the same time, his velocity began to dip. He averaged 93.4 mph with his fastball during the first inning, 91.7 in the second, 90.7 in the third and 88.4 in the fourth, according to PITCHf/x data captured by BrooksBaseball.net.

His velocity rebounded up to 89.3 and 89.7 mph in his final two innings. Heaney averaged 92.5 with his fastball in the first inning and 91.3 in the sixth.

Asked about the discrepancy in velocity, Heaney said he couldn’t explain it.

Angels officials said that doctors determined that Heaney’s elbow ligament is fine.

“Not a significant concern,” General Manager Billy Eppler said. “Any time a pitcher has to take a timeout, regardless of the length, your antenna goes up. But you walk out with the results of the MRI and the surrounding situation being more about the muscle.”

Heaney threw a career-high 184 innings between the minors and the majors last season and 166 2/3 innings in 2014. He had a 3.49 earned-run average for the Angels, who acquired him for second baseman Howie Kendrick in December 2014.

Heaney, the team’s No. 2 starter, was slated to make his second start Monday in Oakland.

The Angels opened the spring with eight big league starting pitchers. Two of them, Heaney and left-hander C.J. Wilson, are on the disabled list, left-hander Tyler Skaggs, is at triple A working his way back from elbow surgery and veteran right-hander Jered Weaver dealt with nerve issues in his neck and shoulder during the spring.

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