Percival Won’t Have a Leg Up Anymore

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Closer Troy Percival is coming back soon, but his signature delivery is not. So that he can continue to pitch while minimizing the impact on his weakened right hip, he has scrapped his high leg kick.

For the first time since he was put on the disabled list last week, Percival pitched off a mound Saturday, under the watch of Manager Mike Scioscia and pitching coach Bud Black. Percival is scheduled to throw again today and pitch a simulated game Wednesday, and he hopes to be activated when eligible Saturday.

The four-time All-Star said he has used the modified delivery at times in his career, either to better hold runners on base or to relieve stress on his shoulder and elbow. He will no longer present himself to batters as a tangled mess of arms and legs, so batters will be able to pick up the ball a split-second sooner, and he might lose a tick or two from his 97-mph fastball, but he also won’t be as prone to mechanical flaws that induce wildness.

“I can be more successful doing this, especially now that I’ve learned the changeup,” he said. After working out with the modified delivery Saturday, he said, “My curve is better. My changeup is better. My fastball is better located.”

Because the degenerative condition in his right hip is here to stay, barring surgery, Percival said the modified delivery is too.

With Percival and center fielder Darin Erstad expected to be activated shortly, the Angels should be at full strength next week, for the first time all season. Erstad began a rehabilitation assignment with triple-A Salt Lake on Saturday, batting second and popping up in all three at-bats of the Stingers’ game at Tucson.

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Cal Ripken watched the Angels play in Baltimore Thursday and said he believed 5-foot-6 shortstop David Eckstein could endure playing all 162 games. “That determination comes from inside, and he seems to have that,” Ripken said.

Eckstein, while appreciative, responded that day that “I’ve got to start playing better so they don’t have to make a decision about whether to give me a day off.”

He didn’t, and they did. With Eckstein batting .175 in his last 16 games, Scioscia said he would get today off.