Angels reliever tries to block out distractions as trade deadline nears

On Thursday, Joe Smith reported for the first day of what could be his final series with the Angels. His contract expires at the end of the season, the Angels are in last place, and relief pitchers are in great demand by contending teams.

The Cleveland Indians are one of those teams. Smith’s mother, Lee, lives in Cincinnati, in the fifth year of her battle with a degenerative disorder called Huntington’s disease. As the disease progresses, the muscles gradually weaken, and brain function declines. Walking and talking become more challenging, as does making dinner or folding laundry.

The Indians? Smith could be four hours from home, a reasonable drive to see his mother on an off day, or after a day game.

“She would feel guilty for pulling me away,” Smith said. “She wants me to play baseball and win a World Series. At the same time, I want to be by her. She wants me close, but she would never say that.”

In addition to the Indians, teams expressing interest in Smith reportedly include the New York Mets, San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals. Smith said his family and friends ask about trade rumors all the time, but he insists he tries to tune them out.

“I’d drive myself nuts,” he said. “This game is hard enough without distractions.”

Mostly, he said, he is stunned by what has transpired with the Angels. He signed here in 2013 because the Angels won regularly, and spent the money to keep winning. But the Angels have not won a postseason game since then, and now they are on pace for the worst record in the 17-year tenure of Manager Mike Scioscia.

“I didn’t expect to be in this position now,” he said. “I didn’t really foresee this.”

Protest denied

On Wednesday, after the Angels played the final innings of their 7-5 loss to the Kansas City Royals under protest, Scioscia said he believed he was “100% correct” that umpire Phil Cuzzi has improperly interpreted a rule.

On Thursday, Major League Baseball chief baseball officer Joe Torre denied the Angels’ protest. The statement announcing the decision did not include an explanation, but a person familiar with the decision said the protest could have been upheld had the league agreed that Cuzzi improperly applied a rule. Instead, Torre determined Cuzzi had made a judgment call, which cannot be grounds for a protest.

“They looked at it,” Scioscia said Thursday. “They gave their opinion. That’s all you can ask for. We wouldn’t have filed the protest if we didn’t feel we weren’t on the right side of it. I respect their decision.”

In the seventh inning of Wednesday’s game, the Royals’ Raul Mondesi Jr. beat out a bunt single, and Kansas City scored two runs on a throwing error. Scioscia said that Cuzzi told him Mondesi had run outside the baseline but was allowed to veer inside to tag first base. Scioscia believed Mondesi should have been cited for interference with the throw and should not have been allowed to run out of the baseline.

Ortiz fest

Edgar Martinez has such a distinguished career as a designated hitter that MLB annually presents the Edgar Martínez Outstanding Designated Hitter Award. Nonetheless, in six years on the Hall of Fame ballot, Martinez has yet to get even half of the vote.

Scioscia said he did not believe that whatever keeps voters from electing a designated hitter should keep David Ortiz from the Hall of Fame.

“It shouldn’t be an issue for Edgar Martinez, either,” Scioscia said. “It’s certainly not an issue for David Ortiz.

“I feel Edgar Martinez is a Hall of Famer.”

Ortiz, 40, the beloved DH of the Boston Red Sox, is retiring at the end of the season. The Angels presented him with a portrait of himself before Thursday’s game.

“David Ortiz has had an incredible career — not only with the Hall of Fame numbers that he put up, but he has an incredible amount of respect for the game of baseball,” Scioscia said. “I think that gets him the respect of players that play against him and managers and coaches that coach against him.

“He’s more than just a tremendous ballplayer. I think he’s obviously part of the fabric of not only the Boston organization but the Boston community and has done so much good around the world for baseball. He’s a special person.”

bill.shaikin@latimes.com

Twitter: @BillShaikin