Former Angel Erick Aybar gets a fresh start with the Tigers

The news arrived early last off-season, and it came as a surprise to Erick Aybar. The Angels were all he had ever known in the U.S., since they signed him for $100,000 from his native Dominican Republic in February 2002.

Then, in what appeared to be new General Manager Billy Eppler’s opening salvo but proved the Angels’ biggest off-season move, Aybar was sent to Atlanta in November. Eppler surrendered the organization’s longest-tenured player and top two prospects to seize the opportunity to acquire Andrelton Simmons, an immediate improvement and long-term solution at shortstop.

“Imagine being with one team for your whole career, and then all of the sudden you get traded,” Aybar said through an interpreter Friday. “It was difficult. Those are my boys, man.”

Aybar’s time with the Braves would be disastrous. After eight consecutive years of consistent production, he was the worst player in the sport through May. He missed a game while sedated because a chicken bone became lodged in his throat.

But he went back to being a reasonable facsimile of his old self afterward, and Detroit sought him out earlier this month to play shortstop while Jose Iglesias was hurt. Tigers Manager Brad Ausmus said Friday that Aybar would continue to draw starts at the position when Iglesias is activated Saturday.

Angels Manager Mike Scioscia allowed it was “a little bit odd” to face Aybar. He has managed only one player, Garret Anderson, for a longer period.

Aybar said it was not odd to share a clubhouse with Tigers right-hander Justin Verlander, who once called his bunt to break up a 2011 no-hit bid “bush league.”

“We forget that now that we’re on the same team,” he said. “We don’t talk about that.”

Rotation swap

In a bit of curious timing, the Angels announced Friday they would be removing right-hander Jhoulys Chacin from their starting rotation and inserting left-hander Brett Oberholtzer, at least this time through, Saturday at Comerica Park.

What makes it curious is that Chacin had made three starts since being reinserted in the rotation earlier this month. The first two were terrible; the third, Sunday against the New York Yankees, was scoreless. Chacin also had the best start of his season against the Tigers in May, a complete-game, 10-strikeout effort.

But, in perhaps the surest sign yet they are looking toward 2017, the Angels opted to give another player a chance.

“Jhoulys did have a good start against the Yankees,” Scioscia said. “But in the broad picture of how he’s pitched this year, I think coming out of the ’pen is somewhere he’s performed better. We’re gonna get a look at Obie, and we’ve got some other guys we’re gonna get a look at as we make the turn into September.”

Chacin has a 2.55 earned-run average in relief this year and a 6.21 mark as a starter. Acquired off waivers from Philadelphia earlier this month, Oberholtzer has a 5.27 ERA exclusively in relief.

Short hops

There are eight active major leaguers who hail from Michigan, and two of them are Angels: outfielder Nick Buss and right-hander Matt Shoemaker. Both men have dozens of friends and family members coming to the ballpark this weekend. ...Also with Michigan ties is reliever A.J. Achter, who was honored on the field before Friday’s game because it happened to be Michigan State Night at Comerica Park. He attended college there.

pedro.moura@latimes.com

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