LOS ANGELES — After Jack Kochanowicz had another miserable outing on Saturday night, he alluded to something “body-wise” that he’d been fighting through, but then he clarified that he was talking about his mechanics.
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A day later, Kochanowicz was placed on the injured list with elbow inflammation.
Kochanowicz acknowledged on Sunday morning that he actually had an X-ray after Saturday’s game and he was scheduled for an MRI exam on Monday.
“Thought it was just some inflammation the last few weeks, and yesterday on the changeup specifically, it was just bothering me,” Kochanowicz said.
Kochanowicz said he’s been dealing with the issue for “the last three (starts) definitely.” He said his between starts work has been limited.
“Been just trying to push through and stay positive,” Kochanowicz said. “But with the changeups yesterday, it was just a little more painful.”
Kochanowicz gave up seven runs (six earned) while recording only one out on Saturday night. Although he said the elbow has only been an issue for his last three starts, he’s had an 11.51 ERA over his last six starts. Before that, he had a 3.05 ERA in his first seven starts.
The Angels recalled left-hander Sam Aldegheri to take Kochanowicz’s spot on the roster. For now, Aldegheri will be in the Angels bullpen. They needed some extra coverage after relievers had to work 7⅔ innings on Saturday night.
The Angels have Grayson Rodriguez, Walbert Ureña and Reid Detmers scheduled to face the Houston Astros in the next three games. The open spot in the rotation would be sometime after the off day on Thursday.
Aldegheri put himself into consideration by pitching 5⅓ scoreless innings in relief last week. Manager Kurt Suzuki said it was the best he’s seen Aldegheri. Aldegheri has a 2.45 ERA in the majors and a 7.24 ERA at Triple-A this season.
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If Aldegheri is needed in the bullpen, the Angels could instead call up right-hander Caden Dana. Dana missed much of spring training because of mono, and he was still dealing with the affects early in the season. In his last four starts at Triple-A, he has a 1.76 ERA with 18 strikeouts and nine walks in 15⅓ innings. On Friday night, Dana pitched six scoreless innings. He threw 88 pitches and his fastball touched 98 mph.
NETO’S DEFENSE
Shortstop Zach Neto made his 11th error of the season on Saturday night, equaling his total from all of last season.
Neto said he’s still doing all the same work that he did last year, when he was working with former Angels manager Ron Washington.
“I just need to make the routine plays,” Neto said. “It’s something that he preached to me last year and I’m not doing that right now, so I need to do that.”
Suzuki said he’s still confident in Neto’s defense.
“I know he’s working,” Suzuki said. “Some misplays, for sure. He can acknowledge that. But you just got to stay in the work, and just got to keep going. It’s baseball, right? He’s going to go through stretches where you’re going to make some blunders. It’s just part of the game, but we feel really good with Neto at short. We believe that he’s a really good defender.”
NOTES
Infielder Vaughn Grissom was out of the lineup for the third straight day because of left side tightness. Suzuki said on Sunday morning that he still swung a bat. “He’s kind of the same,” Suzuki said. “We’ve got to evaluate him and make a decision on what’s best for him and for the club moving forward.” …
A day after Samy Natera pitched two scoreless innings in his major league debut, Suzuki said he was impressed. He said his slider has improved since spring training. “I thought he was great,” Suzuki said. “It was exciting. I watched him in spring training and I just kind of followed in the minor leagues, and the last month he’s been incredible.”
UP NEXT
Astros (RHP Spencer Arrighetti, 7-1, 1.94) at Angels (RHP Grayson Rodriguez, 2-2, 9.50), Monday, 6:38 p.m., ABTV, 830 AM
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