TEMPE, Ariz. — Chase Silseth could tell a difference immediately when he began throwing again after last year’s surgery.
“From the first throw, it was like 110% better,” the Angels right-hander said.
Silseth had an arthroscopic cleanup of his right elbow last year, ending a season in which he’d pitched for months through various levels of discomfort.
He’s in camp now, competing for a spot in the rotation. Silseth is in a group with Reid Detmers and Jack Kochanowicz. Although those two are probably ahead of him because they were healthy last year, Silseth remains an intriguing rotation candidate based on what he did before he was hurt.
Silseth, 24, seemed to put everything together just after the All-Star break in 2023, when he had a 1.59 ERA in four starts against the New York Yankees, Atlanta Braves, Seattle Mariners and Houston Astros.
That came to an end with a freak accident. He was running from the mound to cover third base on a rundown when he was hit in the head by a throw from first baseman Trey Cabbage.
Silseth missed a month while dealing with concussion symptoms.
He began 2024 in the rotation, but that started his next frustrating chapter. In the second start of the season, he hurt his elbow. He was out for two months trying to rehab, and then he returned and still didn’t feel right.
“When you’re building back up, ramping back up, you’re going to feel a lot of different things in your arm,” Silseth said. “So I just pitched through my rehab and it just wasn’t there.”
He finally said something during a July start at Triple-A. The Angels gave him a little extra time off.
“I started to feel pretty good again,” Silseth said. “Then, one game, I just thought it went that time. I was pissed. This might be it for the long haul. But it turned out everything was good. We just needed to go in and clean it up.”
Silseth’s surgery in August ended his season, but he was back on the mound by October, ready to have a normal offseason in preparation for 2025.
Silseth said he also spent time this winter working with mental skills coaches and reading up on that part of his game.
“Living day to day has been a lot better than stressing out about the future,” Silseth said. “I can tell the stress has been off my shoulders, and I’ve been able to come out day to day and give it my full effort, rather than thinking about what’s going to be happening.”
It’s that attitude that helps him avoid getting caught up in the numbers game. Veterans Yusei Kikuchi and Kyle Hendricks were added to the rotation over the winter, creating less room for the young pitchers like Silseth.
There’s also a chance that Silseth could be back in the bullpen, where he was successful for a stint in early 2023.
“That’s out of my control,” Silseth said. “I can control how I act. I can control how I take anything that happens to me. That’s the focus. … Whatever role I have, I’m just going to go out and be myself and do what I have to do to get outs.”
The best case scenario for the Angels would be to rediscover the Silseth who showed so much promise in the summer of 2023, before he was hit in the head and then before he had elbow problems.
“It’s in there,” Silseth said. “It’s definitely in there. We just need to keep taking it day by day, dominating each day.”
EYE ON MERSHON
Infielder David Mershon was scheduled to make his Cactus League debut by finishing Monday’s game at shortstop.
Mershon is in big league camp less than a year after the Angels took him in the 18th round out of Mississippi State. Mershon actually would have gone higher in the draft, but he was a draft-eligible sophomore so he had more leverage to get a larger bonus. The Angels weren’t going to be able to sign him until third-round pick Ryan Prager turned them down, which freed up enough money in their bonus pool for Mershon. He signed for $405,000.
The Angels believe Mershon is a versatile, fundamentally sound player who can move quickly.
“He’s young as far as experience going in the game of baseball, but he plays the game like he definitely has an idea what he’s doing,” manager Ron Washington said. “He knows who he is. He doesn’t get out of himself on the offensive side. We’ve got to tame him down on the defensive side, but he’s a baseball player.”
NOTES
Washington was out on Monday with an illness that’s been running through the clubhouse. Bench coach Ray Montgomery managed the game. …
Right-hander Ben Joyce hasn’t been on the list to throw through the first three games, but he said he’s fine, and he’s expecting to make his spring debut later this week. Closer Kenley Jansen also has not been on the schedule yet. Washington said over the weekend that Jansen doesn’t need many outings to get ready for the season.