ATLANTA — The Angels had put themselves in position to secure a comfortable victory on Tuesday night, taking a four-run lead into the ninth inning.
Closer Kenley Jansen got the ball, even though there was no save on the line.
Eighteen pitches later, the Angels were shaking hands and celebrating a victory. A day later, though, Jansen said that’s not how he’d prefer to be used.
“If you ask me, a real closer doing it for so long, I do what the team wants you to do, but I’m not a big fan of the four-run lead,” Jansen said.
Jansen, 37, has 462 saves, and he’s made no secret of the fact that he wants to reach 500. Jansen has 15 saves in 33 games this season, and six of those are games that he’s entered with a four-run lead. One of those was still a save situation because there were two runners on base.
The others were not save situations, and Jansen said he’d prefer to save his bullets in those spots.
Asked if he’s told the Angels that, he said: “I don’t have to say that. I think they probably know.”
Interim manager Ray Montgomery acknowledged that Jansen prefers to be used when a save is on the line, but he said a few circumstances led to the decision to bring him into Tuesday’s game.
“We respect what he wants to do and what he’s done in the game,” Montgomery said. “The flip side too, with the new rules and stuff, you want to get the win. You want to get the first win on the road trip and lock it down and secure it. We go back and forth talking about it at different times, but I have no issues with it. He didn’t either. And again, there will be situations where he doesn’t come in.”
The “new rules” relates to the three-batter minimum, which was instituted in 2020. Some managers are reluctant to start the inning with a lesser pitcher than the closer if they know that pitcher will have to face three batters.
There is a cost, though.
Relievers generally don’t work three days in a row or four out of five days. Many teams even try to avoid having pitchers work three out of four days. So every game a reliever works can lead to him being unavailable in the coming days.
The only time this season when the Angels have gotten caught with Jansen being unavailable because of one of these outings was in May at Dodger Stadium. Jansen pitched the ninth with a four-run lead in the series opener, and then he came in four-out save the next day. In the final game of the series, the Angels needed to use Shaun Anderson as the closer, and he got the save.
Jansen’s feelings aside, the way he’s been used is not that different from other closers.
Houston Astros closer Josh Hader, who leads the majors with 24 saves, has been used five times in 37 games with a lead of at least four runs. Padres closer Robert Suarez, who also has 24 saves, has been used with leads of at least four runs in four of his 37 games. Kansas City Royals closer Carlos Estévez, who has 23 saves, has only pitched once in 35 games with a lead of more than three runs.
PLANS FOR THE FUTURE
Catcher Logan O’Hoppe’s admitted struggles behind the plate have prompted many fans to wonder if the Angels were considering trying O’Hoppe at another position.
Angels general manager Perry Minasian said flatly on Wednesday that moving O’Hoppe is not a consideration.
“He’s definitely somebody that we believe in, and we think will catch for a long time,” Minasian said. “He’s gonna be a big part of this team.”
O’Hoppe’s blocking and framing numbers have been poor this season. Minasian said O’Hoppe has improved in his game-calling, which he believes is the most important job for any catcher. Minasian said O’Hoppe deserves some credit for helping navigate the pitching staff through a shutout on Tuesday night.
“He’s a young player,” Minasian said. “If we’re worried about every young player and some of their deficiencies, you wouldn’t play any of them. Nobody’s perfect, but the great thing about Logan and all of our young guys is they care and they work and they’re trying to get better every day. They learn from not only their their success. They learn from their failure too. He’s somebody that I believe in. We believe in as an organization, and we can be an outstanding catcher.”
At the other end of the spectrum is left-hander Reid Detmers, who has been so good in his role as a reliever that it has raised the question of whether he should return to the rotation.
Minasian wasn’t willing to commit to anything with Detmers for the future.
“We’ll take it day by day,” Minasian said. “I’m worried about today. I’ll worry about tomorrow tomorrow. Right now he’s in our ’pen. He’s been a big piece of our ’pen. He’s been as good as anybody in the league.”
TROUT MISSES OUT
Mike Trout came up two percentage points short of winning a starting spot in the All-Star Game.
Trout was in a four-man competition for two remaining outfield spots, along with Riley Greene and Javy Baez of the Detroit Tigers and Steven Kwan of the Cleveland Guardians. Greene (33%) and Baez (26%) won the spots by having the most votes. Trout (24%) finished third, followed by Kwan (17%).
The full All-Star rosters, with reserves and pitchers, will be announced on Sunday.
NOTES
Right-handers Chase Silseth and Caden Dana are both currently sidelined at Triple-A with what Minasian called “fatigue.” Minasian said the Angels are also taking the opportunity to give Dana a break to work on some things. Dana, the Angels’ top pitching prospect, had a 6.23 ERA in 11 starts at Triple-A. He last pitched on June 11. …
Minasian said the Angels will begin their draft meetings next week. The Angels have the No. 2 pick in the two-day draft, which will be held July 13-14. Although the Angels have taken college players with their first selection in every draft under Minasian, he left open the possibility of picking a high school player this year. “Whatever player fits,” he said. “We’re not ruling anything out, whether it’s college or high school.” …
Third baseman Yoán Moncada (right knee inflammation) is still not hitting right-handed during his workouts in Arizona, but he’s doing everything else, Montgomery said. Montgomery said he’s not sure when Moncada will start hitting from both sides of the plate. “It’s a day to day thing with him how he feels,” Montgomery said.
UP NEXT
Angels (RHP José Soriano, 5-5, 3.99 ERA) at Braves (RHP Bryce Elder, 2-5, 5.82 ERA), Thursday, 4:15 p.m. PT, FDSN West, 830 AM