SAN DIEGO — As Kyren Paris sees his numbers plummet, the memories of his hot start remain fresh in his mind.
“The confidence is definitely there,” the Angels outfielder said. “Definitely knowing that I’ve already done this. Just understanding what I need to do to get back to where I was.”
Paris, 23, was one of the most pleasant surprises of the first two weeks of the season, when he hit .419 with five home runs and a 1.514 OPS in his first 12 games.
No one expected him to keep up that pace, but the correction was more of a crash. Since then, Paris has hit .115 with a .348 OPS and strikeouts in 42 of 83 plate appearances. That included an 0-for-25 slump.
Paris had a five-game stretch last week in which he had five hits and two walks, giving some hope, but since then he’s gone 1 for 17 with 10 strikeouts. Heading into Tuesday’s game, Paris had struck out in six straight at-bats.
Yet, he was still in the lineup.
“The reason why I keep putting him out there is because I don’t see him losing his confidence,” Angels manager Ron Washington said. “That’s maturity. He’s working and he has confidence that he’s able to do something.”
Confidence alone won’t reverse the numbers, though.
In order to start having some success, Paris needs to stop striking out so much, Washington said.
Washington said hitting coach Johnny Washington and the other coaches “are working with him diligently on trying to get him to cut his swing down with two strikes. If he can do that, I don’t think he’ll have as many strikeouts as he has.”
Paris said it’s a matter of “being consistent with everything I do every day, and not missing my pitch when I get it.”
TROUT UPDATE
Mike Trout, who is out with a bruised left knee, did some agility drills on the field on Tuesday.
Trout said that running on the treadmill a day earlier went well. He said he was running on 50% of his body weight on the Alter G treadmill.
REHABBING RELIEVERS
Right-hander Robert Stephenson, who is rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, began his rehab assignment on Tuesday with Class-A Inland Empire.
The maximum length of a rehab assignment for a pitcher is 30 days, although pitchers who are coming back from ulnar collateral ligament surgery can have that extended up to another 30 days. Stephenson is not expected to require more than about a month because he’s a reliever.
Right-hander Sam Bachman, who was out with thoracic outlet syndrome, is a week into his rehab assignment. He pitched for the third time on Tuesday, and the first time at Triple-A. Bachman worked a scoreless inning, with his fastball topping at 98 mph.
Although Bachman’s rehab assignment is expiring in about three weeks, he still has options so the Angels wouldn’t need to activate him then.
UP NEXT
Angels (RHP Kyle Hendricks, 1-4, 5.30 ERA) at Padres (RHP Randy Vasquez, 2-3, 3.76 ERA), Wednesday, 6:40 p.m., FDSN West, 830 AM