ANAHEIM — Mike Trout’s progress toward a return to right field has stalled.
Trout said on Sunday that he hasn’t done drills in the outfield since Tuesday because of continuing soreness in his left knee.
Trout still feels well enough to be in the lineup as the DH, so he doesn’t seem willing to jeopardize that by pushing himself to play right field.
“As long as I’m in the lineup, that’s the biggest thing,” Trout said. “It’s manageable right now.”
Trout, 33, suffered a bone bruise in his left knee in late April. He tore the meniscus in that knee last year, requiring two surgeries.
Trout missed four weeks with the bone bruise, and has only been the DH since. He’s started 49 of 51 games since then, all at DH.
The motivation to get him back into the outfield, at least some of the time, is because it would allow other players get off their feet in the DH spot. Jorge Soler has been on the injured list twice with back problems since he’s been forced to play so much outfield. He acknowledged on Saturday night that it’s been a problem for him.
Trout began doing outfield drills after the All-Star break, working out for two days last weekend in Philadelphia and two more earlier this week in New York. That’s when he had to stop.
“Last few days, it’s been achy little bit, been barking a bit,” Trout said. “So just slow some things down a little bit. Still trying to get back out there for sure. When I ramped up the intensity, it was getting more sore, more sore. Just trying to stay in the lineup.”
Trout said he’s also felt it when running the bases, and occasionally when he’s hitting. He’s not sure when he’ll resume outfield work, but he hasn’t given up.
“It’s up in the air,” Trout said. “I could come in tomorrow and feel fine. I don’t know. The goal is still to get in the outfield by the end of the year.”
Trout was hitting .233 with an .818 OPS heading into Sunday’s game, including .266 with an .868 OPS since coming off the injured list. Interim manager Ray Montgomery moved him from the No. 3 spot to the No. 2 spot, in recognition of his .412 on-base percentage since coming back.
Trout has slumped more recently, with a .200 average and .697 OPS since the All-Star break.
“I was feeling really good before the break,” Trout said. “Came back, felt OK. I think when the lower half is working properly, everything’s in place. Just right now, coming across the ball a little bit.”
Trout is also sitting on 999 career RBIs and 396 homers.
KOCHANOWICZ TO RETURN?
The Angels still haven’t announced their starter for Monday, but Montgomery acknowledged that right-hander Jack Kochanowicz “is one of the options, for sure.”
Kochanowicz was pulled from the rotation and sent to Triple-A before the All-Star break. He started once for Salt Lake, allowing one unearned run in five innings, and was scratched from his next start.
During his one outing in the minors, Kochanowicz threw only his sinker, with no four-seam fastballs. Montgomery said they will want Kochanowicz to have both fastballs in his arsenal, but he needed to make sure his sinker was dialed in because that’s his best pitch.
Kochanowicz had a 6.03 ERA in 19 starts in the majors before he was demoted.
Victor Mederos, the other pitcher previously thought to be an option, started on Sunday for Salt Lake.
NOTES
Second baseman Christian Moore (sprained thumb) continued to increase his workload, both defensively and swinging the bat. Montgomery said he doesn’t know the timeline for how quickly Moore could be ready for a rehab assignment. …
Third baseman Yoán Moncada was out of the lineup on Sunday after being hit in the hand by a pitch on Saturday. Montgomery said he wasn’t sure if Moncada would be available later in the game.
UP NEXT
Rangers (RHP Jacob deGrom, 10-2, 2.28) at Angels (TBD), Monday, 6:38 p.m., FanDuel Sports Network West, 830 AM