Angels demote Jack Kochanowicz after another poor outing
ANAHEIM — The Angels optioned struggling right-hander Jack Kochanowicz to Triple-A Salt Lake on Friday, recalling left-hander Jake Eder for bullpen depth and buying some time to weigh rotation options for Kochanowicz’s replacement.
“It’s tough only in the sense of, listen, we need him, and we want him to be a part of what we’re doing,” interim manager Ray Montgomery said of Kochanowicz, who went 3-9 with a 6.03 ERA, a major league-worst for qualified starters, in 19 games.
“I’ve been in the game a long time, and going down to the minor leagues to get yourself right is what it’s for. He has to go get some things worked out, and he’ll be back.”
Kochanowicz, who was rocked for eight runs and eight hits in 2⅔ innings in Thursday night’s 11-4 loss to the Texas Rangers, must remain in the minor leagues for 15 days barring injury to another Angels pitcher, making him ineligible to return until July 26.
The Angels, the only team in baseball to use the same five starting pitchers this season, will need a fifth starter for a July 22 game in New York against the Mets, the fifth game after the All-Star break.
Veteran right-hander Carson Fulmer, who relieved Kochanowicz on Thursday and threw 88 pitches over 5⅓ innings, allowing three runs and five hits, could be a short-term option. Among the other in-house options are minor leaguers Victor Mederos, Sam Aldegheri and Ryan Johnson.
Asked Thursday night if the Angels would consider moving starter-turned-reliever Reid Detmers back to the rotation, Montgomery said, “I would hate to say no to anything.”
But by Friday, the Angels seemed intent on leaving Detmers in the bullpen, where the left-hander has allowed just three earned runs in 27 innings over his last 26 games.
“Ultimately, I don’t think [the decision] would fall entirely on me,” Montgomery said. “But I just don’t know why you would want to take a guy who’s having the kind of success he’s having and kind of mess with that.”
Kochanowicz, 24, a sinker ball specialist who has induced 19 double-play ground balls, the second-most in the American League, said Thursday night that he has struggled to figure out what secondary pitches to lean on when his sinker is being hit hard.
“I want him to be more selfish in who he is on the mound and really take control of the game and not defer and look for others,” Montgomery said, when asked what he wants Kochanowicz to focus on in the minor leagues.
“I think that’s the growth of young pitchers, when they start to learn what their strengths are. … The big thing for him is understanding that there’s a plan in place for him to work on certain things to make sure that those don’t happen again when he returns.”
ALL-STAR SHUTOUT
Barring a last-minute substitution, the Angels will not have a representative in Tuesday night’s All-Star Game in Atlanta after their lone American League All-Star, pitcher Yusei Kikuchi, bowed out of the game on Friday.
Kikuchi, who is 3-6 with a 3.02 ERA in 19 starts, is scheduled to pitch against Arizona on Saturday night and will likely start the team’s first game out of the break in Philadelphia next Friday. The left-hander plans to attend the All-Star festivities at Truist Park, but he was replaced on the active roster by Tampa Bay right-hander Drew Rasmussen.
“You just don’t get named to these things very often, so we kind of left it in his hands if he chose not to [play],” Montgomery said. “I get it from Yusei’s side – I mean, that’s an honorable thing to do, because it’s quite an honor to be an All-Star.”
Montgomery thought outfielder Jo Adell, who entered Friday with a .247 batting average, .815 OPS, 19 home runs and 53 RBIs, would have been a good replacement for Seattle outfielder Julio Rodriguez, who also bowed out of the game on Friday, but Rodriguez was replaced by fellow Mariners outfielder Randy Arozarena.
UP NEXT
Diamondbacks (RHP Zac Gallen, 7-9, 5.15 ERA) at Angels (LHP Yusei Kikuchi, 3-6, 3.02 ERA), Saturday, 6:38 p.m., FDSN West, 830 AM