HOUSTON — Although Joe Maddon had to tell Kenny Rosenberg that his first stint in the major leagues was over after one inning, the Angels’ manager still had a glowing report on the left-hander.
“I love his delivery,” Maddon said. “I love his poise. This guy has that thing that he thinks he belongs here already, which I love. He’s going to be very productive in the future.”
Rosenberg, 26, needed nearly six years to reach the big leagues after pitching in college at Cal State Northridge. When he finally got his chance to pitch an inning against the heart of the Houston Astros’ lineup on Monday night, it was a dream come true.
“It’s something I was looking forward to pretty much my entire life,” Rosenberg said Tuesday. “You always wonder how it’s gonna go. You visualize that moment. You never know what it’s gonna be like until it happens.”
What happened was that Rosenberg started off by facing José Siri, a hitter he knew well from their matchups in the minor leagues. He struck him out on three pitches.
Rosenberg then issued a four-pitch walk to Martin Maldonado, bringing up the top of the Houston order. Although he gave up a run, he avoided further damage by ending the inning with a strikeout of slugger Yordan Alvarez, who had hit two homers earlier in the game.
“I thought I would be nervous, but I don’t think nervous is the right word,” Rosenberg said. “I think it’s just so much anticipation. Years’ worth of anticipation really. When you finally know that it’s close, and then they call your name in the bullpen, that’s when it hits.”
For now, Rosenberg will have to be content with a single inning. The Angels optioned him back to Triple-A on Tuesday to get another fresh arm, right-hander Andrew Wantz. Rosenberg is now on the 40-man roster, though, so it’s likely that he’ll be back.
TROUT UPDATE
Center fielder Mike Trout was out of the lineup for a second straight game with a bruised left hand, the result of getting hit by a pitch on Sunday.
Maddon said that Trout had shown improvement on Tuesday, and he tested his hand with some swings in the cage, so it’s possible the three-time American League MVP could return to the lineup on Wednesday.
“Although he made a lot of progress from yesterday till today, let’s wait for the night to be concluded,” Maddon said before Tuesday’s game. “See what he feels like tomorrow. There’s a shot (he could play).”
MAYERS IMPROVES
Mike Mayers started the season by allowing five earned runs in his first two games, but in the last two, he has pitched 2-1/3 scoreless innings. He entered on Monday night with the bases loaded and one out, and he escaped without any of the runners scoring.
“He was pulling a lot of his pitches,” Maddon said of Mayers’ first games. “The last couple have been more in attack mode. The slider’s been sharper for a strike, not just to be chased. That’s the big difference with him, when he’s spotting up his slider where they’re going to take it and it’s called. That’s when he pitches pretty well. When he’s just relying on chase all the time, big leaguers don’t chase a lot.”
NOTES
Andrew Velazquez has made an impression on Maddon with his defense, including a spectacular diving stop over the middle on Monday. Maddon said there’s a chance that Velazquez would stay at shortstop even when David Fletcher returns, with Fletcher playing second. They also could keep Velazquez as a defensive replacement. “That’s a real shortstop,” Maddon said of Velazquez. “That guy’s legit.” …
Right-hander Griffin Canning threw 20 pitches in a bullpen session on Tuesday, his first time off the mound since he suffered a setback in his rehab from a back injury before the start of spring training. Canning said he’ll throw around 25 pitches in his next session on Friday. Canning is on the 60-day injured list, so he’s not eligible to be activated until June 4.
UP NEXT
Angels (RHP Shohei Ohtani, 0-2, 7.56) at Astros (RHP Jake Odorizzi, 0-1, 6.48), Wednesday, 3:40 p.m.
