OC Register: Angels’ Reid Detmers looks to maintain highs and eliminate lows

[AngelsWin.com]

TEMPE, Ariz. — Reid Detmers is hoping to smooth out the rollercoaster that the first years of his career have been.

The Angels’ 24-year-old lefty has started 53 games over the last two seasons, at times looking like one of the Angels best pitchers and at other times looking like one of the worst.

“Consistency is a huge part of this game, which is what I’ve been lacking over the last few years,” Detmers said on Thursday. “I would fall into a rut and not know how to get out of it.”

Detmers said he worked over the winter at refining his mechanics, and he finally has an idea of what he needs to do to fix his delivery when it goes awry.

“I learned a lot about my mechanics,” he said. “When I get off track, I know how to get back on track.”

So far there’s been plenty of both for Detmers, who was the Angels’ first-round pick in 2020 and made his debut with a five-game cameo in 2021.

Detmers pitched a no-hitter on May 10, 2022, and he posted a 2.63 ERA over a five-start stretch. After that he was so bad for a month that he was dispatched to Triple-A for one game. He tweaked his slider and returned to the majors, pitching to a 3.04 ERA over his final 13 starts.

That finish was so encouraging that many predicted Detmers for a breakout season in 2023, particularly because his offseason work had upped his velocity. Detmers said last spring his goal was to win 20 games.

He won four, with a 4.48 ERA.

Detmers now believes that his slider was actually too hard, touching the low 90s instead of the mid 80s. He had a 5.27 ERA when he made some more changes to his slider, allowing him to finish with a 2.41 ERA over his final seven starts.

During the strong finish, Detmers was actually throwing two sliders, a harder one and a softer one. Although at the time he said he enjoyed the flexibility of having two pitches, he now admits that wasn’t really the plan.

“It wasn’t meant to be two sliders,” he said. “The slider just did not feel good coming out of the hand. I didn’t know what it was going to do.”

Now, Detmers said he’s just got one slider, and it’s somewhere in between the hard and soft ones he was throwing at the end of last season. He also said he’s been encouraged by the improvement of his changeup, to go along with his fastball and curve.

How all of that shakes out remains to be seen.

Detmers clearly has the talent to be a frontline starter, but so far he hasn’t strung together enough consistency to do it. He is optimistic but said he’s not making any predictions about the numbers.

“I’m not going to put any standard on my performance,”  he said. “I’ll leave it up to the gallery. I think I can be as good as anybody. It’s all about confidence, and I don’t lack any confidence.”

BACHMAN UPDATE

Right-hander Sam Bachman, who had arthroscopic shoulder surgery last fall, said he won’t be ready for Opening Day.

Bachman said he has “hit all my milestones” in recovery from the surgery, but nonetheless the Angels are going to take it slow.

“Based on where we’re at right now, we’re just keeping it a week at a time and being smart,” Bachman said. “I don’t think it would be smart, or logical to be ready for the first month this season and you know, have a hiccup along the way.”

The Angels’ first-round pick in 2021, Bachman reached the majors as a reliever last season. He had a 3.18 ERA in 17 innings before suffering a shoulder injury that cost him the last three months.

Bachman is currently penciled in to be minor league rotation depth. He said he appreciates a return to starting, after working in relief last season.

“That’s been my dream,” he said. “That’s what I’m designed to do. I’m super excited to do that again.”

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NOTES

Left-hander Drew Pomeranz, who is in camp on a minor league deal, said he is “full go,” in his effort to return to the majors for the first time since 2021. Pomeranz had elbow surgery that August and had dealt with several setbacks since. “Pushing from bullpens to game speed is where I had real trouble,” Pomeranz said. “I kept getting reinjured and reinjured. It’s pretty frustrating trying to figure out what’s going on… I feel good right now, probably the same point I would have in any spring training coming in.” …

Manager Ron Washington said right-hander Zach Plesac will open the spring as a candidate for the rotation. Plesac, however, could still wind up in the bullpen or even the minors. The top five Angels starters heading into camp are left-handers Patrick Sandoval, Tyler Anderson and Detmers and right-handers Griffin Canning and Chase Silseth. …

Major league baseball is emphasizing obstruction rules this season in an effort to keep infielders from blocking bases. Washington said it’s a good change. “I’m glad they’ve taken some steps to correct it,” Washington said. “Too many times these middle infielders are blocking the base, so I’m glad they’re doing it. It won’t be that much of an adjustment for middle infielders. Before we started this trickery stuff, they were doing it the right way. So they just gotta go back to doing it the right way.”

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[Vlad27Trout27]

Biggest thing for Detmers from my point of view, is that his stuff his just too hard. I think using two sliders and adding more of his curve will help him take that next step. 

[Angelsjunky]

Deja vu