ANAHEIM — On the same day that José Soriano struggled in the big leagues, showing signs that led the Angels to place on him on the injured list with arm fatigue, Reid Detmers had his best start of the season in Triple-A.
It would be easy for the Angels to justify bringing Detmers back to the majors to take Soriano’s spot in the rotation, which comes up on Wednesday.
As of now, though, Ron Washington isn’t giving any hints as to what the Angels will do.
“When you look down in our minor leagues, we’ve got quite a few candidates, but a decision hasn’t been made,” Washington said on Sunday morning. “When that decision is made, you guys will be the first to know.”
Detmers, 25, is arguably the most talented pitcher in the entire organization, with stuff that helped him to a no-hitter in 2022 and other months-long stretches of high level pitching.
In between that, though, he’s often looked lost on a big league mound, resulting in his demotion to Triple-A in early June.
Detmers has a 6.37 ERA in 12 starts with Salt Lake. On Friday, he gave up one run on three hits in eight innings, striking out 11.
“It was outstanding,” Washington said.
Asked to elaborate on what Detmers needs to demonstrate to again be a big leaguer, Washington said: “He is a big leaguer. It’s just a matter of him finding some consistency. That’s where I’m going to leave it. Detmers is a big leaguer. We are not burying Detmers. You don’t think we want him in our rotation? When that decision is to be made, he will be here. It’s not like he’s waiting in September to get a call up. We’ve just got to wait and see when the decision is made. I can’t sit here and make that decision. It’s a collaboration.”
Pitching coach Barry Enright said earlier this month, after Detmers had back-to-back solid starts, that he believed he was almost ready to return to the majors. Detmers then gave up six runs in each of his next two starts, before finally getting back on track on Friday.
Those two rough starts could have some long-term implications for the Angels and Detmers.
If Detmers does not return to the big leagues by Monday, he will be unable to accrue enough major league service time this season to reach three years. That means the soonest he could become a free agent would be after the 2028 season. He otherwise could have become a free agent after the 2027 season.
Detmers can still become arbitration-eligible for 2025 if he accrues another 20 days of service time this season.
As for the other options to take Soriano’s spot, right-hander Sam Bachman gave up one run in six innings on Thursday, his second Triple-A start.
Veteran Johnny Cueto could also be an option. Cueto has allowed two runs in 12-1/3 innings in his last two starts at Triple-A.
Right-hander Caden Dana, the Angels top pitching prospect, has a 2.74 ERA in 21 Double-A starts.
“This kid is 20 years old in his first full season,” Washington said. “We want him to be successful. As far as him getting here, I’m not going to say he might not get here, but we’re not having a conversation about it. One thing we don’t want to do is destroy minds, and this game, at the major league level, can destroy minds. He’s on the radar, but I don’t know what’s going to happen because it’s beyond my decision-making.”
The Angels recalled right-hander Victor Mederos and designated right-hander José Cisnero for assignment. Mederos, 23, reached the majors in 2023, but he’s got a 6.56 ERA in the minors this season. He was recently demoted from Double-A to Class-A. “He’s got length, and he’s got stuff,” Washington said. “Right now we’re searching for length. And we think his stuff is capable of playing, so we’ve just got to see how he handles it.” …
Anthony Rendon was out of the lineup for a second straight game after he was hit in the right elbow by a pitch on Friday. Washington said that Rendon has improved, and he planned on putting him back in the lineup on Monday in Kansas City.
Angels (RHP Carson Fulmer, 0-3, 4.22) at Royals (RHP Seth Lugo, 13-7, 3.04) at Kauffman Stadium, 5:10 p.m. PT Monday, Bally Sports West, 830 AM.
