ANAHEIM — Three months after he was sent to the minors, Reid Detmers is returning to the big leagues.
“I hope it’s an experience that he doesn’t ever want to go through again,” manager Ron Washington said shortly after general manager Perry Minasian revealed that Detmers would be back in the big leagues on Sunday, and start on Tuesday against the Dodgers.
Detmers, 25, is arguably the most talented pitcher in the organization, a former first-round pick good enough to throw a no-hitter in his 11th big league game.
For much of the time since then, though, the left-hander has endured a rollercoaster career that hit its low with the Angels sending him back to Triple-A in early June with a 6.14 ERA.
Early in his stint at Salt Lake, he struggled enough that there was no return in sight. That began to change about a month ago. He was effective in five of his last seven starts, including a stretch of three straight in which he allowed three earned runs in 21 innings, with 29 strikeouts.
That was finally enough for him to get the call to return.
“He had some things to work on,” Minasian said. “He’s pitched well over the last three starts. The big thing with him is just consistency. You see what he’s done over the last three starts. We felt like he’s in a great place mentally and ready to come back to pitch.”
Detmers could have three or four more starts to put a positive finish on a disappointing season.
“We’re glad he’s throwing the ball well, and we just want him to come up and be Detmers,” Washington said. “We’re not looking for anything special out of him. We’re looking for him to come up here and do the same thing we’re looking for from all our pitchers, go as deep in the ballgame as you can and give us a chance to be successful. That’s all we’re looking for. And he earned his way back.”
Detmers will have missed almost exactly half a season, which is going to leave him a couple weeks short of three years of service time at the end of the season. The soonest he can be a free agent is now after the 2028 season.
Assuming Detmers remains in the majors for the entire final month, he will have enough service time to become arbitration eligible next winter.
The Angels do not need to make a roster move to open a spot for Detmers because Sunday is Sept. 1, and teams can all increase from 13 to 14 pitchers.
Once Detmers returns, the Angels will have six starters, as he joins left-handers Tyler Anderson and Sam Aldegheri and right-handers Griffin Canning, Jack Kochanowicz and Caden Dana.
“If all six of them stay here, I guess we’ll go to a six-man rotation,” Washington said. “We haven’t talked about it yet. We may decide not to do it. But if we want to see all six of those guys pitch, that’s what we’ll do down the stretch.”
If the Angels do end up with a six-man rotation, it could help mitigate the innings jumps for the young pitchers.
Right-hander José Soriano also could return to the rotation at some point this season. Soriano has been shut down because of arm fatigue.
“We’re going to take our time with that one,” Minasian said. “We’ll make sure he feels good and is right. Nothing to update now. We’ll take it day to day.”
The Angels will also get to add one position player to the roster on Sunday, but Minasian said they were unsure who it would be. …
Top prospect Christian Moore was still being evaluated on Saturday, after coming out of a game at Double-A with an apparent knee injury on Friday, Minasian said. The second baseman was the Angels’ first-round pick in July. He began his pro career on such a hot streak that it was widely anticipated that he’d be in the majors before the end of the season, but a recent slump, and now an injury, have changed expectations. …
Right-hander Carson Fulmer said an MRI of his right elbow showed only inflammation. He said his elbow was drained. He’s planning to pitch again this season.
Mariners (RHP Bryce Miller, 10-7, 3.23) at Angels (RHP Caden Dana, major league debut), at Angel Stadium, 1:07 p.m. PT Sunday, Bally Sports West, 830 AM.
