Joe Maddon puts Justin Upton back at the top of the Angels’ order – OCRegister

August 8, 2021

LOS ANGELES — Joe Maddon is giving the leadoff experiment another try with Justin Upton.

Maddon returned the veteran middle-of-the-order hitter to the top of the lineup on Saturday, hoping to replicate what happened when he put Upton in that spot for the first time in his career back in May.

“I just want to get him going if we can,” Maddon said. “It worked last time. … We could really use him playing at the same level he had.”

Upton was hitting .188 with a .661 OPS on May 23, when Maddon put him at the leadoff spot. Over the next 25 games, Upton hit .326 with a 1.020 OPS. At the time Upton said he liked hitting leadoff, but the improvement was more because of changes he made with his swing than his spot in the batting order.

Then he missed a month with a back injury. During that time, David Fletcher returned to the leadoff spot and got hot enough to have a 26-game hitting streak, so when Upton returned on July 22, Maddon didn’t want to mess with Fletcher.

Upton hit .140 with a .458 OPS in the 13 games since he came off the injured list, batting third and fourth.

On Saturday he finally tried leadoff again with Upton, repeating an exercise he has done with other similar hitters before.

“A lot of times with more substantial hitters, guys that you would think are more power hitters than just trying to set a table kind of guy, I think it’s just a mindset,” Maddon said. “In the three or four hole, you’re always trying to do bigger things, driving in runs and hitting homers. Whereas if for whatever reason you’re hitting (leadoff), your main objective is to get on base. So a lot of times plate discipline enters the picture. Then all of a sudden, you stop chasing because you’re trying to get on base for everybody else.”

There is another significant difference with Upton in the leadoff spot this time, compared with last time.

Upton was an everyday player then. Maddon said this week that Jo Adell and Brandon Marsh are going to be the everyday outfielders, with Upton and Adam Eaton splitting time. With Upton getting most of his starts against left-handed pitchers, that limits his opportunities to get hot.

COBB UPDATE

Alex Cobb said he is scheduled to play catch on Tuesday, which will be his first time throwing since he went on the injured list with a wrist injury.

While some pitchers could be weeks away from a return after taking two weeks off from throwing, Cobb suggested he might get a little more leeway because of his veteran status.

“I don’t think I’m in the same boat as a 23-year-old prospect,” Cobb said on Saturday. “I think the training staff will listen to my opinion and we’ll be able to come up with (a plan).”

Cobb is set to be a free agent at the end of this season, which could present conflicting motivations. He certainly wants to show other teams that he’s healthy, but he also doesn’t want to risk suffering a more serious injury before free agency.

He said none of that matters to him, though.

“Proving to teams that I’m healthy and this and that, it’s not a focal point,” Cobb said. “I know, it just sounds like a soundbite. But it’s not. I’m not like I’m losing sleep over what another organization thinks of me. I know what I can do when I’m playing.”

NOTES

The Angels will start Chris Rodriguez and José Suarez in Tuesday’s doubleheader against the Toronto Blue Jays at Angel Stadium. Rodriguez is currently optioned, but he can return as the 27th-man for the doubleheader. Dylan Bundy will start on Wednesday and Shohei Ohtani will start on Thursday…

A weekend of games without the designated hitter has prompted questions for Maddon once again about whether Ohtani could play the outfield. Maddon said it’s still too much of an unknown. “I don’t know if it’s going to lead to fatigue,” Maddon said. “I don’t know that. This is one of those things we have to continue to wrap our minds around. When we have a comfort level with it, you’re going to see it.”…

The Angels claimed catcher Chad Wallach on waivers from the Dodgers and assigned him to Triple-A. Wallach, 29, has a career .207 average and .574 OPS in parts of four big league seasons with the Cincinnati Reds and Miami Marlins. He is the son of longtime major leaguer Tim Wallach…

The Angels designated Anthony Bemboom for assignment to make room for Wallach.