Los Angeles Angels’ manager Mike Scioscia talks about Scott Kazmir’s changed approach – MLB Update
Scott Kazmir was placed on the disabled list on 3 April after a disappointing game against the Kansas City Royals. The Los Angeles Angels’ starter suffered soreness in his lower back and found himself back at home with independent pitching coach, Ron Wolforth,
for three days.
Kazmir’s aim is to try to get back to being the free willed pitcher from the Tampa Bay Rays.
The pitcher is tired of checking his position on delivering throws. He is also sick of spending time worrying about his mechanics and his hitters connecting. The ace is now trying to get back to basics and he has the support from his skipper, Mike Scioscia.
The manager has sent the pitcher to Arizona in an effort to get some bull-pen sessions and a game with Triple-A Salt Lake.
"What he did was release-point oriented. The back feels good. He's got all that behind him. Hopefully, he can get in touch with the things he needs. With the release point, it's a feel for where the ball and body need to be. Right now, it's missing. He's
got to work back into his length, work a couple [controlled games], then take it to a higher level game - Triple-A - and put pitches together."
The pitcher has a lot of expectations on the front and his mission is to get some more wins out of this season. The 27-year-old still has a lot of years in the tank and many fans will hope he stays with the Angels. The last time Kazmir played well in a season
was in 2009. He went 10-9 in 26 game starts. Unfortunately, things soured in 2010 when he played 28 fixtures and tallied a wins to losses figure of 9-15.
The Angels have played the pitcher in one game already and that has got him an earned run average of 27. For safety reasons, Kazmir is not in the mix for the club. The Angels are hoping the pitcher can pull out of this predicament and get back on track.
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