Rengifo hopes to improve, get bigger role at shortstop

HOUSTON >> Joe Maddon still envisions Luis Rengifo as a super utility player.

Rengifo is still trying to prove he can be more.

Asked on Friday if he agrees with his manager’s vision, Rengifo shrugged and offered a lukewarm response.

“I love baseball,” he said. “If someone says ‘Do you want to play that position?’, I’ll do it, because I want the opportunity to play. Right now I’ll play shortstop or another position.”

Asked for his preference, Rengifo was clear: “I’ve played all my career at shortstop.”

The Angels don’t have an obvious answer at shortstop for next season.

They could go after anyone in a strong free agent class, but if they decide to instead use their resources on pitching, they could just let Jack Mayfield or Rengifo fight for the chance to start.

So far Rengifo, 24, has not shown enough in his big league career for anyone to expect him to become an everyday shortstop.

He’s a career .211 hitter with a .612 OPS.

In his current stint in the big leagues, though, Rengifo has shown a few more glimpses of what the Angels had hoped he could become.

He has made one spectacular play at shortstop — and one error that led to four unearned runs — but he’s been solid on all the routine plays.

“I’ve worked on a lot of things at shortstop with my hands and feet,” Rengifo said. “I feel way better right now.”

He hit .326 with a .915 OPS during the month at Triple-A since his last time in the big leagues.

He is 3 for 12 with a home run in his current stint in the big leagues.

Besides what he said are improvements with his mechanics on defense and at the plate, he’s improved his conditioning since he was last in the majors. Rengifo said he has increased his workouts and been more careful about what he eats.

He said he’s down about five pounds since the start of the season, and he’s cut his body fat from 8 percent to about 6 or 7 percent.

“I feel faster and quicker when I take ground balls and with my swings,” he said. “I’m seeing the results.”

Cobb update

Alex Cobb, who is out with wrist inflammation, impressed Maddon with how he looked during a three-inning simulated game on Friday afternoon in Houston, which could be the final workout before he returns.

“He kept getting better during the three innings,” Maddon said. “The last pitch he threw was a great backdoor two-seamer to a right-handed hitter. Curveball, a little bit of slider and a split. Velocity

was where it was supposed to be. He said as he was pitching he got lost in his thoughts didn’t even think about his wrist. So it was a good day.”

Maddon said if Cobb comes out of the workout feeling good in the coming days, his next outing could be in a major league game.

The Angels have an off day on Monday before a three-game series with the White Sox in Chicago. Packy Naughton, who threw five scoreless innings last Tuesday in San Diego, would be the natural choice to go next Tuesday, but then Cobb could be inserted into either of the last two games in Chicago.

Notes

Mike Trout continues to travel with the Angels, although there is still no word on when he might increase his baseball work toward a return or abandon hopes for this season. Maddon said earlier in the week that Trout wants to keep trying, so the Angels are allowing him to do that. ... Pitchers Reid Detmers, Austin Warren and José Marte, who are all on the COVID-related injured list, are continuing to throw. Each is trying to make up for time lost while quarantined in hotel rooms for 10 days. “They’re all getting to the point we’re getting close to being able to give you a date when they’re going to pitch,” Maddon said.