Simmons 'ready to go' after shoulder scare

Shoemaker allows six runs vs. Cubs; Pena impressing in relief bid

March 9th, 2018

TEMPE, Ariz. -- gave the Angels a brief scare after he rolled awkwardly on his left shoulder while diving for a ball Thursday, but the club can now breathe a sigh of relief.
Simmons, who was diagnosed with a shoulder strain and is considered day to day, said Friday that he feels fine and doesn't expect to be sidelined for long.
"I'm ready to go today if they let me," Simmons said.
The Angels, for their part, decided to play it safe with their Gold Glove Award-winning shortstop, who was out of Friday's lineup and did not join his teammates on the field for stretching and drills. Manager Mike Scioscia said Simmons received treatment and would not swing a bat on Friday.
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"It's just a little bump in the road right now," Scioscia said. "We'll take it day by day and see when he's back out there."
Simmons tweaked his shoulder after attempting to field 's single to left field in the fifth inning of the Angels' 7-3 loss to the A's at Hohokam Stadium. He admitted that there was a moment when he feared the injury might be serious.
"For a quick second, it was hard to get my shoulder to come back," Simmons said. "But after I was like, 'OK, my shoulder is OK,' I felt that I was going to be fine. I didn't hear any crazy noises or feel anything weird. My arm got stuck a little bit, so it took a quick second to release it. I knew it wasn't going to be anything bad."
In other injury news, outfielder Chris Young took live batting practice Friday as he continues to recover from a strained calf that has kept him out of action for most of camp.
Shoemaker struggles
Right-hander endured a rough start in the Angels' 6-1 loss to the Cubs at Sloan Park on Friday, giving up six runs on eight hits over 3 2/3 innings The bulk of the damage came on a pair of two-run homers, by in the third and in the fourth.

"I think Shoe felt good and really had a good split today," Scioscia said in a postgame interview with Fox Sports West. "Didn't quite locate the fastball like he wanted to. He lost some counts and then they got on some fastballs, hung a split and a slider. But he got to his pitch count, got into the fourth inning. It's a step forward for him, for sure."

Camp battle
Right-hander , who has struck out seven over five scoreless innings this spring, has been among the relievers who have impressed so far in camp.
"I think he's a young arm that's developing," Scioscia said. "I think he's finding his command. He's made some little changes to his tempo, and there's no doubt he's got a big arm."
Acquired from the Cubs over the offseason, Pena could be a candidate to replace as the Angels' multi-inning reliever in 2018.
Second round of cuts
The Angels sent four players to Minor League camp on Friday: outfielder and pitchers , and . Diaz, a Colombian right-hander, never arrived at big league camp due to visa issues.
Up next
 The Angels will play a pair of split-squad games against the Giants on Saturday. Left-hander will make his third Cactus League start at Tempe Diablo Stadium, while right-hander will make his fourth appearance of the spring in Scottsdale. The home game will begin at 12:10 p.m. PT and can be viewed on MLB.TV.