SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Angels infielder Zack Cozart, who was diagnosed with a Grade 1 left calf strain on Tuesday, said on Monday that he’s confident he will be ready for Opening Day on March 28 against the A’s.

Cozart began taking batting practice on Saturday and he progressed to participating in light running drills on Monday. He’s already been throwing without any issues and he will continue to progress with more intense running drills and infield drills before he’s cleared to play in a game.

“No doubt in my mind. I would say 100 percent I will make Opening Day, in my mind,” Cozart said. “I feel way better. We’re going slow with it, but I don’t see that being an issue.”

Cozart said he’s likely to play in a few Minor League games before seeing action in the Cactus League, but that he should have enough time to get ready for the regular season. He’s mostly seeing action at third base this spring, which means third baseman Taylor Ward could open the season at Triple-A Rochester with David Fletcher the favorite to win the second base job over prospect Luis Rengifo.

“He still has some hurdles to cross, but he’s definitely moving forward,” manager Brad Ausmus said. “It’s been all positive news on the comeback trail. When he comes back, you’ll see him at third base to start, and we can always move him to second base, if necessary.”

Harvey scuffles

Right-hander Matt Harvey, making his second start of the spring, was charged with four runs on five hits and a walk over 1 1/3 innings against the Rangers on Monday. He wasn't helped by a pair of errors, including one on a pickoff throw to second, and a bloop single. Harvey came away displeased by his outing but he said he's feeling fine physically and is happy with his current velocity, from 91-94 mph, at this point in spring.

"It was rough," Harvey said. "I didn't feel that great going out there. It just felt tough getting things going. It's something that's definitely happened in the past with Spring Training. But I should've done a better job of locating pitches. I felt like I left a lot of pitches over the middle and felt out of whack. But that's expected in Spring Training. I'm not happy with it and it's something to work on."

Kruger goes deep

Catcher Jack Kruger, ranked as the club's No. 24 prospect by MLB Pipeline, had a big day at the plate, hitting a three-run homer in the seventh and ripping a three-run triple in the ninth to tie the game in the eventual 12-11 win.

"He's just growing as an offensive player," Ausmus said. "He hit both of those balls hard. The homer to right-center was impressive."

Injury updates

Shohei Ohtani resumed his throwing program on Monday with 10 throws from 10 feet, 35 throws from 30-40 feet and then 10 final light throws from 10 feet. He also hit 15 balls off a tee and 25 during soft toss drills. Ohtani will continue to throw every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and there is no timetable for his progression to taking batting practice.

Right fielder Justin Upton, who has been sidelined with right knee tendinitis, took batting practice on Monday and he is expected to play in a few Minor League games this week. If all goes well, he could make his Cactus League debut by this weekend.

Angels sign 22 to Major League deals

The Angels announced they signed all 22 of their pre-arbitration players to contracts on Monday. Notably, Ohtani will reportedly earn $650,000, which is $95,000 more than the Major League minimum. Clubs can assign any salary above the minimum to non-arbitration eligible players and generally have a formula based on performance to determine a salary. For comparison's sake, the last two reigning Rookie of the Year Award winners had slightly lower salaries than Ohtani with the Dodgers' Cody Bellinger making $585,000 last year and the Yankees' Aaron Judge earning $622,000.

Up next

After an off-day on Tuesday, Angels right-hander Jaime Barria will start against the Padres at 6:10 p.m. PT on Wednesday at Tempe Diablo Stadium. Barria, who is considered the favorite for the fifth starter job over Felix Pena, has posted a 3.38 ERA in two starts with four strikeouts and four walks in eight innings. Prospect Chris Paddack will start for San Diego.