ANAHEIM, Calif. - Mark Trumbo only got 23 at-bats in spring training before he was shut down with a right quad strain. He recently resumed playing on the farm and got in a few at-bats for Double-A Bowie and Triple-A Norfolk.
Officially on the disabled list since March 26, his season begins for real tonight. He was activated before tonight's game and is batting sixth as the designated hitter tonight in Anaheim, where he grew up and where he also played from 2010 to 2013 for the Angels.
It's opening day for Trumbo.
"It's great, it's great," he said of rejoining the active roster. "I guess this took about as much time as I originally had been told it might. I would have had gotten it going sooner than later, but it just wasn't quite ready up until recently. The assignment down in Charlotte (this past weekend) went well. I played outfield two of the days and I got tested a number of times and it all checked out.
Did he get in enough at-bats?
"I feel like I can go out there and compete," he said. "Obviously, you can never predict the results, but I was encouraged by the rehab assignment. I took some close pitches to get a few hits and I felt normal. Beyond that, that's all you can hope for."
What was the most challenging part of the rehab?
"Just forgetting about the injury, not constantly dwelling on, 'Is it there yet? Is it not there?' counting your steps when you're running," Trumbo said. "That's not where you want to be as a player, constantly guarding against an injury, so I was able to just focus on the important things out there, which was playing ball and I think that was the best indicator right away."
As for tonight's game: The Orioles and Angels are 0-0 in the fourth. Manny Machado doubled with two outs in the first, but was stranded. Right-hander Alex Cobb looks much more like his old self tonight. He needed just 26 pitches to get the first six batters in order over two innings. He then needed 24 to pitch out of a bases-loaded jam in the third. He has gotten eight groundball outs already.
Still zeros: The game went to the last of the sixth tied 0-0. Machado's double in the first is the Orioles only hit and they are 1-for-19 at-bat. Mike Trout has been walked intentionally twice and Cobb has pitched out of jams in the third, fourth and fifth, stranding six runners in those three innings.
The Angels' Albert Pujols just flied out to start the home sixth and he is 0-for-3 tonight. Pujols still needs four more hits to become the 32nd member of the 3,000-hit club.
Not now: The Angels scored twice in the sixth to lead 2-0. With two outs Andrelton Simmons doubled. Machado took a relay throw and tried to throw behind him at second, and the ball went into the stands for a throwing error, with Simmons scoring to break the 0-0 tie. Luis Valbuena followed with his fourth homer and the O's are down by two runs.
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