ANAHEIM — Ben Joyce was in a jam Tuesday night, holding a two-run lead in the eighth inning with runners on the corners and one out.
The Angels right-hander had one thought in his mind though.
“I feel like I’m one pitch away in that situation,” Joyce said Wednesday.
That “one pitch” was his new sinker, which he used to get a ground ball. Shortstop Zach Neto fielded it by the bag and started a double play.
So far opponents have put 10 balls in play against Joyce’s new pitch, and eight of them have been on the ground.
“It’s very valuable,” Joyce said. “I want to be able to throw back-to-back or three days in a row, so quick ground ball outs will always be a good thing. It’s been very beneficial to have that in the arsenal.”
Joyce, 23, began the season with a repertoire that included a four-seam fastball that could touch 103 mph, and a slider in the mid- to upper-80s. That combination worked at times, but both of those pitches are mostly going to be whiffs or balls. That can lead to, at best, a high pitch count. At worst, he would fall behind in the count and have to come over the middle. And big-league hitters can hit fastballs over the middle, no matter how hard they are.
Joyce began experimenting with a sinker, which is a two-seam fastball. He talked to the other pitchers on the staff and tried the various grips that they used. He found the most comfortable to be the grip he copied from Hunter Strickland.
It’s a grip that is a cross between a splitter and a sinker, so Joyce calls it a “splinker.” Right-hander José Soriano throws a similar pitch.
Joyce said he only practiced with it for a short time before he was ready to bring it out in a game, on June 14 in San Francisco.
The computers that classify pitches for StatCast need to be “trained” to know what to look for from certain pitchers. Because Joyce had never thrown anything like that in the majors, the pitch at first was called a changeup, even though it was 97-98 mph.
In the five games that Joyce has thrown the sinker, he has pitched 7 1/3 scoreless innings, with eight strikeouts and five walks.
Joyce has thrown his sinker 32% of the time, and his four-seam fastball 20% of the time. The rest have been sliders.
The four-seamer is still his pitch of choice when he’s looking for a strikeout.
“I’m not ever going to go away from (the four-seamer),” Joyce said. “If anything, (the sinker) has helped it to play a little bit better, just because they have two different paths. I think it’s going to be good to just have a good mix of both of them.”
RENDON UPDATE
Anthony Rendon said he’s “feeling good” and “continuing to push it every day.”
Rendon, who has been out for just over two months because of a torn hamstring, conceded that he’s nearing a return, even though he still didn’t want to give a more specific timeline.
“We’re definitely real close,” he said. “You see me on the field doing pretty much everything. Now it’s just getting my running back. That’s pretty much the last thing.”
Rendon said this week and next week he will sprint, and he needs to be able to do that on consecutive days.
The Angels are also working on getting Rendon some at-bats against live pitching some time this week. Whether he then plays in minor-league games remains to be seen.
“We’re in the works on that,” Rendon said. “Talking about all the options that are available. Haven’t made a decision on whether we’re going to go somewhere or just bring some pitchers here. We have to see where all the affiliates are at.”
Class-A Inland Empire is at Lake Elsinore from Monday to Wednesday, and then at home for the weekend. Triple-A Salt Lake is at Tacoma at the start of the week, and then at home next weekend.
DANIEL’S CHANCE
Right-hander Davis Daniel will be promoted for his first major-league start Thursday. The Angels have not announced the corresponding move they will make to open a spot for Daniel.
Daniel, 27, pitched 12 1/3 innings over three relief appearances in the majors last season, with a 2.19 ERA. He has a 5.33 ERA in 76 innings at Triple-A this year.
“He’s been throwing the ball well,” Angels manager Ron Washington said. “He’s a live body. All we want him to do is come up here. He doesn’t have any injuries. We just want him to come up here and settle in and pitch his game.”
The Angels have right-handers Zach Plesac and Griffin Canning and left-hander Tyler Anderson set to pitch the final three games of the series against the Detroit Tigers.
Soriano, who is out with an abdominal infection, is expected to return to the rotation next week.
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NOTES
Miguel Sanó got his first start in nearly two months Wednesday, playing third base. Luis Rengifo moved to second for the first time since June 1. …
Neto became the first Angels infielder since Troy Glaus in 2000 to have 10 stolen bases and 10 homers before the All-Star break. Several Angels outfielders, and two-way player Shohei Ohtani, have accomplished the feat since then.
UP NEXT
Tigers (RHP Jack Flaherty, 5-4, 2.92) at Angels (RHP Davis Daniel, 2024 debut) at Angel Stadium, 6:38 p.m. Thursday, Bally Sports West, 830 AM.