LOS ANGELES — More than halfway through the season, at age 39, Albert Pujols has gotten hot.
“At this point, he may be the best he’s looked all year,” Angels manager Brad Ausmus said on Tuesday.
Pujols has lifted his average each month of the season, going from .220 in April to .238 in May to .250 in June to .359 so far in July. His monthly OPS has gone from .713 to .750 to .750 to .996.
“I think he feels really good physically,” Ausmus said. “He gets his workouts in, maintains his strength. I have given him rest at times. I know he’s not always happy about getting rest, but that plays into it. It’s been remarkable how he’s performed as we’ve gotten deeper into the season.”
For the season, Pujols has 15 homers with a .772 OPS, which is up from his marks of .672 and .700 in the previous two seasons.
He’s also played 57 games at first base already, which is nearly the total of 70 he reached last season before having season-ending surgery.
ROTATION JUMBLE
The Angels optioned Dillon Peters on Tuesday and recalled Taylor Ward, giving them an extra position player on the bench for two games in a National League park.
However, the move also left their rotation full of questions for the four-game series against the Baltimore Orioles that begins on Thursday. They played on Tuesday night with just three starters on the active roster: Félix Peña, Jaime Barría and Griffin Canning.
Barría is scheduled to pitch on Wednesday, and after that it’s uncertain. Canning is likely to start on Friday, so the Angels can give him an extra day. Peña could pitch again on Sunday.
They could bring José Suarez back as soon as Thursday, because he will have been optioned for 10 days then. Peters can’t return until Aug. 2.
JC Ramírez, who is scheduled for at least one more outing with Class-A Inland Empire, is going to return as a multi-inning reliever. He still could be used a part of a pitching solution, either as an opener or by essentially splitting a start with another multi-inning reliever such as Taylor Cole or Trevor Cahill.
Andrew Heaney, who is on the injured list with a shoulder issue, isn’t expecting to be out long, but he also won’t throw for a few more days, Ausmus said.
“I can’t give you (the pitchers for) Baltimore till I see what happens the next two days,” Ausmus said before Tuesday’s game. “I have a general idea, but it’s not etched in stone. Unfortunately, that’s where we’re at right now.”
ALSO
Noé Ramírez said he has no idea when the appeal of his three-game suspension will be heard. Ramirez was suspended after hitting Jake Marisnick, who had been suspended for his collision with Angels catcher Jonathan Lucroy. …
Shohei Ohtani threw another bullpen session on Tuesday. He said he’s still throwing only fastballs, and not at full velocity. Ohtani said so far he’s had no problems with his elbow in his throwing rehab. …
The Dodgers announced that they would donate the proceeds from Tuesday’s 50-50 raffle to the Tyler Skaggs Baseball Foundation.
UP NEXT
Angels (RHP Jaime Barría, 3-3, 7.36) at Dodgers (RHP Ross Stripling, 4-3, 3.64), Wednesday, 7:10 p.m., Fox Sports West, 830 AM
