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Rehabbing Angels pitchers to converge in Rancho Cucamonga on Saturday

May 2, 2026

ANAHEIM — Tradition dictates that a major leaguer on a rehab assignment picks up the tab for the postgame spread, which means the other minor leaguers get a better meal than usual.

The Class-A Rancho Cucamonga Quakes will have Alek Manoah starting, with Kirby Yates and Ben Joyce pitching in relief on Saturday.

“Good spread there for the Quakes,” Angels manager Kurt Suzuki quipped on Friday.

It’s good news for the Angels too, as three pitchers take steps closer to being ready for the big leagues.

Joyce, the Angels’ hard-throwing reliever, is the one whose return is most eagerly awaited by fans. Joyce, who is recovering from shoulder surgery, pitched in a game for the first time in more than a year on Wednesday, hitting 101 mph.

“I thought it was good,” Joyce said from the Angels’ clubhouse on Friday. “Heater felt good. Slider was good. Just getting the feel back on a game mound. It’s a little different, adrenaline or whatever you want to say. But I thought the stuff’s been really good so far. Just keep building on it.”

It’s uncertain how many more minor league games Joyce would need before he could return to the Angels’ bullpen.

“I’d love to tell you the sooner the better, but I just don’t know,” Suzuki said. “You take it day by day. He’s got a plan. We’ve got a plan for him. We’ll take it game by game.”

Yates doesn’t seem as close. The 39-year-old right-hander, who is on the injured list because of left knee inflammation, has thrown in three minor league games so far, but the results and the velocity have both been short of what the Angels would like to see.

Yates said he wasn’t able to do his normal leg workout when his knee was bothering him, and that’s impacted his velocity.

“I’m kind of restarting spring training without being able to do anything for a month,” Yates said. “We’re trying to play catch-up real quick. … I think my legs are starting to finally get under me. I can kind of feel it the more stuff I do, the better it feels when I go throw a baseball.”

Yates, who signed a $5 million deal in the offseason, was expected to start the season as the Angels’ closer. Without him, the bullpen has blown four ninth-inning leads.

“In a perfect world I’d be there and I would be helping,” Yates said. “The reality is I’m in no shape or form to be able to go up and help. And I think that’s the most frustrating part. They paid me some money to come here and do a job and, we could desperately use someone to do that job and it’s supposed to be my job and I’m not able to do it right now and that’s been a tough pill to swallow for about a month now, but it is what it is. There’s only so much I can do and you just gotta take it one day at a time.”

Manoah has been out since the end of spring training with a finger contusion. He dropped a weight on his right middle finger and the nail cracked with blood pooling under it. Manoah tried to pitch through it, but it eventually came loose, making it painful to throw some of his pitches.

Manoah, who rejoined the Angels for the first time since spring training, showed reporters his nail on Friday, and said it’s no longer a problem. He said he’s been happy with how he feels and his stuff during workouts in Arizona. He’s scheduled to throw 90 pitches for Rancho Cucamonga.

“I feel like I’m in a good spot,” Manoah said.

The Angels will have several options with Manoah once he’s ready. They could keep him in the minors, or they could bring him to the majors as a starter or as a reliever.

The Angels obviously could use help in the bullpen, but they also have a few questions about the rotation now.

Left-hander Yusei Kikuchi came out of his start early on Wednesday because of shoulder stiffness. He underwent an MRI, but the Angels didn’t have any results as of Friday afternoon.

“I think it’s just general soreness right now,” Suzuki said. “We won’t know more until he gets it evaluated. Once he sees the doctor we’ll know more.”

Right-hander José Soriano, who had a stiff neck during his last start, said on Friday that he’s feeling better, but not 100%. He’ll get a better idea when he throws a bullpen session on Saturday.

Two other starters are also progressing.

Right-hander Grayson Rodriguez threw four innings in extended spring training on Thursday. Right-hander Ryan Johnson threw three innings in Arizona on Tuesday.

NOTES

Left-hander Joey Lucchesi cleared waivers. The Angels outrighted him, but he declined the outright to become a free agent. Lucchesi could still re-sign with the Angels as a minor-league free agent if he doesn’t find a better offer, just as Shaun Anderson did earlier this week. …

The Angel Stadium concession stand that was temporarily closed because of rodent infestation was reinspected this week and cleared to re-open before the beginning of the homestand on Friday. The original inspection took place on April 22, the date of the final game of the Angels’ previous homestand.

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Mets (RHP Nolan McLean, 1-2, 2.55) at Angels (LHP Reid Detmers, 1-2, 4.28), Saturday, 6:38 p.m., ABTV, 830 AM

Orange County Register

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Rehabbing Angels pitchers to converge in Rancho Cucamonga on Saturday

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