Denzer Guzman goes 3-for-4, scores twice

There aren’t any rumblings of the dynamic shortstop dealing with any sort of injury, so it’s just a night of rest for Neto. Denzer Guzman will start in his place at shortstop and will bat sixth against Rangers’ star right-hander Jacob deGrom.

Guzman hit a crucial game-tying, three-run home run off of Hogan Harris in the eighth inning to tie the game at seven. It was his third home run of the season, and now gives him 11 RBIs to go along with a .271/.327/.500 slash line. The 22-year-old came into the game with a solid 42 percent hard-hit rate and has posted an elite 74.2 mph bat speed so far this season. He’s been extraordinarily pull-heavy and his 14.5 percent swinging strike rate and 83 percent zone contact rate are both below average, so this may not last.

Guzman’s steal was his first in 17 games as a major leaguer. He’s 4-for-18 in four games since being called up Monday with Yoán Moncada, Vaughn Grissom and Adam Frazier on the IL. He’ll probably wind up back in Triple-A at some point, but he’ll continue to start most of the time until the Angels get healthier.

Suzuki declined to elaborate on the specific procedure or how long Moncada will be sidelined. The 31-year-old was transferred to the 60-day injured list earlier this week in a procedural move. It’ll be Denzer Guzman handling the hot corner for the Angels until further notice.

Guzman earns another opportunity with the Angels as their primary third baseman after slashing a robust .336/.403/.571 with 12 homers and nine steals across 268 plate appearances over 58 games in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League this season. The 22-year-old infielder batted .190 (8-for-42) with two homers during a 13-game cameo with Los Angeles late last season. He’s an interesting talent, but he’ll need to show something at the highest level to earn an everyday role and sustained fantasy value.

This might mean that Vaughn Grissom is IL bound, which would be unfortunate. The 22-year-old Guzmán has hit .336/.403/.571 for Triple-A Salt Lake. If he thrives, he could get a chance to stick at second or third, and while it probably won’t happen this year, the Angels could consider moving Zach Neto off shortstop to make room for Guzman in the future.

Pitcher Ian Seymour fell right on the back of Neto’s head as the shortstop was sliding in and scoring on a wild pitch, and Neto was down for a while afterwards. Oswald Peraza replaced him afterwards. If Neto is forced to the IL, the Angels probably call up Denzer Guzman to play short, unless maybe they’re content with Peraza’s glove there and want to choose Christian Moore instead.

The second-overall pick in last July’s MLB Draft, Bremner made his professional debut on Wednesday in a spring training contest against the White Sox after missing time earlier in camp with elbow soreness. The 21-year-old righty should move quickly through the Angels system after a standout collegiate career at UC Santa Barbara. Guzman made his big-league debut last year while Ynoa was in camp as a non-roster invitee reclamation project.

The 21-year-old shortstop smacked an RBI double off of Jason Alexander in the fifth inning that pulled the Halos to within a run at 3-2. He then singled in the seventh inning and scored on a two-out RBI single off the bat of Chris Taylor. With his two-hit night, he’s now slashing .200/.222/.400 with a pair of homers and three RBI in his first 36 plate appearances with the Angels.

The 21-year-old shortstop got the Angels on the board as he crushed a 409-foot (101.9 mph EV) solo shot off of Brewers’ ace Freddy Peralta. That would be his only hit in three at-bats on the evening. Guzman is now hitting .333 (3-for-9) since joining the Angels and should continue to see regular action at shortstop with Zach Neto (wrist) on the injured list.