ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Angels shortstop Zach Neto went 1 for 6 with a double in his first rehabilitation game with Triple-A Salt Lake City as he moves closer to a return from offseason shoulder surgery.
Neto served as the team’s designated hitter on Tuesday night. Angels manager Ron Washington said before the team’s game in St. Louis that Neto would not play in the field for a while. He added that there isn’t a timetable for when he will be cleared to play defense in a game.
“Zach Neto (will) let us know by the way he handles himself out there catching the ball, being in positions, getting cutoffs and relays when he’ll be ready,” Washington told reporters. “But right now we’re starting him off at DH, and we’ll just see how it goes.”
Neto was hit by a pitch in the eighth inning of Salt Lake’s 15-1 win over Albuquerque but remained in the game.
The 24-year-old Neto opened the season on the injured list after undergoing surgery on his right shoulder in November.
