Schanuel activated from IL but still not 100%

LOS ANGELES — Nolan Schanuel was activated off the injured list ahead of Saturday night’s game against the Dodgers, but he’s not out of the woods yet. 

The first baseman landed on the 10-day injured list on May 27 with left ankle inflammation, which was related to an ankle injury that he sustained. Just because he’s been activated, it doesn’t mean he’s healthy. 

“I would say I'm definitely doing a lot better,” Schanuel said. “When I went on the IL, it was kind of hard to walk around. Now, obviously, able to run, go to 85%, and it's feeling a lot better.”

Schanuel’s rehab assignment lasted only a game with Single-A Rancho Cucamonga, in which he played all nine innings. He said he came out of that game “super sore” and believes he just needs to get used to being on his feet again for a long period of time.

“It's to the point where I'm able to play on it, so I think take it and run,” Schanuel said.

Because Schanule isn’t fully healthy yet, he will most likely require some maintenance. 

“There might be times we have to take care of it a little bit, but I think for the most part it's going to be up to (Schanuel),” Angels manager Kurt Suzuki said. “How he feels, if he needs to go and if he needs a day at one point. It's just the communication, just to see where he's at every day.”

After having discussions with the training staff, Schanuel said he’s been told to play his “100% that day,” so his 100% may be different day to day. He said he will “pick it up” when he needs to, but will stay under control to make sure the injury doesn’t worsen.

With a 162-game season, it’s rare that players ever truly feel 100% on any given day. And as summer begins, more players are dealing with various nagging soreness and smaller injuries. 

But given the Angels’ 24-40 record, which is tied for dead last in all of baseball, it’s an interesting decision to bring Schanuel back early and risk suffering a setback with the injury. As a player, though, the objective will always be to get back on the field as soon as possible.

“I haven't really thought about it, but I would say, honestly, I don't know,” Schanuel said when asked if he’s concerned about making the injury worse. 

As for how Schanuel will perform after returning from injury, he’s hoping the time off helped him regroup at the plate. 

“I would say still coming to the field every day and being around the guys, just like prepping to come back for me, kind of like a mental reset,” Schanuel said. “Didn't start the year off how I wanted to, but coming back now, I get to change that, so it's a reset button for me.”

Schanuel returns from the injured list hitting .262, but isn’t drawing walks and isn’t hitting for any power, leading to only a .700 OPS.