TEMPE, Ariz. -- A few days after his spot in the Diamondbacks' starting rotation was secured, Josh Collmenter had his worst outing of the spring Friday. It appeared to do nothing to shake manager Kirk Gibson's confidence, but Collmenter admitted that he is feeling some pressure as the regular season approaches.
"There is always pressure. You always have to do well," said Collmenter, who gave up eight runs in four innings of a 9-2 loss to the Los Angeles Angels at Diablo Stadium.
"There are always people coming behind who want your spots. Baseball is a game of consistency. If you are consistent and (the team) can depend on that you do every time out, you are rewarded for that usually."
Collmenter, named the No. 3 starter Monday, saw his spring ERA rise to 11.81. He has given up 21 runs and 27 hits in 16 innings. While Collmenter seems secure, left-handed starters Patrick Corbin, Tyler Skaggs and Wade Miley remain in camp.
"I'm not planning on it," Gibson said when asked if he would reevaluate his rotation. "I'll watch him (on tape) tomorrow, but my sense is he was catching too much of the plate."
The Angels hit for the cycle in the first five batters Friday, with Howie Kendrick hitting a two-run homer and Bobby Abreu hitting a two-run single to make it 4-0 right off the bat.
"A few inches here and there between a good pitch and a bad pitch," Collmenter said. "My biggest thing is keeping the fastball down, and when I get away from that, it makes it a lot easier for them to get hits. It's just a matter of execution, repeated execution. That's been the thing all spring training. Too many inconsistencies."
Collmenter, 10-10 with a 3.38 ERA last year, is scheduled to throw one or two innings against Milwaukee on Tuesday, his last appearance before his making his regular-season debut April 8 in the final game of a three-game series against San Francisco at Chase Field. Skaggs also is scheduled to pitch Tuesday.
CARPOOLING
General manager Kevin Towers gave Gibson a ride to Salt River Fields on Friday, picking Gibson up at 6 a.m. It gave them a chance to talk privately with roster decisions coming down to the wire. The D-backs have 34 players in camp, and 25-man rosters are due Wednesday. It appears they are still mulling the long-relief situation.
"One of the concerns we have about our bullpen is length," Gibson said.
The D-backs do not have a true long reliever -- that is, a pitcher who has can go three or four innings -- in camp. Micah Owings and Zach Duke served in that role at times last year.
Craig Breslow has pitched two innings on one occasion and is scheduled to throw two innings again Sunday, and he appears to be the top candidate. Based on his strong spring, Patrick Corbin may be an option there, and Gibson said the D-backs will try to lengthen Jensen Lewis' outings at Class AAA Reno after his reassignment Thursday.
The final cuts may not be made until the final hours.
"It will give us a further opportunity to watch them in this setting," Gibson said.
SATURDAY PROBABLES
Right-hander Ian Kennedy (2-2, 3.52 ERA) will make his final start of the spring in a split-squad game against Clayton Kershaw (2-2, 1.47) and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Salt River Fields at 1:10 p.m. Kershaw won the NL Cy Young last year, while Kennedy finished fourth.
Right-handers Brad Ziegler and Takashi Saito and left-hander Craig Breslow also are scheduled to pitch.
The D-backs will start Chris Jakubauskas in the other split-squad game against Kansas City at Surprise Stadium at 1:05 p.m. Saturday. Right-handers J.J. Putz and Bryan Shaw and left-hander Joe Paterson also are scheduled to face the Royals.
Follow Jack Magruder on Twitter
