Jordan Walden (neck) tossed a scoreless inning Monday in his second rehab appearance with Triple-A Salt Lake. Walden struck out one batter and threw 11 out of 15 pitches for strikes. Nice to see after he was blasted for four runs in his first appearance Saturday. If all goes well, he could be back in the Angels' bullpen later this week. The 24-year-old right-hander hasn't pitched since mid-July due to a biceps strain and a nerve problem in his neck.

Jordan Walden (neck) surrendered four runs in less than an inning Saturday at Triple-A Salt Lake. It was his first rehab appearance and it didn't exactly go according to plan, but the Angels are optimistic. "There's other things he was working on," Halos manager Mike Scioscia told reporters on Sunday. Walden will pitch again at Triple-A Salt Lake on Monday.

Jordan Walden (neck) played long toss from 200 feet on Friday in Chicago with no pain. He's expected to continue long-tossing through the weekend and hopes to throw from a mound as soon as Monday. Walden has been sidelined since mid-July with a biceps strain and a nerve problem in his neck.

Jordan Walden (neck) could begin throwing off a mound next week. Walden recently extended his long-toss program to 150 feet. The hard-throwing right-hander was originally placed on the DL in mid-July with a biceps strain, but a nerve problem in his neck is now the bigger issue. He should be back sometime this month if he can avoid setbacks.

Jordan Walden (neck) passed a strength test Friday and will begin playing catch Saturday. Walden was originally placed on the disabled list with a right biceps strain, but he's also dealing with a nerve issue in his neck which has weakened his throwing arm. There's no clear timetable for his return.

An MRI taken recently on Jordan Walden's back and neck showed no hints of structural damage. Walden was placed on the disabled list July 9 with a strained right bicep, but he had also been dealing with some neck and back discomfort. The good news is none of his ailments are serious. He'll begin a throwing program soon and should return by mid-August.

Jordan Walden has been removed from the closer role on a temporary basis. Walden blew his first save of the season Thursday against the Rays and has an ugly 8.31 ERA over 4 1/3 innings, so he'll work in the seventh and eighth innings for now until he gets on the right track. Scott Downs will move into the closer role for now and is worth owning in all formats.

Jordan Walden recorded his first save Friday, pitching a scoreless ninth against the Orioles. The Angels went 14 games without generating a save chance before finally getting Walden one tonight. Walden has made four appearances so far, pitching scoreless innings in three of them.

Jordan Walden looked very human in some ninth inning mop-up work on Wednesday, yielding two runs on three hits and two walks in two-thirds of an inning. He entered the ninth with the Angels down 4-0, as he had pitched only once in the previous 10 days. He was perfect in his other two outings, so we'll chalk this up to early season rust.

Jordan Walden was blasted for four runs on five hits over just 1/3 of an inning Tuesday against the Royals. The flamethrowing right-hander allowed just one extra-base hit -- a double -- but the Royals killed him softly with singles. Walden has now been knocked around in two of his last three outings and holds a 12.46 spring ERA. He's in no danger of not opening the year as the closer, though.