Angels closer Huston Street isn’t panicking about subpar performance

Closer Huston Street’s earned-run average stood at an unsightly 5.09 entering Saturday, more than two runs higher than his career ERA of 2.91.

His walk rate (5.6 per nine innings) was up, and his strikeout rate (5.6) was down from his career 2.4-walk and 8.8-strikeout rates. He gave up 10 earned runs in 17 2/3 innings of his first 21 games, almost half as many runs as he allowed (22) in 2015, when he had a 3.18 ERA in 62 1/3 innings.

“The numbers don’t look good, but one stupid way I’ve tried to rationalize it is that as [bad] as I’ve pitched, I’ve cost the team one game,” the veteran right-hander said. “You have to play those mind games with yourself so you don’t get too down.”

Street’s toughest setback was a 3-2 loss at Houston on June 21, when he gave up two runs in the ninth inning and suffered a blown save and loss. The others were somewhat easier to stomach.

Street gave up a run in the ninth inning of a 3-2 win over the Chicago White Sox on April 21. He suffered a blown save by allowing three runs in the ninth inning against Cleveland on June 11, but the Angels won, 4-3, in the bottom of the ninth.

Street gave up three meaningless runs in a 10-4 loss to Houston on June 29 and one run in the ninth inning of a 4-2 loss at Baltimore last Sunday. He was 3-1 and converted seven of nine save opportunities before the All-Star break.

“Most players in these situations will panic and start making adjustments, but that’s one thing I’ve never done,” Street, 32, said. “I always try to remind myself that I will find it, and when I do, I’ll be good. … Don’t ever tell me I’ve had a bad season in the middle of my season.”

Street, whose 322 saves entering Saturday ranked 17th on the all-time list, missed five weeks from April to late May because of a left rib-cage strain, and he admits he may have come back from the injury too soon.

But with setup man Joe Smith slowed by a left-hamstring injury that sent him to the disabled list in early June, Street didn’t feel he had a choice.

“I don’t regret anything because when I came back, the bullpen needed me,” Street said. “But at end of the day, you can’t escape sometimes when you rush back from an injury and you don’t do all the rehab. That was totally my decision.

“I didn’t think an oblique would affect me that much. But I have a second half to fix the season. I’ve always had one stretch where I’ve gone 10 straight scoreless outings. If I do that once in second half and pitch like I have my whole career, I’ll end up with an ERA in the twos.”

Short hops

The White Sox are recalling recall right-hander Jacob Turner from triple-A Charlotte to pitch Sunday in the series finale against the Angels. Turner is 4-7 with a 4.71 ERA in 18 starts for Charlotte this season and went 11-25 with a 4.97 ERA in parts of four big league seasons with Detroit, Miami and the Chicago Cubs from 2011 to 2014. … Since 2011, Jered Weaver, who will start Sunday for the Angels, is 19-2 with a 2.29 ERA in July, the most wins in the major leagues during that span.

mike.digiovanna@latimes.com

Twitter: @MikeDiGiovanna