"There isn't enough couch space in Mike Scioscia's office to accommodate all the struggling players the Angels manager could have summoned for closed-door meetings, but it was pitcher Scott Kazmir who got the invite Wednesday.

The left-hander emerged from an hourlong meeting with Scioscia and pitching coach Mike Butcher with some drills designed to help him find his proper arm slot and assurances he will not be skipped in the rotation.

"We wanted to get an understanding of where he felt he was, some adjustments that needed to be made and whether he needed some time to make them," Scioscia said. "He doesn't think so, and Butch doesn't think so. He's going to start Monday in Texas."

Kazmir is 2-3 with a 6.82 earned-run average in six starts, and he's allowed 35 hits and 19 walks in 30 1/3 innings. He's averaging five innings and about 100 pitches a start, his command problems and inability to put hitters away leading to his pitch inefficiency.

Kazmir has struggled to find the sharply breaking slider that was an effective weapon in 2006 and 2007, and the velocity of his fastball is down a few ticks from its usual 94-mph range.

One possible reason: Since he suffered an elbow injury in 2007, Kazmir's arm slot has drifted from an over-the-top delivery to an almost three-quarters delivery.

"I dropped my arm angle so I wouldn't feel the elbow," Kazmir said. "When I started to feel better, I tried to get back to where I was, but it's been tough. It's a bad habit. Hopefully, some of the drills will help.""