TEMPE, Ariz. – The list of people surprised by what Drew Rucinski has done includes Jerry Dipoto.

The Angels general manager conceded on Tuesday morning that the Angels signed Rucinski out of independent baseball to simply fill out a Class-A roster for the 2013 playoffs.

But here he is.

“Drew came in as guy no one paid a whole lot of attention to, but in the last 10 days, Drew has put himself in position not only to be on our club, but I have already fielded multiple phone calls from other teams wondering if Drew Rucinski might be available,” Dipoto said. “He put his best forward at the right time, and we have noticed.”

Dipoto said that Rucinski is not only in the running for the long relief job opened when Cory Rasmus got hurt, but he could start for the Angels. So far he has outpitched Hector Santiago, Andrew Heaney and Nick Tropeano.

Asked flat-out about Rucinski’s chances of making the team, Dipoto said: “You should be liking them. He’s had an unbelievable spring.”

Rucinski has allowed two runs in 12 innings so far, including four hitless innings in a start against the Colorado Rockies everyday lineup. He pitched the final 4 2/3 innings of a victory over the San Francisco Giants on Sunday, ending the game with a strikeout with the tying run at third. His next outing is scheduled to be Friday, probably in a minor league game so he can keep building his pitch-count.

“I can’t complain,” Rucinski said. “I’m just pounding the strike zone and giving the team a chance behind me.”

A chance was all Rucinski needed, apparently.

Rucinski, 26, went undrafted out of Ohio State and signed to play in an independent league. After just one outing, the Cleveland Indians picked him up, but they released him after the season.

Rucinski then spent most of two seasons kicking out in the baseball purgatory of independent ball.

“It’s tough,” said Rucinski, who is from Oklahoma. “No matter how well you do, there is no guarantee someone will see you and get you out of there.”

The Angels saw him in the summer of 2013 and signed him essentially to fill out their pitching staff at Class-A Inland Empire for a playoff push. When Dipoto watched one of the games, he turned to assistant general manager Scott Servais and said: “Who the heck is this guy?”

Dipoto said Rucinski’s split-finger fastball and his makeup – shorthand for his attitude and work ethic – were enough to warrant the minor league signing, but he turned out to be even better.

“I wish I could tell you we thought he was going to show up and do what he’s doing now, but sometimes you get lucky,” Dipoto said.

Rucinski dominated at Double-A in 2014, earning a cameo in the major leagues less than 12 months after he’d last pitched for the Frontier League’s Rockford Aviators.

If his unlikely ascent continues into a more regular role in the majors, his story will fit in nicely with that of Matt Shoemaker, who was also undrafted and unheralded until he forced his way to the majors.

“I love seeing stories like that,” Shoemaker said. “It’s awesome, so awesome.”