Analysis : Wally Is Hot, but Others Not : Struggling at .500, Angels Suffer Some Serious Problems

The lights from the cameras following Wally Joyner’s every move have been blinding, and Wally World has been everyone’s favorite hangout the past two months, so it’s easy to see how certain developments with the Angels have been lost in the shuffle.

Such as:

--An undermanned bullpen that remains one right shoulder away from blowing up in Gene Mauch’s face.

--Gary Pettis’ troubled first quarter of 1986. Pettis has been below ’85 standards on the basepaths and in the field and continues not to hit from the left side of the plate.

--Doug DeCinces’ slump.

--An underachieving starting pitching staff.

--A vulnerability to left-handed pitching that opposing teams cannot help but exploit.

All went largely unnoticed as the Joyner home-run watch entranced those who observed the Angels. The rookie’s undeniably sensational feats, coupled with a lethargic start by the rest of the American League West, created the mirage that all was well with Mauch and Co.

Well, all is not well. That was proven on the team’s just-concluded 3-6 trip through the AL East, which not only dropped the Angels to .500 (22-22) but also into second place behind--and this is not a joke--the Texas Rangers.

Currently 9-14 in May, the Angels have had losing streaks of four, three and five games this month. Had it not been for Joyner’s latest act of heroism--a two-run, two-out, ninth-inning home run at Yankee Stadium Monday--the Angels would be taking a six-game losing streak into the eight-game home stand which begins tonight.

Now, the questions start to rise to the surface.

Is this just a bad month, something to be exorcised and eventually written off as one of those things? Or is this really just a .500 ballclub, sprouting leaks earlier than anyone anticipated?

For the record, Mauch ignores the negativism. After the Angels’ fifth straight loss, which might warrant a few rattled walls and bruised egos by some managers, Mauch bit his tongue. After ending that streak with an 8-7 victory Monday, Mauch bubbled. “I know the Yankees aren’t any better than us,” he said. “But for the last 2 1/2 games, they’ve been a damn sight luckier.”

Reggie Jackson sees a purpose to Mauch’s methods.

“Gene knows where we’re short,” Jackson said. “But he’s not going to discuss them for the benefit of other teams. He’s not going to criticize his own players in print.

“This guy is not exactly a town idiot. He’s had 40 years in the game. Maybe some of the things he does are unacceptable to some, but if he’s going up against Secretariat with a nag, what can he do? If you don’t have the tool box, you can’t build a house.”

Is that to imply Mauch lacks the necessary building materials?

Jackson said no. “We have to be a less more specialized,” he said. “He has to platoon and rest players to get the most out of them. It’s early. We won’t have another spell like this one.”

That line of thinking may be a tad on the wishful side. If the tool box is there, there’s no denying that it is currently missing an instrument or two.

Some tools Mauch undoubtedly wishes he had:

--A Healthy Bullpen: Two-thirds of “the best bullpen in Angel history” has yet to throw a pitch this season. Stewart Cliburn, Donnie Moore’s splendid set-up man last summer, remains on the disabled list in Edmonton with an ailing shoulder. Gary Lucas, the missing left-handed link imported from Canada, is still rehabilitating an injured back.

After Jim Slaton was thrown into the starting rotation, and after Ken Forsch’s comeback attempt was pre-empted, Moore’s supporting cast consisted of two rookies (T.R. Bryden and Chuck Finley), an Atlanta Braves castoff (Terry Forster) and Doug Corbett. Forster and Corbett were effective early but both were hit hard on the last trip. Forster has one save and a 4.67 ERA; Corbett has four saves and a 3.60 ERA.

That brings us to Moore, of who there has been less of in 1986. Moore leads the team with seven saves, but is 1-3 with a 5.21 ERA and has mishandled four save opportunities. His inconsistency has stemmed from a sore shoulder that has limited him to four appearances in May. After undergoing an arthrogram Tuesday, which entails a dye injection before an X-ray, Moore may not pitch again until June.

--Consistency at the Leadoff Spot: For two years, Gary Pettis earned his keep by stealing bases and by stealing the 11 o’clock sports highlights at least once a week with spectacular catches. So what if he didn’t hit? Pettis’ value lay in the 56 stolen bases and Gold Glove award he earned in 1985.

But with the second quarter of 1986 under way, Pettis is still in the gates on the basepaths. Before Monday, when he stole two bases, Pettis was 6 for 12 in steal attempts. Rickey Henderson is 31 for 36. Dick Schofield is 5 for 6.

And in the outfield, Pettis had made more news crashing into Brian Downing than by taking away extra-base hits. When you win a Gold Glove, certain behavior is expected from you.

When the balls start to drop and the great plays cease, the whispering inevitably begins.

“People are going to second-guess you,” Pettis said. “For someone to say, ‘Well, Gary would’ve made that play last year’ . . . they don’t know what’s really happening out there.

“I know a few of the balls have been close to the track or the fence and maybe I peaked to see where the fence was at the last moment. Maybe that has caused me to miss the ball. But you’re going to have days like that. It’s easy to sit in the stands and say things, as opposed to doing it.”

Pettis’ problems at the plate continue. Overall, he is batting .227 with 32 strikeouts. From the left side, however, he is hitting nearly 100 points less (.188) than from the right side (.283).

“I’m sure some people say, ‘Gary should hit right-handed all the time,’ ” Pettis said. “I don’t think so. It’s hard for anybody to tell me I can’t hit from both sides. I have a good feeling I can.”

The wait continues.

--A Winning Lineup Versus Left-handers: The biggest news about Joyner’s game-winning home run Monday was that it came against a left-handed pitcher, Dave Righetti. That brought the Angels’ record against left-handers to 3-11.

It’s a statistic that is beginning to weigh on the minds of the Angels.

“Psychologically, we’re defeating ourselves,” Jackson said. “The only way to turn that around is start beating up on some left-handers. Until then, teams’ll keep throwing them at us. In baseball, you ride a horse until it’s foaming at the chest and frothing at the mouth.”

Some batting averages vs. left-handers: Joyner .205, Bob Boone .217, Jackson .227, Rick Burleson .255 and DeCinces .228.

The struggles of DeCinces, who usually bats cleanup against left-handers, have loomed large. Overall, he is hitting .226 with 24 RBIs. He has stranded 44 runners in 42 games.

“May has never been a good month for me during my whole career,” DeCinces said. “I don’t know if that starts to become a mental thing.

“I know I can hit and drive in runs and make the big plays and be a leader on this team. When you’re struggling, sometimes you forget those things.”

The Angels are struggling, but they’re trying not to forget that this is a long season, that more than four months remain, that most of June will be spent in Anaheim Stadium.

The Angels are hoping that June brings the return of John Candelaria and Lucas, the recovery of Moore and continuation of the .300 batting pace presently maintained by Jackson, Downing and Bobby Grich.

And, of course, more home runs from Wally.

The West, they believe, can still be won. Texas will fade. Kansas City is still foundering. Check back this time next month.

The first quarter of 1986 hasn’t been all bad news for the Angels. It hasn’t been all good news, either. There have been sizable doses of both.

This morning’s standings indicate as much. This time the numbers don’t lie. Right now, the Angels find themselves where they deserve to be.

At .500.