Angels Bag Trout in a Hurry, Land 7th Win in a Row

Seasoned travelers that they are, the Angels know that Seattle is renowned for its salmon and not its Trout. They also know that this is not necessarily bad news, at least for visiting baseball teams.

Steve Trout remains in the Seattle Mariners’ starting rotation only because they are the Seattle Mariners. Every fifth day he pitches, and every fifth day he’s usually gone by the fifth inning, leaving the Mariners to wait for another day.

The Angels caught Trout Tuesday night and threw him back after a mere 2 innings. Before they were done with him, though, they had scored six runs on seven hits to keep their road show rolling, beating Seattle, 10-2, before 8,565 at the Kingdome for their seventh consecutive victory and their 11th straight win away from home.

At the same time, they left Trout at 4-7, with an earned-run average of 8.07--the highest ERA among American League pitchers with more than two decisions. Since June 21, he is 1-5 with a 9.56 ERA.

For this, Trout will pull in a 1988 salary of $990,000--$800,000 of which owed him by his former employers, the New York Yankees, for whom Trout was 0-4 last year. And next year, Trout has a contract guaranteed for $1 million, with the Mariners responsible for $850,000.

Tuesday night, he was outlasted and outpitched by 25-year-old Chuck Finley (1988 salary: $111,000), who was making only his fourth start since suffering a hyper-extended left thumb on June 29. Finley (6-9) also won for the first time since June 29 and pitched his second career complete game, limiting Seattle to two runs and seven hits.

In the process, Finley helped the Angels pick up a game in the American League West standings on both the first-place Oakland Athletics and second-place Minnesota Twins. At 55-51, the Angels trail Oakland by 9 1/2 games and Minnesota by just 3 games.

Trout also helped, setting the Angels up for a 4-0 lead in the top of the first inning.

First, Trout opened the game by serving up three straight singles to Devon White, Johnny Ray and Brian Downing, good for one run. Then came batter No. 4, Chili Davis. Davis tripled to center. Two more runs.

Trout finally got Wally Joyner to ground to first base for the first out--drawing mocking cheers from the Kingdome crowd--and got Tony Armas to pop up for back-to-back outs. But then Bob Boone singled to center and the Mariners were staring at a four-run deficit before one of them could swing a bat.

Trout made it 6-0 in the third when he walked Davis, yielded a double to Armas, intentionally walked Boone and surrendered a two-run single to Jack Howell.

Howell is batting barely .120 against left-handed pitchers, and Trout is left-handed, which is why Seattle Manager Jimmy Snyder called for the intentional walk to Boone.

But then again, Trout is not your normal left-handed pitcher.

Snyder promptly removed him from the game with one out in the third. It marked the sixth straight start in which Trout failed to complete six innings.

And how did Trout feel about it?

“I’m throwing the ball good right now,” he said, completely serious. “I’m just not getting any breaks.”

That’s like saying the Mariners, with baseball’s third-worst record at 40-66, just aren’t getting breaks.

Of course, Trout said that, too.

“I think the future is great for these guys if the owner (George Argyros) stops his penny-pinching ways and starts giving out more than one-year contracts,” Trout said.

Yeah, that should solve the problem.

“I think he better think about his next start before next year,” Snyder said. “That’s like putting the cart before the horse.”

Trout is next scheduled to pitch Sunday, but after Tuesday’s night game, Snyder may decide to alter that schedule.

“I’ve got to do a lot of thinking about that,” Snyder said.

Angel Manager Cookie Rojas managed Trout several years ago in winter ball and claims to now be watching a different pitcher.

“I don’t think he has the same velocity,” Rojas said. “Maybe coming into the American League did something to him.”

Finley, meanwhile, was simply glad for the assistance.

“It’s always nice to pitch with a six-run lead,” he said.

Finley kept it that until the sixth inning, when Steve Balboni led off with a single to right and Jay Buhner, Seattle’s latest--and more successful--acquisition from the Yankees, homered over the left-field fence.

After that, however, Finley retired eight Mariners in succession before Buhner opened the ninth with a double. But there Buhner was stranded, as Finley closed down the Mariners for his second career complete game.

It was also Finley’s sixth victory as a starting pitcher--and one of his easiest. The Angel offense reached double figures in the eighth inning, when Jerry Reed, the second of three Seattle relievers, surrendered four runs on three doubles, two singles and two intentional walks.

Downing got things started with a one-out double, and Snyder kept things going by order a two-out intentional walk to Joyner. That set the stage for a run-scoring single by Armas and a run-scoring ground-rule double by Boone.

Not learning from that episode, Snyder called for another intentional walk with first base open, this to Howell. Gus Polidor, the Angels’ .143-hitting backup shortstop, followed with a two-run double.

It wasn’t a great night for Snyder. As far as managerial strategy goes, his best move of the night came in the third inning, when he came to the mound and left with Trout.

Angel Notes

Demoted Angel second baseman Mark McLemore was back at his Diamond Bar home Tuesday and expected to report to triple-A Edmonton on schedule, according to his agent, Jeff Moorad of San Francisco. “I talked with Mark twice (on Monday) and once today and his plans, presently, are to report to Edmonton on Friday,” Moorad said. “It (the demotion) was a surprise in a lot of ways, yet, on the other hand, it is one of those moments in a player’s career when you just have to grin and bear it.” Moorad said Angel General Manager Mike Port “never promised” to reinstate McLemore after his rehabilitation from June arm surgery, but noted that “from all indications, he was going to be activated at the major league level. (The demotion) always seemed as the worst-case scenario.”

McLemore is expected to spend one month with Edmonton--”Port promised that Mark will definitely be coming back up Sept. 1,” Moorad said--and will not seek a trade. “A trade was one of the things I discussed with Mark, but we did not act on it,” Moorad said. “We still think Mark figures prominently in the Angels’ plans. This is a tough part in Mark’s career, but I believe the Angels feel Mark McLemore needs to play everyday. That’s reason enough to make the move they did.”

So how does Kirk McCaskill, the man Cookie Rojas swore would never pitch on three days’ rest, feel about Rojas’ new plan to start him today on three days’ rest? “It makes sense,” said McCaskill, who was hammered for eight runs and seven hits in two-plus innings during his last start Saturday. “I only went two innings on Saturday and it’s not like I made over 100 pitches. (McCaskill threw a total of 64.) I don’t think he’d ever put me out there on three days’ rest under normal circumstances. I think Saturday was abnormal. At least I hope it was.”