Angel Notebook : It Continues to Be Dandy Spring for Bichette

Dante (Beef) Bichette slammed a 430-foot three-run homer last Thursday and he hit another three-run shot last Sunday, but the most encouraging thing that has happened to the 25-year-old outfielder this spring occurred Tuesday when the Angels posted the list of players who will report to Palm Springs Friday.

It wasn’t so much who was on the list as who wasn’t. Mike Ramsey, a 10-year veteran of the minor leagues, and Marcus Lawton, picked up in the Rule V draft this winter from the New York Mets, will stay behind and train at Mesa, Ariz.

That leaves starters Chili Davis, Devon White and Claudell Washington with Tony Armas and Bichette vying for the No. 4 outfield spot. Armas is hitting .150 this spring.

There’s little doubt that Bichette has earned a chance in the big leagues. He’s hitting .394 with a .697 slugging percentage and eight runs batted in this spring. And he had a pair of monstrous doubles off the left-center and right-center field walls in spacious Tempe Diablo Stadium--it’s 420 feet to dead center--during the Seattle Mariners’ 6-5 victory over the Angels Tuesday.

It’s just a matter of whether the Angels figure he would be better off playing every day in the minors or sitting on the bench and pinch-hitting in the majors.

“We haven’t even gotten to that bridge, much less had to cross it,” General Manager Mike Port said. “In a perfect-plan sense, we’ve got Davis, White and Washington, but who knows what might happen?

“Certainly, every player aspires to be on the club on opening day. But even if he’s not, he might be there the next day and stay the rest of the year. In any case, we’re obviously delighted in the improvement Dante’s shown.”

Bichette said: “I really haven’t thought too much about my chances of making the club,” he said. “I’m just excited about doing so well.”

Bichette gives much of the credit to hitting instructor Deron Johnson, who, like Bichette, was a brawny power hitter.

“I feel like Deron has really turned my career around,” Bichette said. “He’s taught me to just go up there hacking. Each week, he adds something new. Like now, we’re working on staying back and using the whole field. He’s been a great help to me.”

Johnson admits that he has a special rapport with Bichette, but he won’t take any credit for his protege’s power surge.

“The kid’s got a lot of ability and he’s a really hard worker,” Johnson said. “All I do is tell him all the ways I (messed) up when I was playing.”

Bichette got a bit of a break in the way of extra playing time because both Washington and Davis have missed some games, Washington with the flu and Davis with a hamstring problem.

“Things always need to break in your favor, but he’s earned his at-bats,” Manager Doug Rader said. “I was really impressed when he hit that curveball for a homer (Sunday).”

So, could the Angels have filled the void in their outfield without parting with $2.625 million to get free agent Washington?

And another question is sure to be posed by the fans if any of the Angel outfielders struggle this season:

Where’s the Beef?

Angel Notes

Triple plays are rare enough, but the Angels turned one Tuesday after the Mariners loaded the bases on two errors and a hit batsman. Seattle’s Steve Balboni hit a line drive at third baseman Jack Howell, who snagged the ball off his shoe tops, stepped on third to double up Alvin Davis and threw to Wally Joyner at first to triple up Jim Presley. Joyner wasn’t sure if Howell caught the ball on the fly, so he stepped on the bag and also tagged Presley, who was sliding back into first. “It was a triple play either way,” Howell said.

Manager Doug Rader may not be as intimidating as he was when he managed the Texas Rangers, but he hasn’t lost the playful approach that characterized his career as a player. Former Angel Manager John McNamara, who was Rader’s manager at San Diego in the mid-1970s, stopped by Gene Autry Park to visit Tuesday. McNamara and Rader were watching the B game against the Padres when Rader asked to try on McNamara’s straw hat. All of sudden, Rader produced a bottle of flammable liquid and McNamara’s hat was on the ground in flames. “I knew he was crazy when he played for me, but then he respected me because I was the manager,” McNamara said. “I’ll catch up with him in Palm Springs, and it’ll cost him more than a new hat.”

The Angels announced the 34 players who will train in Palm Springs, starting Friday. Staying behind at Mesa will be pitchers Gary Buckels, Vinicio Cedeno, Colin Charland, Terry Clark, Mike Fetters, Jack Lazorko and Urbano Lugo; infielders Jeff Manto, Jim McCollom and Lee Stevens; outfielders Marcus Lawton and Mike Ramsey, and catchers Doug Davis and John Orton. Lazorko, who was 0-1 with a 3.35 earned-run average with the Angels last season, has been pounded for 10 earned runs in five innings this spring. Clark, 6-6 with a 5.07 ERA last year, has a rotator cuff injury.