Boone Runs Up Fancy Numbers After Getting His Royal Welcome

Here’s how well things are going for Bob Boone:

He hit a triple last week.

Not just any triple . . . a stand-up triple. Boone hits those about as often as USC goes to Russia.

Remember that Boone is 41, which means you don’t bother timing him with the second hand, but with the minute hand. He runs as if he’s dragging an anvil.

So naturally when Boone records an honest-to-goodness triple, only his fifth in his last 3,893 at-bats, you notice. Boone certainly did.

In fact, he returned to the dugout that afternoon in Seattle and celebrated the rare baserunning sprint with “a drink of water and a respirator.” Asked later if he felt a little bit like a 25-year-old, Boone couldn’t suppress a laugh. “I don’t think I ever had the body of a 25-year-old,” he said.

Boone can joke about such things: his glacial speed, his age, his occasional line drives that skip past onrushing outfielders for triples. Life is good right now, even if Kansas City, rather than Anaheim, is where Boone collects his $883,001 paycheck, exactly one dollar more than the Angels paid him last season.

He shouldn’t be here, of course--at least, not dressed in Royal blue. He still should be wearing an Angel uniform, but he isn’t because of assorted circumstances, beginning with the off-season acquisition of Lance Parrish and ending with a difference of pitching philosophies with the coaching staff. Their loss.

Boone was a team treasure and you do what you can to hold on to those. Instead, the Angels decided they could do without Boone’s Gold Glove, his 16 years of major league experience and a revived hitting stroke (a career-high .295 in 1988). When he signed a one-year deal with the Royals, the Angels waved goodby with mixed feelings. They’d miss him, but they’d get over it. After all, they had Parrish, which meant not paying Boone almost $1 million to presumably become a backup.

As for the Angels’ post-contract comments--Boone never allowed the Angels to counteroffer . . . Boone wanted a full-time job. . . . Boone could have stayed had he wanted to--don’t entirely believe them.

True, Boone took the Royal offer without notifying Angel management.

True, Boone preferred to start.

And true, owner Gene Autry would have fattened Boone’s wallet even more had he stayed.

But why should he have remained? The Angels didn’t lift a pen to sign him until it was too late. They all but had guaranteed Parrish a starting position. And more money? The Angels missed the point, as well as the boat. Boone didn’t want more money; he wanted respect.

The Royals gave it to him. The Angels didn’t.

So here he is, cruising along with a .281 batting average, thoroughly enjoying himself as the Royals inch closer to overtaking the Angels in the American League West standings.

“I told him yesterday, ‘This is about the time of the year you went from .190 to hit about .350 the rest of the year,’ ” said Royal Manager John Wathan. “He went five for five off us about this time last year. I told him we’d take that again if he’d like to do it.”

Boone is doing what he can to oblige the request. Friday evening, Boone singled twice and scored once as the Royals won. Saturday night, in another Royal victory, Boone added a single and a run scored.

And don’t think, in his own private way, he didn’t savor every hit and win. For as much as Boone tries to sustain this image of the consummate professional, there must have been a tiny part of him that whooped it up as the Royals extended the Angel losing streak to three games Saturday night.

“I used to talk to (former Angel) Doug DeCinces about it,” Boone said. “He always did well against Baltimore. He was always telling me how much fun that was.

“I had never played against a former team,” he said. “I think it’s fun. It’s a little more emotional when you’re hitting off somebody you know real well. There’s a level of competition that gets juiced up a little bit. But I don’t see it as being vindictive or vengeful at all. There’s a little more of an edge. From a personal standpoint, there’s a little bit more of a playoff atmosphere.”

Boone hasn’t decided if he’ll return for an 18th major league season. He said his bat and glove will help him decide, much like those same tools helped Mike Schmidt call it quits when age outdistanced ability. Other than that, Boone remains vague about his plans.

“You talk about a career, asking how long do I want to play,” he said. “I don’t know. I enjoy it, but that’s not really a factor. The only factor is whether I can play or not. Obviously, right now I can. But next year, I don’t know. When that decision has to be made, that’s when I’ll sit down and evaluate it.

“I do know I won’t go in and talk to (Royal General Manager) John Schuerholz about a five-year deal. I’m just looking at one year at a time.”

Nothing wrong with professional prudence. A year here. A year there. No need making predictions you can’t keep.

“When I sat down and became a free agent, without knowing all the circumstances, you say, ‘Where will I fit in best?’ ” Boone said. “This was my first choice. Fortunately for me, (the Royals) thought the same way.”

Unfortunately for Halo followers, the Angels didn’t.