Angel Bats Stifled by A’s, 3-1

To expect a shutout from their pitchers every time out is unrealistic, but it may be the Angels’ best hope of compensating for their anemic offense.

One swing of Jose Canseco’s bat obliterated the Angels’ one-run lead as well as a tenacious effort by starter Kirk McCaskill and gave the Oakland Athletics a 2-1 lead en route to a 3-1 victory Wednesday at Anaheim Stadium.

Canseco’s two-out, two-run home run off a 2-2 pitch by reliever Mike Witt in the seventh inning was the key hit as the A’s swept the two-game series.

The Angels, who leave today for a two-week, five-city road trip, dropped 2 1/2 games behind the defending World Series champion A’s in the AL West.

McCaskill shut out Oakland for six laborious innings. He yielded only four hits but made 105 pitches. Witt (0-2) got in trouble in the seventh inning when he gave up a one-out walk to Rickey Henderson, who was forced at second by Carney Lansford. Canseco then drilled his third home run of the season over the wall in left-center.

The A’s added an insurance run in the ninth on a single and stolen base by Rickey Henderson and Lansford’s RBI single.

Oakland starter Scott Sanderson (2-0) allowed one run over six innings to earn the victory. Gene Nelson allowed four hits over three innings to earn his first save of the season.

McCaskill yielded at least one walk in each of the first five innings but got out of trouble in each case.

Canseco singled to left and advanced to second on a walk in the first and third innings. But McCaskill dodged danger in the first by inducing Dave Henderson to hit into a force play, and in the third by getting Henderson to hit a popup to second baseman Johnny Ray.

The Angels were doing little against Sanderson, whom the A’s signed as a free agent in December to replace Storm Davis. The Angels had one hit in the first four innings, a single by Wally Joyner that was misplayed by right fielder Canseco for an error. Joyner went to second, but was left there when Chili Davis popped out.

McCaskill wriggled out of another tense situation in the fourth inning. He started the inning by walking Mark McGwire--the fifth walk he issued--surrendering a single to Ron Hassey, which sent McGwire to second. But McCaskill struck out Walt Weiss swinging, got Mike Gallego to fly to right field and struck out Rickey Henderson swinging.

Dante Bichette led off the Angel half of the fifth inning with a slow roller to second that Gallego couldn’t play. It was ruled a hit, only the second for the Angels. But Bichette was caught stealing and, although Lance Parrish drew his second walk of the game, the threat ended when Mark McLemore flied to left.

The A’s gave the Anaheim Stadium crowd a nervous moment when McGwire led off with a long fly to center field that sent Devon White to the wall, where, using his right hand to cushion the impact, he reached up and caught the ball with his back to the field.

The Angels produced the game’s first run in the sixth inning and threatened more. White ended a one-for-15 slump by lining a double to right-center, and he went to third when Ray hit Sanderson’s first pitch for a single to center. Joyner’s broken-bat single to right scored White.

Sanderson retired Davis and Brian Downing, but Bichette beat out a roller to third. But, with the bases loaded, Jack Howell hit a dribbler to first to end the inning.

Angel Notes

The Angels’ trade talks are said to be heating up, with Devon White’s name mentioned most prominently and a capable leadoff hitter the quarry, rather than the power-hitting outfielder General Manager Mike Port had been seeking over the winter. White’s lack of success as the leadoff hitter apparently has exhausted Port’s patience. White was hitting .152 before Wednesday night’s game, his lowest average since he was hitting .150 on April 10, 1988. He had struck out at least once in each of the previous seven games in which he batted. The Angels also may have found the power-hitting outfielder they sought within their ranks in Dante Bichette, who led the club with three home runs and nine RBIs before Wednesday’s game.

Although the Phillies’ Len Dykstra would seem an ideal solution, Philadelphia is not likely to trade the Garden Grove High graduate. As for Tim Raines, Port said he had spoken to his Expo counterpart, Dave Dombrowski, only in jest after hearing that the Angels were about to acquire Raines in exchange for Kirk McCaskill, Mike Witt and White. “I did talk to Montreal about that,” Port said, “because the next day I couldn’t remember who the third player was from us, and David couldn’t remember who the first two were from us. It was news to all of us.”

It would fit Port’s conservative style to trade for a lesser-known player. He said that his trade talks continue, but “the names are not what’s being speculated. I’m available to be overwhelmed.”

Catcher Bill Schroeder (sore right elbow) threw from a crouch behind the plate Wednesday for the first time since spring training, when he aggravated the elbow. He pronounced the effort “a success,” but is still scheduled for a visit Friday to the doctor who performed his ligament surgery in 1985. . . . Pitcher Bob McClure, on the 21-day disabled list because of a sore left elbow, said his arm was less painful. “This is the first day I’ve noticed some improvement,” he said.

A’s Manager Tony La Russa dropped Mark McGwire from the cleanup spot to sixth Wednesday and had designated hitter Ken Phelps hitting fourth. However, he said the move was temporary and only because of the pair’s career records against McCaskill. “Ken has hit a few bombs off McCaskill,” La Russa said, “and McGwire hasn’t hit quite as many bombs.” Phelps has hit .294 with three home runs off the Angel right-hander, compared with McGwire’s .143 and one home run.

A CAT scan of reliever Greg Minton’s right elbow found “loose bodies” in his elbow.