Abbott Good, Cleveland Better in 3-0 Victory

His poise makes Jim Abbott seem older than his 22 years, suggesting he has been around long enough to accept the occasional unkindnesses of fate and fastballs without a second thought.

Rarely in his two major league seasons has Abbott looked as young and vulnerable as he did Monday after the Angels’ 3-0 loss to Cleveland, as he recalled the tarnished ending to a game that was in every other facet a gem.

Brook Jacoby’s single and Cory Snyder’s two-run home run in the 10th inning were painfully fresh in Abbott’s mind long after the 26,477 fans had streamed out of Anaheim Stadium. Disappointed as they were to see the Angels’ seven-game winning streak end, the loss left Abbott as forlorn as a forsaken child.

“It’s awful tough,” Abbott said softly after holding the Indians hitless from the second through ninth innings only to be beaten when Jacoby hit a slider into short center field and Snyder hit an outside fastball into the left-field seats. “I felt good and the guys made some good plays behind me. (Third baseman) Donnie Hill made some nice plays, (Dave) Winfield made a couple of catches and I was throwing to spots.”

Abbott (2-4) allowed two infield hits in the first inning before settling into a rhythm. The Indians beat his sinker into the ground, getting the ball out of the infield only twice in the first nine innings and hitting enough ground balls and pop-ups for Angel first baseman Wally Joyner to record 20 putouts, two short of the major league record for nine innings.

“He’d go out there and it seemed like we were out on the field for only a couple of minutes and then be back in the dugout,” Hill said. “He pitched outstanding.”

Catcher Lance Parrish has seen Abbott more overpowering, but never more precise. Abbott threw 38 balls and 75 strikes, walking one and striking out four in 9 1/3 innings, the longest outing by an Angel pitcher this season. Chuck Finley and Bert Blyleven have each pitched nine-inning victories.

“He was hitting spots well and making them do what he wanted,” Parrish said. “This is probably as consistent as I’ve seen Jimmy. There have been occasions where he’d just throw it by people, but today he was moving the ball in and out and they just weren’t taking real good swings.”

Unfortunately for Abbott, the Angels weren’t getting productive swings against Cleveland starter Bud Black. He held them to six hits in eight innings and allowed only one runner as far as third base, that occurring in the fourth inning on an infield single by Chili Davis, a single by Dante Bichette and a wild pitch. The threat fizzled when Parrish grounded out to short. Only Winfield (on a single and a walk in the sixth inning) and Hill (a seventh-inning double) reached scoring position after that, as Cecilio Guante (2-2) pitched a perfect ninth inning and Doug Jones did the same in the 10th for his league-leading 16th save.

“You could tell right away he wasn’t going to give up many runs,” Black said. “You could tell early on it was going to be a tough one.”

And a tough loss for Angel Manager Doug Rader to take.

“They got to (Abbott) and we didn’t get to any of their people,” Rader said. “The bottom line is that it shouldn’t have gone that far. . . . What that young man did was pitch a fantastic ballgame. He had command of all his pitches and we didn’t score for him. He deserved a much better fate.”

His fate was sealed when Candy Maldonado opened the 10th with a soft line drive to left-center field. Stanley Jefferson ran for him and was sacrificed to second by Sandy Alomar Jr. and sent home on Jacoby’s single to shallow right.

“I didn’t get ahead of Maldonado and he’s a good hitter, and any time you have to come from behind and throw a fastball to a good hitter, you can get burned,” said Abbott, who has won only one of his last six outings. “Jacoby hit a pretty good pitch, a slider, over the second baseman’s head.”

Parrish also considered the hits by Maldonado and Jacoby to be instances of good hitters hitting good pitches. “Jacoby jammed himself and muscled it over the second baseman’s head. Most of the time he’s not going to be able to do that,” Parrish said. “He happened to lift it up in the air and over the second baseman’s head.”

Parrish and Abbott had pitched Snyder inside during Synder’s three previous at-bats, getting him to pop up once and ground out twice. “I didn’t know if it was wise to go away on Snyder and give him the opportunity to extend his arms,” Parrish said. “I was thinking if we keep it in, maybe we jam him and he hits a double play that gets us out of the inning. He just didn’t get it in, and (Snyder) was able to get extended.”

Parrish extended consolation to Abbott. “It’s awful difficult when you pitch a good game and you have nothing to show for it except an ‘L’,” Parrish said. “He’s been working real hard to get himself back in a groove and he reached that point. We just weren’t about to score any runs. I hope it doesn’t affect the way he goes about his job. He pitched a great game.”

Abbott’s next task is to realize that. Asked if he could take comfort from pitching so well for so long, he stared blankly. “It might take me a little while to be encouraged by this,” he said. “It’s just tough.”

Angel Notes

Jimmie Reese, who suffered a coronary occlusion last month, is scheduled to undergo a second angioplasty in the near future. Angel Manager Doug Rader, who visited Reese at the 85-year-old coach’s Westwood home, said Reese is alert but tired. Reese won’t be back in uniform until after the All-Star break, but Rader said Reese might be able to attend a game at Anaheim Stadium when the Texas Rangers visit in early June.

Monday marked the Angels’ third extra-inning game in their last five. They are 3-3 in extra-inning games. The Indians are 1-2. . . . Johnny Ray’s hitting streak ended at 12 games. . . . Gary DiSarcina is hitless in 18 at-bats since his first major league hit May 24. He was hitless in 10 at-bats before that single and is one for 29 overall. . . . The Indians substituted Tom Candiotti (4-2) for Greg Swindell as Wednesday’s starting pitcher.

Shortstop Dick Schofield, idled by a strained hamstring since March 27, is “a half-step away from being baseball-ready,” according to Angel trainer Ned Bergert. Schofield will be sent to triple-A Edmonton on rehabilitation assignment later this week. “We want him to get 30-35 plate appearances and play in consecutive ballgames to where he gets the feel for it again,” Rader said.

Catcher Bill Schroeder skipped a scheduled start at Class-A Palm Springs Monday after experiencing stiffness in his right elbow. He will return there Wednesday and stay until June 10. Pitcher Greg Minton (right elbow surgery) has progressed well enough to begin throwing breaking balls. . . . Bob McClure (left elbow tendinitis) is playing catch and gradually working his way back. . . . The Angels signed pitcher Fred Toliver to a Palm Springs contract. The 29-year-old right-hander was 1-3 last season with Minnesota and San Diego and has a career record of 9-16.