Turnabout Is Fair Play for Blyleven, 6-4

Bert Blyleven has made himself the Angels’ resident olfactory expert this season.

Back when the Angels were having trouble scoring runs, he announced to the world that the offense “stinks.”

He didn’t spare himself the accusing finger either, posting a note to reporters reading “I STUNK TODAY,” after a loss last Saturday.

Against the Detroit Tigers Thursday, both Blyleven and the Angel offense smelled good for a while, taking a six-run lead en route to a 6-4 victory before 26,462 in Anaheim Stadium.

Blyleven, who had a one-hit shutout through five innings, gave up two runs on five hits and left after seven innings.

When reliever Mark Eichhorn gave up two runs in the ninth and brought the tying run to the plate, there was a hint of unpleasantness. But Bryan Harvey came on to get pinch-hitter Dave Bergman to pop to left for the final out for his 10th save.

The third-place Angels have won four of their past five games and moved to 9 1/2 games behind AL West-leading Oakland, which was idle.

With the victory, Blyleven (7-4) made amends for his last start, a 6-2 loss to Detroit and Jack Morris on Saturday in which he gave up five runs in five innings.

The teams--and the pitchers--had a rematch Thursday.

“I don’t try to figure out what I did wrong,” Blyleven said. “I knew I didn’t pitch real well (Saturday). I just came back trying to pitch my type of game.”

Through five innings Thursday, Blyleven have given up only a harmless single in the third to Scott Lusader, who was taken off the basepaths on Mike Heath’s double-play grounder.

Morris (6-8) didn’t fare so well. He had won four games in a row. Instead of a fifth, he made his quickest exit of the season, lasting only 2 1/3 innings before he was pulled. He left the field to the Anaheim Stadium tune of “Hit the Road, Jack.”

The Angels, with two-run homers from Dave Winfield and Jack Howell, built a 4-0 lead before the first out of the second inning. They took a 5-0 lead in the second when Donnie Hill doubled home Luis Polonia, who had singled and stolen second base. They made it 6-0 in the third on singles by Chili Davis, Devon White and John Orton.

Morris had broken Blyleven’s five-game winning streak Saturday. Blyleven returned the favor.

“He beat me and my five-game winning streak. I was the winning pitcher today,” Blyleven said. “I guess it all evens up.”

Morris, like Blyleven before him, was not pleased.

“There’s 138 excuses why I didn’t pitch well tonight, and my Mom doesn’t want to hear one of them,” Morris said. “I never gave my teammates a chance. I (stunk?). When your location was where mine was tonight, you can expect earthquakes. God, I hope the sun comes up tomorrow. I think it will.”

Blyleven didn’t give up a second hit until Heath reached on an infield single in the sixth inning. He lost the shutout later in the inning with one out on a double by Lou Whitaker, which drove in Ed Romero who reached when a fielder’s choice erased Heath.

Blyleven gave up a run in the seventh inning after a single to Cecil Fielder, who scored on a double play after moving to third on a wild pitch and a single by Larry Sheets.

Eichhorn replaced Blyleven in the eighth inning with a four-run lead, but it got interesting in the ninth when two runs scored, only the second time in the past 22 outings Eichhorn has allowed more than one run.

Detroit cut the lead to two on an error by third baseman Howell, a double by Lloyd Moseby and a pinch-hit single to shallow right by Mark Salas.

Bryan Harvey came on with two out and Salas on first. He balked, sending Salas to second, before Dave Bergman popped to left, ending the game and giving Harvey his 10th save.

“Eichhorn got in a little trouble,” Harvey said. “That ball Salas hit wasn’t hit hard, but it found a hole. I just hoped the last one wouldn’t find a hole.”

Known for giving up homers--Blyleven has surrendered 406, seventh most in major league history--he had to face Fielder, batting .316 with 25 homers, best in the major leagues.

In his first turn against Fielder, Blyleven worked to a 2-and-2 count and then struck him out looking with a big slow curve.

Fielder went one for four with a single.

Manager Doug Rader liked what he saw in Blyleven.

“He had gotten off track a little bit his last time out,” Rader said. “That was why this was so important to him. He went out and beat the team that beat him.”

Angel Notes

His record has fallen to 4-7, but Mark Langston says he has felt more confident since making changing his delivery after walking eight in a 9-1 loss to Baltimore May 9. Since then, his walks have decreased and his strikeouts have increased dramatically. Langston has lost his past three starts by identical 2-1 scores despite reaching double digits in strikeouts in all three.

“I’m not flustrated (sic),” said Langston, who said he declined to talk with reporters after a 2-1 loss to Chicago Wednesday because he was rushed and had nothing to say. “Granted, I’d rather have wins any day of the week,” he said. “I’ll do whatever it takes to win. I feel like I’m giving my best effort. Maybe that’s not good enough at this moment.”

Langston said he has slowed his motion on the advice of pitching coach Marcel Lachemann. “Lach started with the glove, and that slowed me down a lot,” said Langston, adding that he has had problems with hurrying his delivery before. “It doesn’t slow my arm speed. What it does is it keeps me from getting too far back and not letting my arm catch up to my body.”

Langston credited the changes with his success.

“I’m throwing more strikes, getting my pitches over the plate and getting ahead of the hitters,” he said.

Reliever Greg Minton, whose recovery from elbow surgery has been slowed by a shoulder problem, pitched hbatting practice Thursday and will throw off the mound for a second consecutive day today, repeating the routine after a day off Saturday. The next step would be for him to pitch a simulated game or two. . . . Second baseman Johnny Ray (shoulder) played short toss and took batting practice Thursday.