Lewis Gets His Place in 2-1 Club : Angels: He pitches well again in second start, but loses to the Royals on Jackson’s homer in ninth.

Scott Lewis made his major league debut Tuesday, but his initiation rite didn’t take place until Sunday.

Now he, too, can say he has pitched exceptionally well for the Angels only to lose, 2-1.

Lewis joined a fraternity that welcomed Mark Langston four times, Kirk McCaskill twice and Jim Abbott and Chuck Finley once each this season. Every regular member of the Angels’ rotation has started a game lost 2-1 by the Angels this season except Bert Blyleven, whose place Lewis could vie for next spring.

With words made only more sincere by repetition, Angel Manager Doug Rader bemoaned the defeat absorbed by Lewis (1-1) before 34,644 fans in the Angels’ Anaheim Stadium finale.

“It’s a shame to see a guy perform to that level, with that amount of intensity and that competence, and we don’t get the job done, it’s a shame,” Rader said. “You look at his performance and it gives you great hope for the future. It’s a victory for the scouting department and the player development department.”

For everyone, it seems, except Lewis.

Lewis, who pitched 7 1/3 innings against Texas Tuesday in an 8-2 victory, held the Royals hitless Sunday until Brent Mayne--the Orange Coast College and Cal State Fullerton product--ripped a grounder off Lewis’ glove and into center field to start the sixth. Protecting the 1-0 lead given him in the fifth on a walk, a sacrifice and Luis Polonia’s triple to right, Lewis held Kansas City scoreless until the seventh, when Gerald Perry drilled a low fastball to right for his eighth home run of the season.

“He’s a low-ball hitter and if I make a little better pitch, four or five inches higher, maybe he pops it up,” said Lewis, who watched the Angels leave the bases loaded in the fourth and fifth and strand 10 runners overall.

Lewis placed his 3-and-1 pitch to pinch-hitter Bo Jackson carefully in the ninth, but Jackson hit it in the right-field bullpen to provide the winning run for Royal starter Kevin Appier (12-8).

AL batting leader George Brett popped up in the first inning, flied to right in the fourth and grounded to first in the seventh before leaving the game with a .328 average. Oakland’s Rickey Henderson, who didn’t play Sunday, is at .326, with Texas’ Rafael Palmeiro at .320 after going 0 for four Sunday.

“He moved his fastball around and he also had a good changeup,” Brett said of Lewis. “I wanted to have a really good day and end it right there. I’m 37 years old and this is probably my last chance.”

Lewis, who will be 25 in December, is likely to get a good chance to prove himself in spring training. “He’s part of the equation,” Rader said, “but on the flip side, you have to look to see why we lost. The bottom line is he did not win the ballgame and we need to address that, as well. He pitched a fantastic ballgame. It’s a shame.”

Angel Notes

Reliever Greg Minton has retired, returning home to Arizona. Minton, who ranks among the Angels’ top 10 in games, relief appearances and saves, got Kurt Stillwell to ground into a force play and Jim Eisenreich to fly out in his final appearance Saturday.