BASEBALL DAILY REPORT : ANGELS : McCaskill Is Frustrated by Too Many Off-Days

Kirk McCaskill was unhappy about the way he pitched Friday, but he was also frustrated about the way the quirks in the Angels’ schedule have affected the rotation recently.

Accustomed to pitching every fifth day, the starters have been thrown out of kilter by a schedule that gave the team three off-days in eight days--Thursday, April 25, Monday and Thursday.

“I’m getting tired of it,” McCaskill said. “To me, having three days off in a week makes zero sense.”

McCaskill has pitched his past two games, both losses, on five and six days’ rest.

“It gets you away from your routine,” he said.

Manager Doug Rader and pitching coach Marcel Lachemann were concerned enough that they considered tinkering with the rotation by skipping the fourth or fifth starters, Jim Abbott and rookie Scott Lewis.

“We toyed with the idea of changing the rotation and dismissed it,” Rader said. “We could have skipped over a couple of guys, but then you run the risk of something like the kid (Kirk) Dressendorfer who pitched for Oakland today.”

Dressendorfer, a rookie who is sometimes passed over to ensure that Dave Stewart pitches on four-days’ rest, lasted only three innings in a 20-6 loss to the Cleveland Indians, giving up eight runs, five earned.

Wary of the possible effects of a rotation shuffle, Rader and Lachemann stuck to the schedule, despite the unsettling effect of extra time off.

“Your rhythm is affected more than anything else,” Rader said. “It doesn’t take much to get out of sync.” They won’t have to worry about such things in September and August. The Angels have only four days off during August and September.

Despite widespread wishful thinking among fans that Fernando Valenzuela could become an Angel, General Manager Dan O’Brien said no talks are under way.

O’Brien, still in his first week as general manager, said Valenzuela’s agent, Tony DeMarco, had called the Angels this week, but that his message had not yet been returned.

“An awful lot of things would have to be right, and I don’t see that happening,” O’Brien said.

Wally Joyner, who made his 720th appearance at first base Monday, tied Rod Carew for most games played at that position in Angel history.