Angels Get a Lead They Can Hold, 10-8 : Baseball: Parker’s homer in seventh enables California to regain advantage over Rangers after squandering 8-3 edge.

After the bullpen squandered a chance to save a victory for Jim Abbott Friday night, Dave Parker and Wally Joyner did their best to ensure the Angels didn’t squander a chance to move within two games of the division-leading Minnesota Twins.

Parker broke an 8-8 tie with his sixth home run of the season, a towering blast to left-center in the seventh inning, and Joyner doubled in the eighth for his fifth run batted in of the game and the insurance run in the Angels’ 10-8 victory over the Texas Rangers at Anaheim Stadium.

Home runs by Joyner and Dave Winfield had helped the Angels build an 8-3 lead, but Abbott tired in the seventh and gave up a double to Rafael Palmeiro and a home run to Ruben Sierra. Mike Fetters relieved him but was ineffective, yielding a single, a walk and a game-tying three-run homer to rookie Dean Palmer to waste a save opportunity.

“I just wish it would have been a little easier,” Parker said. “I’m getting up in age and I can’t afford to have a heart attack. It was a battle of offenses of two good clubs.”

The Angels’ bullpen has blown five saves this season, all of them in games started by Abbott. Two occurred in Abbott’s last start, last Sunday at Detroit, after he pitched 6 2/3 hitless innings.

Parker’s home run extended his hitting streak to 12 games, his best of the season, and gave him three RBIs.

Bryan Harvey relieved Mark Eichhorn (2-1) after Eichhorn gave up a leadoff double to Palmeiro in the eighth. Harvey gave up a single to Sierra, but he squelched the Rangers’ threat when Julio Franco popped up, Palmeiro was thrown out at home on Juan Gonzales’ fielder’s choice grounder and Palmer struck out.

The Rangers loaded the bases with none out in the ninth when Steve Buechele walked, Ivan Rodriguez singled to left and Jeff Huson bunted in front of the plate for a hit. That brought up former Angel Brian Downing, who was making his first appearance at Anaheim Stadium since he signed with Texas as a free agent. Downing, who had been welcomed with applause by the crowd of 45,998, was applauded again--for striking out on four pitches.

Palmeiro flied to left, too sharply for Buechele to tag. Sierra, who had a homer and a single in his previous two at-bats, struck out to end the game.

The save was Harvey’s 20th of the season, tying him for the American League lead.

“I didn’t try to make it exciting,” Harvey said. “It wasn’t and they had some pretty big boys at the plate, too.”

Of Abbott, Harvey said: “We haven’t done too well behind him, but at least we won.”

Said Manager Doug Rader: “Easy or not, the outcome was very satisfying. The only downside is that we aren’t able to get over the hump with Jimmy Abbott. He could have another six or seven wins this season.”

Parker also feels for Abbott.

“Everybody feels bad about it,” Parker said. “It’s a shame. I told Jimmy he has that buzzard look that I had earlier this season (when he was slumping). . . . I told him I’m going to steal his shoelaces and burn them. In the Dominican Republic, they burn your shoelaces if you’re not doing well.”

The Angels, who are 18-16 at home, are the closest they have been to first place since they were 1 1/2 games out on June 11. They also are a game away from tying the major league record of 15 consecutive errorless games.

Joyner was four for five, raising his batting average to .328.

Abbott had control problems in the first inning, issuing a two-out walk to Sierra that led to the first of Texas’ two runs.

After Downing popped up to first and third baseman Gary Gaetti made an acrobatic stab of Palmeiro’s line drive, Abbott walked Sierra on a full-count pitch. Julio Franco then doubled down the right-field line, a shot that caromed off the wall. Right fielder Winfield made a good throw to Joyner, the cutoff man, but Joyner’s one-bounce throw home was too late to get Sierra.

Abbott went to a full count on Gonzales before Gonzales ripped a hit-and-run single to right. Franco scored easily from second.

A four-pitch walk to Palmer brought Angel pitching coach Marcel Lachemann out of the dugout to counsel Abbott, and the advice worked. Abbott’s first two pitches to Buechele were balls, but he came back to record an inning-ending strikeout.

The two runs were the first given up by Abbott in the first inning since May 5, 10 starts ago.

The Angels gave Abbott a fresh start with two runs in the bottom of the first.

The Angels broke the game open in the fourth, taking their 8-3 lead.

With runners on first and second, Joyner fouled off seven 2-and-2 pitches and one 3-and-2 pitch before slamming a home run to right, not far from a sign proclaiming “the return of Wally World.” It was his first homer at Anaheim Stadium with a runner on base since May 27, 1990, when he hit a grand slam against Milwaukee.

Winfield followed with a homer into the left-field stands, his 15th homer of the season and 393rd of his career.