Angel Officials Study Free-Agent Situation : Baseball: Team will evaluate how Joyner, Schofield, McCaskill, Hill and Venable fit team’s needs for 1992.

Believing it “implausible economically” to sign all five of the club’s potential free agents, Angel President Richard Brown said he will meet this week with Manager Buck Rodgers and Senior Vice President Dan O’Brien to begin evaluating their priorities and assessing the team’s overall needs.

First baseman Wally Joyner, shortstop Dick Schofield, pitcher Kirk McCaskill, infielder Donnie Hill and outfielder Max Venable will be eligible for free agency after the season.

Brown said Thursday he will attempt to start negotiations with all of them in order to gauge their salary requests. However, with a 1991 payroll of $32-34 million and projected losses of $2-4 million, the Angels aren’t likely to re-sign them all.

“Joyner is one of our first priorities, and Schofield and McCaskill,” Brown said. “We want to set up a lunch with Wally and explain to Wally that we want to keep him here, that there’s a new regime here and this regime cares for him. Not to imply the other regime (headed by former General Manager Mike Port) didn’t. We also need to know is he within the realm of signing? We won’t know until we talk . . .

“I don’t anticipate losing Joyner and I don’t think that will happen. At least that’s what I’ve been told by quite a few people.”

Joyner’s .297 batting average and team-leading 87 runs batted in are likely to make him the most marketable free agent of the group. He’s earning $2.1 million after winning an arbitration hearing last winter. Schofield, regarded as a sound defensive player, is hitting .235, two points above his career average. The senior Angel, with more than eight years’ service, Schofield is earning $1.4 million in the final year of a three-year contract.

McCaskill’s value undoubtedly has been hurt by his 18 losses, one short of the club record for defeats in a season. Hill, who signed for $500,000 last winter, is hitting .246 in a part-time role. Venable, who has had only 144 at-bats this season because of an abundance of outfielders, earns $425,000.

The Angels must also decide whether to re-sign 40-year-old designated hitter Dave Parker, whose .232 batting average is 61 points below his career average.

“We had hoped to get more production out of Parker, but I’m not going to put the ills of this team on Parker,” Brown said. “You look at Dante Bichette and he has had a similar year. You can’t say the trade was bad . . . Dave gave 100% of what he had left to give or was able to give.”

While the Angels remain intent on building from within their farm system, Brown said they might resort to the free agent market if they lose one or more key players.

“Obviously, if we can’t sign any of the free agents, we’re going to have to replace any we can’t sign,” Brown said. “I can’t rule anything out because I don’t know how things are going to develop.”

Brown said he was “most anxious” to hear the opinions of Rodgers, who has a 4-5 record since replacing Doug Rader on Aug. 26.

“Buck Rodgers is not going to fix things quickly because we have the same personnel,” Brown said. “Doug Rader was not relieved of his duties because he was a bad manager. He just didn’t get the job done. We understand a new manager isn’t going to have a magic elixir.”