BASEBALL DAILY REPORT : ANGELS

Trainer Ned Bergert said doctors determined John Orton’s shoulder problems are in the same area as the rotator cuff soreness that idled him for most of spring training. However, Bergert said tests showed no rotator cuff tear. Orton complained of tightness in the shoulder after checking a swing 10 days ago in Seattle. . . . Orton, Bryan Harvey (sore right elbow) and Hubie Brooks (strained neck) will be re-evaluated by team orthopedist Lewis Yocum Thursday at Anaheim Stadium. . . . Jim Abbott, who left Saturday’s game because of a pulled right rib cage muscle, felt no improvement Sunday. He will be moved to fifth in the rotation to give him eight days off, which he hopes will be long enough for the muscle to heal. “I don’t want to miss a start. I really take pride in going out there every time,” he said. . . . The Angels are 3-5 in extra innings and 9-17 in one-run decisions after their first back-to-back one-run triumphs of the season. . . . Wathan said the club has signed catcher Rey Palacios and assigned him to double-A Midland. Palacios replaces career minor leaguer Mick Billmeyer, who retired. Wathan joked that Palacios’ unique talents make him an ideal emergency backup. “He’s a paramedic and he was a firefighter in New York,” Wathan said. “We could just have him follow Bert (Blyleven) around and put out fires after Bert gives people the hot foot.”