Fortugno Solid in Angel Debut : Baseball: Pitcher leaves with game tied in sixth, then teammates score on a balk and an error to beat Blue Jays, 5-3.

Alert baserunning and solid relief pitching, two elements the Angels have often lacked this season, proved enough Monday for them to overcome the AL East-leading Toronto Blue Jays and write a satisfying ending for rookie Tim Fortugno’s major league debut.

Junior Felix scored the go-ahead run in the seventh inning after a walk, a sacrifice, a ground out and a balk, and the Angels capitalized on Toronto’s third error of the game to score again in the eighth and wrest a 5-3 victory from the Blue Jays in front of 21,090 at Anaheim Stadium.

Singles by Gary DiSarcina and Luis Polonia, coupled with center fielder Devon White’s misplay of Polonia’s single, ensured the Angels of their seventh victory in eight games and helped Joe Grahe earn his sixth save in six opportunities.

Fortugno, who became the oldest Angel player to make his major league debut--he was 30 years, three months and nine days old--pitched 5 2/3 creditable innings and left with the score tied, 3-3. Chuck Crim (4-2) earned the victory with 1 1/3 innings of hitless relief.

The Blue Jays, whose AL East lead over Baltimore was cut to three games, scored single runs in the third, fourth and sixth innings. Pat Hentgen (5-2) was the loser in relief of Todd Stottlemyre, who gave up seven hits and struck out two in his first start since being activated off the disabled list last Thursday.

Fortugno was summoned last week from triple-A Edmonton when Jim Abbott went on the disabled list because of a pulled rib cage muscle. He became the first major league pitcher to debut past the age of 30 since Montreal’s Ubaldo Heredia, who was 31 on May 12, 1987.

Fortugno showed none of the nervousness that might be expected of a rookie in his major league debut. Nor was he ruffled by the added pressure of pitching in front of a host of friends and relatives. Pitching from the stretch--a habit developed during his many seasons as a reliever--Fortugno recorded five strikeouts in the first three innings.

Fortugno benefited from some early offensive support. Polonia led off the bottom of the first with a walk and dashed to third on Luis Sojo’s single to center. Felix followed with a fly to left that popped out of Candy Maldonado’s glove on the warning track. Polonia scored on the play, which was ruled a sacrifice fly and an error, and Sojo went to third.

The Angels might have made even more of the inning, but Von Hayes forced Felix at second and Chad Curtis grounded into a double play.

They made up for that lost opportunity by scoring twice in the second inning, again capitalizing on an error by the usually sure-handed Blue Jays.

Rene Gonzales started the inning by lining a double to left, and he scored when Gary Gaetti singled up the middle. Gaetti moved to second on Ron Tingley’s sacrifice and had to hold up on DiSarcina’s grounder to third. But Polonia beat out a bouncer to third and took off for second on Stottlemyre’s first pitch to Sojo, which created havoc when catcher Pat Borders’ throw sailed into center field. Gaetti scored and Polonia went to third, where he was stranded when Sojo flied to left.