Angels Seeking a New Plan : Baseball: Herzog looks for ways to improve the offense without trading Abbott.

Whitey Herzog, seemingly intent a month ago on trading Jim Abbott, has pulled back on parting with his prize left-hander and is examining other ways to bolster an offense Herzog described as “pathetic.”

Although Herzog, the Angels’ senior vice president for player personnel, said Wednesday he hasn’t increased the four-year, $16-million offer the club made to Abbott during the season, he’s considering possibilities that include keeping Abbott, dealing other players and leaning heavily on youngsters.

Herzog also acknowledged that there’s no urgency in dealing Abbott because with four years of major league experience, Abbott is two years away from free agency.

Herzog has spoken with the New York Yankees, among others, to determine Abbott’s trade value. Interest in Abbott is high despite his 7-15 record, because his 2.77 earned-run average ranked among the league leaders for the second successive season.

“I talked to the Cowboy (owner Gene Autry) today. He said, ‘I gave him $16 million, that’s a lot of money,’ ” Herzog said from his home in suburban St. Louis, where he’s recovering from a 2 1/2-hour operation last week on his right shoulder.

“And you know, that would be the most money for a four-year player. I don’t want to trade Jim Abbott. He’s the Cowboy’s favorite player . . . If we go into next season with our three left-handers (Abbott, Chuck Finley and Mark Langston) and (Julio) Valera, we’re going to have a hell of a rotation. And there’s going to be a hell of a lot of free agents out there, so maybe we can patchwork it that way.

“If we can help ourselves a little bit by using some good common sense with free agents, we’re going to be all right. We do have to get some hitting, whether we trade for it or come up with somebody in the free-agent market. He’s not our only commodity. I am talking to a lot of people, but to trade Jim Abbott, I would have to be able to do something that fans would think I made a hell of a deal. I’m not going with the idea of trading him just to trade him. I hope we can get him signed. If not, we still have him for two more years.

“Sixteen million is a lot of money. Maybe he should think of that old Chinese proverb, ‘Don’t pass up your first fortune.’ ”

Abbott’s agent, Scott Boras, couldn’t be reached for comment Wednesday. Boras and Abbott had proposed a four-year, $19-million deal and Abbott later suggested splitting the financial difference and signing for $17.5 million. That proposal was rejected by Herzog.

Herzog said he intended to visit the Angels’ Arizona instructional and Fall League teams in the coming week to make final decisions on the club’s 15-man protected list for the Nov. 17 expansion draft.

“A lot of people are having trouble with their 15, so there could be some deals,” he said. “Everybody knows what we need, but we ain’t gonna spend no money. It’s tough to make deals. You’ve got to be a magician to fit a player into your payroll and a psychic to predict how he’s gonna do.”