BASEBALL / DAILY REPORT : ANGELS : A Better Name Would Be Harvey

There were the Nasty Boys in Cincinnati, and some other great bullpen tandems with catchy nicknames, so it seemed a little unusual that someone would come up with a nickname for the Angels’ corps.

But leave it to Manager Buck Rodgers to come up with one that somehow seems appropriate for his bullpen, “the Final Four.”

“When you don’t have the luxury of a closer or late guy, you have to go with a Final Four,” Rodgers said Friday. “It takes that many guys for us.”

Joe Grahe, projected as the closer at the start of the season, remains on the disabled list because of tendinitis in his shoulder. He played soft-toss Friday but has yet to pitch off the mound and may have to be sent out on rehabilitative assignment, Rodgers said.

“I think we put too much pressure on Joe Grahe because of what he did last year,” Rodgers said, of Grahe’s 21 saves in 24 opportunities in 1992. “This year, he put a lot of pressure on himself early, and it never happened. I won’t say it can’t happen, but it’s not happening now.

“I don’t think last year was a fluke. You can’t do that every day, and it be a fluke. But he gained weight during the winter, took time getting into the groove and never could get his sinker going.

“I’m not sure where he fits in right now.”

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Mike Butcher, who wondered at times whether he would be back in the major leagues after undergoing shoulder surgery last November, became the Angels’ latest relief pitcher.

“There were times, believe me, that were very depressing,” said Butcher, who replaced Julio Valera on the roster. “It was ugly during extended spring to have 17-, 18-year-old guys light you up.

“I didn’t think I was ready to pitch at that level, and I got hammered a couple of times, but (triple-A pitching coach) Gary Ruby really helped me. I know I wouldn’t be here without him.

“I feel like I belong here, now.”