Angels ’94 : How the West Could Be Won

The words flow effortlessly from their throats. It’s almost as if they believe it’s natural to utter the words that haven’t been heard around these parts in eight years. They are not whispering these words, or talking in hushed tones; they are shouting them to the heavens. The Angels not only are telling everyone who will listen that they are legitimate championship contenders but that they will be truly disappointed if they don’t win the American League West title.

“I’m not sure if we could contend in any division in baseball,” Angel General Manager Bill Bavasi said, “but believe me, I know we’re good enough to contend in this one.”

It doesn’t matter to the Angels that their pitching staff’s earned-run average hovered above the prime rate all spring.

It doesn’t bother anyone that they reshuffled their team the last week of the spring, allowing shortstop Gary DiSarcina only three days to work with his new double-play partner.

Nor does it concern them that the only backup third baseman is Spike Owen, who never has played a game at third in the major leagues.

There is only one vital fact that captivates the Angels’ attention.

It’s called realignment.

The Angels find themselves this season in perhaps the weakest division in baseball, needing to overcome only three teams to win the division title.

“That division by far has to be the worst division in baseball,” Boston Red Sox designated hitter Andre Dawson said. “With the Oakland ballclub almost being depleted, and California with a young club, it’s got to be the easiest division to win.”

Take a peek:

--The Seattle Mariners, who have had only two winning seasons in the franchise’s existence, and never won the division.

--The Texas Rangers, who also have never won the division.

--The Oakland Athletics, who finished in last place in 1993.

--The Angels, who have finished a combined 38 games under .500 the last two seasons and 47 games out of first place.

“There’s no more excuses for this club,” DiSarcina said. “The rebuilding was two years ago. It’s over.”

The front office has let it be known by its actions that the youth movement is dead. The young players already are in place. It’s time to win.

This is why the Angels acquired veteran outfielders Dwight Smith and Bo Jackson this winter. It is why they grabbed veteran starter John Dopson and veteran left-handed relievers Craig Lefferts and Bob Patterson. It is why this spring they sent second baseman Kevin Flora back to the minors, acquired infielders Harold Reynolds and Rex Hudler as replacements and picked up starter Mark Leiter.

“We wouldn’t have made those moves a year ago,” Angel Manager Buck Rodgers said, “but now we think we can win this thing. I truly believe we’ve got an excellent chance of winning the whole thing.

“Seattle’s the team to beat in our division, but believe me, we’re going to be right there.”

The Mariners, who never have finished higher than fourth in their franchise history, certainly should accomplish that modest feat this season. They might not have a bullpen stopper, and will be weaker at shortstop with Felix Fermin instead of Omar Vizquel, but they’re the ones most likely to spoil the Angels’ illusions of grandeur.

“I told them that this club has as much talent as any club I’ve ever managed,” said Lou Piniella, who managed the 1990 World Series champion Cincinnati Reds. “We felt last year we took it to the competitive level.

“This year, we’re going to take it to the next step.”

The Mariners’ paramount flaw is that they have no bullpen stopper. They had a deal worked out a few weeks ago for Mel Rojas of Montreal, but it was nixed when Mariner ownership decided it could not afford his $850,000 salary.

Seattle now has no choice but to go with Bobby Thigpen, who saved a record 57 games in 1990 but has had only two saves since the 1992 All-Star break. Piniella is hoping that once the bullpen blows a few games, ownership will wake up and allow the club to pursue Rick Aguilera of the Minnesota Twins.

In the meantime, the bullpen will consist of the likes of Thigpen, Bobby Ayala, Jeff Nelson, Tim Davis, Bill Risley and either Kevin King or Erik Platenberg. Their combined major league experience, with the exception of Thigpen, totals a mere two years and 136 days.

The Mariners’ starting rotation, which might be the finest outside the city of Atlanta, should ease the pain. They’re going with a four-man rotation of Randy Johnson (19-8), Chris Bosio (9-9), Greg Hibbard (15-11) and Dave Fleming (12-5). They won’t need a fifth starter until April 23, when they probably will turn to Roger Salkeld.

Perhaps the Angels’ biggest hope is that the simmering feud between Johnson and center fielder Ken Griffey Jr. drags into the season. Johnson recently criticized Griffey’s work habits, prompting a private meeting initiated by Griffey.

“I’ve seen his good days, and I’ve seen his bad days,” Johnson said. “Sometimes I don’t feel like he works as hard as he could. Things come easy to him so he doesn’t have to work as hard as everyone else. If he worked as hard as Kirby Puckett or someone like that I think he would be in the Barry Bonds category.”

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The Texas Rangers were the chic pick to win the division throughout the winter, but once folks started to catch their pitching act, they realized the Rangers are in deep trouble.

Still, it didn’t stop General Manager Tom Grieve from coming out in February and guaranteeing a division title. His comments quickly found their way into the Oakland clubhouse, and were tacked onto the team bulletin board.

“I was there for seven years,” Oakland starter Bobby Witt said, “and you always heard the same thing. It was, ‘We’re going to sign this guy and we’re going to win.’ Then we wouldn’t win and the next year it would be, ‘We’re going to sign this other guy and we’re going to win.’

“Believe me, I don’t think they’ll go around intimidating anyone. They’ll score a lot of runs, but they’ve still got to pitch.”

The Rangers, who lost starters Roger Pavlik and Bruce Hurst to injuries this spring, open the season with only two starters who had winning records last season: Kevin Brown (15-12) and Kenny Rogers (16-10).

This is a team that relies on starter Jack Armstrong to anchor its rotation. Yes, the same Jack Armstrong who was a 17-game loser last season. The same Jack Armstrong who had a 22-45 record with a 4.82 ERA the last three seasons. The same Jack Armstrong who opens the year as the Rangers’ No. 3 starter.

If the Rangers’ pitching isn’t shaky enough, take a look at their infield defense, which led the league with 57 errors on the left side of the infield. They enter the season with three infielders who ranked among the bottom four for fielding percentage in the league last year. Shortstop Manuel Lee was spared only because he did not appear in enough games.

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It says something about the quality of this division that even the Oakland Athletics believe they can win it. OK, OK, the Athletics have dominated this division the last six years, but this still is the same team that was dead-last in 1993.

“Right now, I’m thinking we’re going to jump back in contention this year,” Oakland Manager Tony La Russa said with a straight face.

Said bullpen stopper Dennis Eckersley: “You’ve got to feel optimistic because it’s a four-team division. We’ve got as good a shot as anybody.”

The Athletics’ optimism certainly has little to do with first baseman Mark McGwire, who missed most of the spring because of back problems. He missed 135 games last season because of his left heel, and was on the disabled list with a herniated disc in 1989.

Yet, whether it’s an aberration or not, the Athletic pitching staff has been superb this spring. La Russa, who set an American League record by going to his bullpen 424 times last season--keeping as many as 13 pitchers during one stretch--may be able to sit on his hands.

The starting rotation of Witt, Bob Welch, Ron Darling, Steve Karsay and Todd Van Poppel is solid, albeit unspectacular. This is virtually the same rotation that was 41-63 with a 5.19 ERA last season, averaging fewer than 5 2/3 innings per start. Their bullpen is a crapshoot until the ninth inning when they can turn to Eckersley.

So, now that the entrants are in place, the prognosis?

“I think it’s all in our hands,” Angel reliever Mike Butcher said. “When things were going bad this spring, nobody ever panicked. That’s a sign of a good team.

“The bottom line is that we better be a contender in this division.

“I mean, look at it.”

Exactly.