Fabregas’ Defense a Bonus for Angels

The Angels left spring training secure in the belief that their catching platoon of Greg Myers and Chris Turner would add offensive punch. They felt considerably less sure that the tandem would provide an acceptable level of defense.

The American League’s fleet set figured to be marking their calendars for games against the Angels. After all, Myers and Turner combined to throw out only 24 of 114 would-be base stealers last season.

Twenty-nine games into the season, the Angels are beginning to believe they have the best of both worlds, thanks to an unfortunate turn of events and the amazing progress of rookie Jorge Fabregas.

Myers was hitting .227 when he tore cartilage in his knee during a collision at home plate April 23 and went on the disabled list. Turner is struggling along at .114. So when the Angels called up Fabregas from triple-A Vancouver to provide catching depth, it wasn’t long before they gave him a chance.

It was a shot heard ‘round Anaheim Stadium and the report is still reverberating.

Wednesday night, he threw out both Yankees who attempted to steal and the Angels held on to win in 13 innings. Thursday night, Fabregas picked off a pair of Athletics to help the Angels win, 4-3.

“That was a good win, with our bullpen tired,” Manager Buck Rodgers said. “(Phil) Leftwich and (Craig) Lefferts did a good job, with an assist from Jorge Fabregas behind the plate, I might add.

“It’s early, but he certainly has caught and thrown with the best of them so far. Everything he’s doing is just about textbook right now. He’s really popping those throws. We’ll just sit back and reap the benefits for the time being because he’s on the top of his game now.”

Fabregas’ throw to pick Scott Brosius off second to end an Oakland rally in the fifth inning Thursday night looked like something launched from a Patriot missile battery and was as accurate.

“We didn’t know anything about him going in,” Brosius said, “but he made it real clear in the first few innings that he was more than willing and very capable of throwing. There was no excuse for me getting picked off there, we had already seen his arm in the first few innings.”

Fabregas’ defensive highlight film has almost overshadowed his .375 batting average He walked and scored a run during the Angels’ three-run fourth inning and singled to center in the eighth, but he was clearly more interested in talking about his throwing than his swinging.

“I’m not going to just sit there and catch balls,” Fabregas said. “I’ve got a pretty decent arm and I’m going to use it. I’m an aggressive catcher and there’s nothing that feels better than helping a pitcher out of a jam like that.”

Fabregas caught Troy Neel leaning too far toward second in the fourth inning. And the A’s had already scored a run in the fifth--on Geronimo Berroa’s bases-empty home run--and had runners on first and second when Fabregas signaled for the pick-off play and then called for a breaking ball to batter Rickey Henderson to pick off Brosius.

“I like to call an off-speed pitch so they get farther off base,” Fabregas said, smiling. “The biggest thrill for a catcher is to throw a guy out stealing or pick a guy off.”

Thrilling? Sure. Important? And how. Henderson completed his at-bat leading off the sixth and hit a long home run to center.

Fabregas, who caught all 13 innings Wednesday night, might be due for an off day, but he certainly won’t be asking for one.

“Tired? No, no, no,” he said. “Not in the major leagues. There’s no such thing as tired up here.”