BASEBALL DAILY REPORT : ANGELS : Springer Put on Notice: Next in Line

While Angel General Manager Bill Bavasi continues to shop for pitching--dangling left fielder Dwight Smith on the trade market--he may soon call up one of the remnants of the Angels’ last big trade.

Starter Russ Springer, who was acquired along with first baseman J.T. Snow and reliever Jerry Nielsen for Jim Abbott, has been told that he could be joining the Angel rotation, possibly by Saturday.

Springer, 7-4 with a 3.04 earned-run average at triple-A Vancouver, was put on call Tuesday when the Angels learned that they might have to put starter Phil Leftwich on the 15-day disabled list.

Leftwich, suffering from an inflamed lower right leg, underwent a magnetic resonance imaging test that proved normal and he will take inflammatory medication. He said that he probably will have to miss at least one start, but no decision had been made.

“It’s been getting steadily worse,” said Leftwich, who lasted only two innings Monday in the Angels’ 8-2 defeat to the Minnesota Twins. “Now might be the time to do something.

“When it first started hurting, I thought I had shin splints. But it hasn’t gone away. It’s like a toothache.

“It’s more annoying than anything.”

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Starting pitcher John Farrell, saying that it’s time to sever ties, rejected the Angels’ triple-A Vancouver assignment and will become a free agent if he clears waivers Thursday.

The Dodgers are one of several teams that have expressed interest in Farrell (1-2, 9.00 ERA). He is expected to clear waivers, however, because his $200,000 contract stipulates that he must be paid $45,000 for every start beginning with his eighth of the season, and he already has made three.

“I’m not going to go into whether I got a fair chance or not,” Farrell said, “but these guys took a chance on me before I could even throw the ball again. They worked with me a lot, and I appreciate what they did. I gave it everything I had to make things go, but things just didn’t work out. . . .

“The best scenario would be if I’m claimed off waivers, but no matter what happens, I feel I can still contribute to a team.

“But obviously at this point, it won’t be the Angels.”

Farrell, 31, considered one of the most popular players on the team, said that he also will explore opportunities in Japan.

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The Angels, who are prepared to vote in favor of authorizing a strike by July 1, voted Mark Langston as their player representative and Gary DiSarcina as the assistant. . . . The Angels, believing it might be best for second baseman Kevin Flora’s welfare, probably will put him on the suspended list until he’s able to recover emotionally from his wife’s death of a year ago. He has played only six games at Vancouver. . . . McKay Christensen, the Angels’ first-round pick in last week’s June free agent draft, has agreed on a $700,000 signing bonus in his contract that is expected to be finalized Friday. Christensen, who will begin a two-year Mormon mission this summer, becomes the highest-paid draft pick in franchise history.