BASEBALL / DAILY REPORT : ANGELS : Rogers Enjoys Perfect Day After

Texas Ranger pitcher Kenny Rogers, who never again will be confused with the country-western singer, came to work Friday without having gone to sleep.

Rogers, who became the first left-hander in American League history to pitch a perfect game Thursday night against the Angels, said Friday he just was starting to understand the significance of his feat.

When “Good Morning America” telephones for a 6 a.m. interview, and the Hall of Fame asks to put your glove and cap on display at Cooperstown, Rogers realized that this hardly was just another victory.

“I haven’t been asleep yet,” Rogers said Friday afternoon. “Really, I never closed my eyes once.

“It was something that I don’t think will ever happen again to me, but at least I got it that one time. I’m the only guy from Georgia ever to throw one of these. And I knew I’d be the only guy from Dover (Ga.), because there’s no one else that lives in Dover.

“I don’t think I’ll be able to top this again. I guess I’m on the downside of my career. I might as well quit.”

So, just how does a guy who pitches a perfect game spend his last 24 hours?

He stayed up until 2:30 in the morning drinking champagne with teammate Kevin Brown and answering congratulatory phone calls, he stayed up until 5 talking with his wife, went on “Good Morning America” at 6, went to play golf at 6:30 and was at the ballpark filming a public-service announcement at 3 p.m.

“I really played (golf) terrible today,” Rogers said, “but you know something? I never had a better time.”

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It might have violated an unwritten rule in baseball, but Rod Carew, Angel batting coach, said he would have bunted to break up Rogers’ perfect game and doesn’t understand why no one tried a bunt Thursday.

“A base hit is a base hit,” said Carew, a Hall of Famer. “If a guy’s getting you out, I’d drop one down. Even if I’m the last hitter up, I’m trying to break it up any way I can.”

Said Ranger Manager Kevin Kennedy: “If somebody had bunted, I would have shot him.”

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Angel owner Jackie Autry, who was at Thursday’s game, said she got caught up in the emotion.

“When the game ended,” she said, “I stood up and applauded along with everyone else.”

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Angel third base coach Ken Macha has been on the field three times during perfect games: Cleveland’s Len Barker against Toronto in 1981, Montreal’s Dennis Martinez against the Dodgers in 1991 and Thursday night.

Which was the most dominant performance?

“It had to be Martinez,” Macha said, “because the Dodgers didn’t even hit the ball hard. Of course, Mark Gardner threw a no-hitter through nine innings (two nights before), so the Dodgers weren’t exactly scorching the ball.”