ANGELS : Williams Wildly Injures Two

The wing feels great, but Angel reliever Mitch Williams is having problems with his landing gear, and the San Francisco Giants paid the price for it Saturday.

Williams, suffering from a strained right quadriceps, sent two Giants to the hospital for X-rays, J.R. Phillips for a possible wrist fracture and Jeff Reed for a possible broken finger.

It could have been worse. After giving up a bases-empty home run to Glenallen Hill in the sixth inning of the Angels’ 5-3 exhibition victory in Scottsdale Stadium, Williams’ next pitch went right at Phillips’ head.

Phillips got his hand to his face just in time to block the ball, but the impact knocked him out of the game. Two batters later, Williams lost control of another pitch that almost beaned Reed. Reed, as with Phillips, got his hand up in time. Reed also wound up in the hospital.

As an added bonus, Williams threw two wild pitches that sent pinch-runner Todd Benzinger to second and third before retiring the side. One run, one hit, no deaths, anybody left?

“I’m thinking about landing more than making the pitch because when I land it hurts like hell,” said Williams, a left-hander. “My arm feels great, but I couldn’t drive through on my slider. I don’t know what I’m going to do. I’ll either have to pitch with it or stop throwing sliders.”

Phillips was seething after being hit but didn’t charge the mound. Williams said it wasn’t intentional, and Giant Manager Dusty Baker trusted him.

“He’s trying to make the team,” Baker said. “He’s not trying to go out there and start something.”

*

The post-Williams relievers were exceptional Saturday, and the Angels scored twice in the ninth to win the game. Troy Percival struck out two of three batters in the seventh, Lee Smith struck out two of four in the eighth and Erik Bennett retired the side with one strikeout in the ninth. Starter Mark Langston pitched three innings, allowing Barry Bonds’ solo home run.

Luis Raven tripled to open the ninth for the Angels and scored on Spike Owen’s single. Owen stole second, reached third on catcher Marcus Jensen’s throwing error and scored on outfielder Tony Phillips’ groundout.

Phillips, making his Angel debut after being traded from Detroit for Chad Curtis Thursday, also slapped William VanLandingham’s first pitch of the game to left for a single.

“I was scared, and when I’m scared I swing,” said Phillips, a 13-year major league veteran who turns 36 on April 25. “Yes, I even get butterflies at this age. When you lose those nerves, that excitement, you’re dead.”

Phillips said he thinks the Angels have a chance to win the American League West if they can finish 10 games above .500.

“I have more of a positive feeling here than I did in Detroit,” Phillips said. “They’re going through a youth movement and lost a big chunk of their lineup when they didn’t re-sign Mickey Tettleton. That pretty much tells me they’re throwing in the towel for a few years. I’m glad they made this move now rather than during the season.”

*

The Angels, looking to add some depth at first base and some pop off the bench, signed Ricky Jordan to a minor league contract Saturday and invited him to their major league camp.

Jordan, 29, played seven seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies, batting .282 with 54 home runs and 300 RBIs. A first-round pick in 1983, Jordan served primarily as a backup to John Kruk last season, hitting .282 with eight homers and 37 RBIs.

Jordan had been working out at the free-agent camp at Homestead, Fla., where he caught the eye of Angel scout Joe Coleman.

“He liked his power,” General Manager Bill Bavasi said. “He has played some outfield, but that’s not our intent.”

Bavasi said the signing is not an indication that the team has lost confidence in first baseman J.T. Snow.

“But it is protection against an injury or a need there,” Bavasi said. “Anyone trying to take the job away from J.T. is going to have to be substantially better offensively because of the way J.T. can play defense.”