BASEBALL DAILY REPORT : ANGELS : Steady Snow Satisfies Lachemann

First baseman J.T. Snow is not having a monster start as he did in 1993, when he hit .343 with six home runs, 17 runs batted in and 17 runs scored in the first 19 games.

And Manager Marcel Lachemann couldn’t be happier.

“You get off to a great start like that and the expectations wouldn’t be realistic,” Lachemann said.

Snow did not respond well to those expectations in ’93. He fell to .205 by June and was in triple-A Vancouver by July. The pressure is on again this season. Snow has to produce offensively if he is to keep his job.

But with Tim Salmon hitting five homers in the first eight games and Chili Davis off to a torrid start, Snow has found a nice comfort zone, away from the spotlight but in the thick of the Angel offense.

Snow is having a very good season--he’s batting .280 with three homers and 16 RBIs--but not so spectacular that he’s drawing too much attention.

“I’m just trying not to do too much, to stay in the middle of the road,” Snow said. “I like being that guy who can be overlooked. You can put up good numbers and have a good year. There were times before where I felt I had to do this or that, but I don’t feel that pressure this year.”

Snow has played top-notch defense and has come up with several clutch hits. He is batting .353 (six for 17) with runners in scoring position, second-best on the team behind Davis.

“He seems a lot more comfortable,” Lachemann said. “He’s not as anxious at the plate, his walks are up, and there’s no panic. If he goes 0 for 4 one night, he doesn’t go out and try to get three hits in his next at-bat.”

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Brian Anderson, who is eligible to come off the disabled list Sunday, threw again Wednesday with no discomfort in his strained left biceps. Lachemann said he would like Anderson to throw a three-inning simulated game in the next few days before returning him to the rotation. . . . After going hitless in their first 15 attempts, Angel pinch-hitters had four hits in their last five at-bats, including three by Spike Owen, before Wednesday’s game.

Rob Deer, a nine-year major league veteran who was cut by the Angels in spring training, went three for six with a home run and five RBIs in Vancouver’s 10-6 victory over Tacoma on Tuesday night. . . . Twin outfielder Kirby Puckett scored the 1,000th run of his career in the third inning Wednesday.