Close Not Enough as Angels Fall Short : Baseball: Blue Jays’ three home runs better than Phillips’ three-run blast. Toronto wins, 6-5.

Tony Phillips brought an announced Anaheim Stadium crowd of 14,163 to life with a three-run home run in the bottom of the seventh inning Wednesday night, but it still left the Angels a run short as they lost to the Toronto Blue Jays, 6-5.

Rex Hudler singled to lead off the ninth, but Orlando Palmeiro’s attempted sacrifice forced him at second and the rally was stifled.

Hudler had opened the seventh with a single and Palmeiro, batting for second baseman Damion Easley, slapped a single to left that put runners on first and second.

Jorge Fabregas looped a ball to shallow center field, where Toronto’s Devon White rushed in, got his glove on the ball and dropped it. But Hudler was heading back to second as White came on and couldn’t turn around and make it to third before White’s throw, which resulted in an 8-5 forceout.

Gary DiSarcina flied to center for the second out, but Phillips sent a Pat Hentgen pitch over the wall in center for his 11th home run of the season, and only his second in Anaheim Stadium. White leaped at the wall, but just missed making a spectacular catch.

Phillips had walked off Hentgen in the fifth inning and flung his bat toward the dugout in disgust, not usually the kind of reaction you’d expect from a leadoff batter who prides himself on his .415 on-base percentage and 58 walks, which ranks second in the American League.

But you could tell Phillips was itching to hit off Hentgen, and no wonder. He now has a .389 lifetime average (seven for 18) with four home runs against the Blue Jay right-hander.

Problem was, Toronto had similar success against Angel starter Shawn Boskie. Boskie had given up only three home runs in 50 1/3 previous innings but surrendered three in two innings Wednesday night.

With two outs in the top of the fifth, Roberto Alomar, who had his first four-hit game of the season, snapped a 2-2 tie by lining a bases-empty homer over the right field fence.

Joe Carter followed with a towering fly ball that reached the bleachers beyond the left field fence for a 4-2 Toronto lead. It was the first time this season the Angels have given up back-to-back home runs.

Ed Sprague doubled to open the sixth and Shawn Green, mired in a seven-for-54 slump (.130) the past 20 games, followed with a two-run blast to right field, his seventh homer of the season, to put Toronto ahead, 6-2.

Reliever Russ Springer then replaced Boskie, who gave up seven hits, six earned runs, struck out three but also walked three in five-plus innings. The right-hander had averaged 1.5 walks per nine innings, second-best in the league behind Texas’ Bob Tewksbury (1.2).

Boskie wasn’t the only Angel who was out of kilter Wednesday. The Angels also committed three errors, including two by Phillips at third base.

None of the miscues led to Blue Jay runs, but it was a sloppy performance for a team that ranks second in the American League with a .985 fielding percentage.

The night began with promise for the Angels. They took a 2-0 lead in the first inning when Phillips doubled to left, Greg Myers walked, and J.T. Snow lined a two-out, two-run double to left, the latest clutch hit for the Angel first baseman.

Snow is now batting .364 (16 for 44) with 21 runs batted in with runners in scoring position and two outs. He is hitting .455 (15 for 33) in the past eight games with two home runs and 14 RBIs.

Snow, who entered the game with a .313 average and now ranks fifth in the American League with 50 RBIs, almost lost his hot bat in the fourth inning, though.

After a swing and a miss of a Hentgen inside fastball, the bat slipped out of Snow’s hands and soared about 10 rows back behind the first base dugout, striking Angel fan Stephanie Berry of Upland in the head.

Berry was carried off on a stretcher and transported to UCI Medical Center, where she received stitches for a cut on her head and precautionary X-rays and was listed in good condition.

Snow was able to exchange another bat for his game bat while ushers were tending to Berry, but he struck out and grounded into a double play in his next two at-bats.