Edmonds Continues Crowd-Pleasing Ways

It’s a tough sell. Jim Edmonds grew up an Angel fan, so he knows what it’s like from the other side.

Toss in lingering anger from the longest strike in professional sports history and it’s no wonder the support at Anaheim Stadium has been lukewarm at best this season.

Edmonds has seen the Yankee fans holding up brooms after a three-game sweep. He’s heard the cheers for Roger Clemens. He’s seen the thousands of empty seats game after game.

Maybe that’s why it was so rewarding to hear the chants and cheers spilling from the right-field bleachers Sunday during the Angels’ 13-2 victory over Detroit.

“They were yelling, ‘Bring on Cleveland,’ ” Edmonds said. “Those people in right field don’t come to the games all the time, but when they do, they’re there to root. I like to hear that. That was a lot of fun. One of the better fan situations I’ve been through this season.”

Some fans bowed in reverence and gave Edmonds a standing ovation when he took his position in center field late in Sunday’s game.

Some day soon there might be more than Sunday’s announced crowd of 18,948 at Anaheim Stadium. Edmonds believes it might take more time, but he hopes it happens quickly. He likes the support.

“Everybody wants to see a winner,” he said. “I think we’re making believers out of people. Everybody’s waiting for us to fall off, but I don’t think it’s going to happen.”

Certainly, it’s possible that the Angels could hit the wall and fall into the second-half malaise that has become so familiar over the years.

Edmonds seems determined not to let that happen, hammering the ball in all directions, while pushing the Angels to a six-game lead in the American League West.

Detroit offered little resistance for the second consecutive game, and again Edmonds spearheaded the rout. If he can’t win back the fans, at least he’s able to win over his teammates.

“Edmonds is [hacking] me off,” designated hitter Chili Davis said in mock anger. “There are no RBIs out there. I told him, ‘Next year, you’re batting behind me.’ ”

Edmonds, batting second in the order, has a team-leading 72 RBIs. Tim Salmon, who bats third, has 54. Davis, the cleanup hitter, has 42.

Sunday, Edmonds had three RBIs for the second consecutive game. He homered for the third time in two games and raised his average to .311.

Eye-catching numbers to be sure, but wait, there’s more.

He is 18 for his last 34, a .516 average. He also has scored 16 runs, hit five homers and knocked in 16 runs in that span.

After hitting his team-leading 20th homer, singling and knocking in a run with a sacrifice fly, Edmonds was asked if he has ever been hotter.

He said he couldn’t remember, but one must assume it was probably during Little League.

Somebody else wondered how he might approach the Angels if he were pitching against them.

“I’d want to be sick or come up with an arm injury,” he said. “A lot of the problems might be that a pitcher will nibble here and there. They fall behind in the count, walk somebody and all of a sudden they’re down by two runs.”

Then four runs, then six, then eight, then . . . well, you get the idea.