Hershiser Gets a Very Rude Welcome Back : Baseball: Former Dodger lasts only 2 1/3 innings for Indians while giving up five runs, five hits and four walks.

Orel Hershiser waged an old-fashioned pitcher’s duel, but not the kind you’d expect.

He desperately tried to hang on in his return to Southern California Tuesday night at Anaheim Stadium. He didn’t last long, however, for his new team, the Cleveland Indians, falling victim to his own wildness and the Angels’ torrid hitting.

“I had good movement, good break, good velocity, but no control,” Hershiser said. “I had no idea where the ball was going.”

In the end, there was nothing memorable about Hershiser’s first appearance here since leaving the Dodgers after last season.

The Angels jumped on him quickly and didn’t let up, getting five hits and five runs in 2 1/3 lackluster innings.

Four walks and no strikeouts certainly didn’t help Hershiser. It was his shortest start since lasting only one inning against Houston on Aug. 16, 1991.

When he left, trailing, 4-3, the announced paid crowd of 42,468 rained a cascade of cheers and jeers upon Hershiser.

And it was difficult to know whether those applauding were simply congratulating Hershiser on handing the Angels an early lead or expressing genuine appreciation for his Dodger accomplishments.

At that moment, he was no longer the 1988 World Series hero. He looked like just another beaten opponent as he trudged from the field, his team trailing.

He was even greeted icily as he walked from the Cleveland bullpen before the game. There was a smattering of boos, which were quickly drowned out by thunderous applause as the Angels took the field.

He was no different than any other opposing starter. Eleven years in a Dodger uniform apparently meant little to the fans at Anaheim Stadium.

Fact was he fared worse than many who have attempted to slow the league’s top-scoring team.

“It wasn’t a distraction,” Hershiser said of his return. “I wasn’t nervous.”

Cleveland, the league’s second-best scoring team, managed three runs in three innings against Angel starter Chuck Finley, but Hershiser couldn’t slow the Angels.

He began the game with a 7-4 record, a 3.91 earned-run average and a two-game winning streak.

Certainly, the Indians had a bankable offense, what with second baseman Carlos Baerga, outfielders Albert Belle and Manny Ramirez and catcher Sandy Alomar in the lineup.

What they needed was starting pitching, so they signed Hershiser, 6-6 in 21 starts for the Dodgers last season, to a one-year deal on April 8 with an option for 1996.

He has responded. Aside from a stint on the disabled list because of a sprained lower back, he has been reliable. He won five in a row with a 2.11 ERA in six starts before going on the disabled list.

Since returning July 7, he was 2-1 before Tuesday’s loss with victories over Oakland and Texas.

The Angels, however, buried Hershiser, quickly trashing any momentum he might have had from his consecutive victories or any good vibes at being back.

Leadoff hitter Tony Phillips doubled off him in the first inning, then later scored on a fielder’s choice.

Hershiser pounced on Tim Salmon’s tapper in front of home plate, but his throw to get a hard-charging Phillips at the plate was well off the mark.

“I made a bad play,” Hershiser said.

Garret Anderson opened the second with a 429-foot home run over the center-field fence.

In the third, Anderson produced a run-scoring single and Hershiser was finished for the night, replaced by right-hander Albie Lopez.