At $1.575 Million, Erstad Can Dress for Success : Baseball: Former Nebraska outfielder gets big bonus with Angels.

Darin Erstad joined baseball’s millionaire boys club Wednesday, the former Nebraska outfielder and No. 1 pick in the June draft signing with the Angels for a bonus of $1.575 million.

But the 21-year-old native of Jamestown, N.D., who batted .410 with 19 home runs and 76 runs batted in for the Cornhuskers in 58 games last spring, doesn’t expect his lifestyle to shift with his income bracket.

“I might have a couple more pairs of jeans and T-shirts in my closet,” said Erstad, who reported to the Angels’ Mesa, Ariz., training complex Wednesday night and will probably start his professional career at Class-A Lake Elsinore next weekend.

“But it won’t change me at all. I’m just like any other guy trying to play the game and make the major leagues.”

Get in line, kid. Erstad, a center fielder, will have a tough time cracking the young Angel outfield of Tim Salmon (27), Jim Edmonds (25) and Garret Anderson (23) any time soon, and if there is one position that is stocked with prospects in the club’s minor league system, it’s the outfield.

“It’s going to be pretty tough, but with time and experience, who knows?” said Erstad, an All-American selection by Collegiate Baseball magazine and a punter on Nebraska’s national championship football team last season. “A lot of things can happen. We’ll see.”

Tim Mead, Angel assistant general manager, said it’s too early to be concerned about a potential logjam in the Angel outfield.

“We’re talking at least two years from now,” Mead said. “If he’s at the point where he’s pushing for a starting job, that would be a good problem to have. We’ll also need another designated hitter around then. We look at that as the glass being half full.”

Erstad, a 6-foot-2, 195-pound left-hander who used wooden bats in the Cape Cod Summer League in 1993 and ‘94, got a taste of the major leagues Wednesday when he toured Anaheim Stadium and the Angel clubhouse before the game against the Indians.

“Hey, rook,” third baseman Tony Phillips razzed Erstad. “That tie looks a little long.”

When the Angels drafted Erstad on June 1, they had hoped to have him signed within a week or two. But General Manager Bill Bavasi didn’t think the prolonged negotiations with adviser Jeff Moorad--they finally agreed to terms late Tuesday night after the Angel-Indian game--would hinder Erstad’s development.

“Doing the right deal was more important than getting him out there,” Bavasi said.

Erstad’s contract--the signing bonus was just shy of the draftee-record $1.6-million Moorad got from the Florida Marlins for Josh Booty in 1994--includes another $150,000 in guarantees for major league call-ups in 1995, ’96 and ’97 and a $40,000 provision to complete his college education.

If the Angels choose not to call up Erstad during those seasons, they would have to pay him $25,000 in both ’95 and ’96 and $100,000 in ’97.