Angel Mood Worsens Along With Their Play

The Angels clearly lack confidence on the field, where their prolonged plummet continued with a 10-8 loss to the Kansas City Royals before 24,112 in Anaheim Stadium on Sunday, but those feelings of insecurity now seem to be creeping into the clubhouse.

There was some hope despite the Angels’ 22nd loss in their last 30 games--the Seattle Mariners lost Sunday, the Angels kept their three-game lead in the American League West, and their magic number dropped ever so slightly, from 11 to 10.

But the frivolity, the relaxed atmosphere that was so pervasive when the Angels got hot after the All-Star break, has been replaced by such divisive pastimes as players questioning strategy and second-guessing the manager.

“We’re not pitching other hitters the way they should be pitched, we’re not hitting pitchers we should hit. . . . I don’t know if it’s a lack of preparation or concentration, but we’re not doing some things like we did in the past,” center fielder Jim Edmonds said.

“We need patience and a knowledge of what’s going on, and we don’t have either right now. Every day I’m in disbelief that some things are going on. Maybe I’m out of line by saying what I’m saying, and I’m not trying to blame anyone, but we’re just not playing the same kind of ball we were playing.”

Shortstop Gary DiSarcina, who was activated Sunday after six weeks on the disabled list because of a thumb injury and should return to the lineup within a week to 10 days, could see this coming.

“Every phase of our game has been shaken, and your concentration tends to slip when you’re not feeling confident,” DiSarcina said. “When the house is shaken and the foundation rattled, you can lose that feeling of what it’s like to win. And that obviously affects you in the clubhouse.”

Struggling third baseman Tony Phillips, who was livid when Manager Marcel Lachemann held him out of the starting lineup Sunday, believes the Angels are still a cohesive unit. But the losses have tested players.

“Of course there’s second-guessing when you lose, guys are human,” said Phillips, who replaced Eduardo Perez in the sixth inning and homered in the ninth. “Guys say, ‘Why this? Why that?’ But what it all boils down to is you have to look in the mirror and ask what you could have done.

“I’m not perfect and no one else is, whether he’s in the manager’s office or general manager’s office. When things are going bad it’s easy to make excuses and point fingers, but the first should be pointed at yourself.”

That’s exactly what pitcher Mark Langston did. The left-hander, who was extremely effective while winning his last two starts, gave up a three-run home run to rookie Joe Vitiello in the first, the 14th time in the last 26 games the Angels have yielded a first-inning homer.

Langston (15-5) also gave up a two-run homer to Juan Samuel in the third, as the Royals, who swept the three-game series, built a 5-1 lead.

The Angels fought back--they had 13 hits, including homers by J.T. Snow, Chili Davis, Greg Myers and Phillips--but every time they pulled to within two runs of Kansas City, the Royals scored a few more runs, and the Angels couldn’t come up with the clutch hit to complete a comeback.

They had their chances. They had runners on first and second with no outs in the sixth inning but didn’t score. They loaded the bases with two outs in the eighth, but Royal closer Jeff Montgomery struck out Davis on three pitches to end the threat.

Vitiello added a two-run homer off Langston in the fifth--his third homer of the series--and former Angel Gary Gaetti hit a solo blast off reliever Mike Harkey in the seventh.

Little seemed to go right for the Angels. Edmonds appeared to rob Vitiello of his fifth-inning homer, but the ball squirted out of his glove and behind the fence when his forearm hit the wall. Schofield suffered contusions on two knuckles of his right hand when he was hit by a foul ball--while sitting in the Angel dugout.

But the tone for the afternoon was set by Langston.

“To put us in such a huge hole is very disappointing--I’ve got to do a better job,” said Langston, who lasted only 4 1/3 innings. “My job is to be consistent, not great for two starts and horrible for one. I let the team and the fans down today. It’s embarrassing.”