Springing to Life

What’s a spring training without a little suspense and intrigue? Some things to think about as the Angels begin workouts at Tempe, Ariz.:

* BIGGEST QUESTION OF SPRING: Who will catch? Jorge Fabregas has the edge going into camp, but this will probably develop into a platoon position with either Ron Tingley or Todd Greene, both right-handed hitters, sharing the job with the left-handed-hitting Fabregas. Chris Turner has an outside chance. The Angels will try to trade for a catcher this spring. San Francisco’s Kirt Manwaring, one of the game’s best defensive catchers, and Detroit’s Mark Parent, who hit 18 homers last season, are possibilities, with Damion Easley probably serving as trade bait.

* YOU CAN BANK ON IT: When the Angels return from spring training, they will be controlled by the Walt Disney Co., which created a stir in January when it stipulated that a plan for a $110-million renovation of Anaheim Stadium must be in place within 60 days or it could back out of the deal to purchase a minority share of the team. Despite Anaheim’s preoccupation with the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks, negotiations between the city and Disney on the baseball stadium have progressed rapidly since January, and a deal should be in place before the March 17 deadline.

* JOB SEEKERS: The best competition will be for the fifth starter (between Phil Leftwich, Scott Sanderson, Shawn Boskie, Dennis Springer and Jason Grimsley, who was acquired from the Cleveland Indians on Thursday for Brian Anderson); middle relief jobs (10 players battling for one or two spots) and the second base/third base positions, where Randy Velarde, Easley, Tim Wallach, Jack Howell and, perhaps, Eduardo Perez, will compete. Easley, coming off seasons of .215 and .216, worked with a sprint specialist this winter and hopes to develop into the leadoff hitter the Angels currently lack.

* WHAT, ME WORRY? The Angels are not expecting Lee Smith, who had knee surgery in November after tearing his patella tendon in a hunting accident, to be ready for the start of the season, so Troy Percival will probably take over the closer role. Percival is ready, but his loss in the set-up role, where he went 3-2 with a 1.95 earned-run average last season, would be a major blow. If Smith can’t go, much of the bullpen burden would fall on Bryan Harvey, who has been sidelined virtually all of the last two seasons because of arm injuries.

* WORST-CASE SCENARIO: Steve Ontiveros suffers another elbow injury, Wallach has chronic back problems, Smith struggles to recover from his knee injury, and Gary DiSarcina spends more than a week on the disabled list. When the shortstop tore ligaments in his thumb last August, the Angels went into a tailspin.

* BEST-CASE SCENARIO: The Angels remain relatively sound, Chuck Finley, Mark Langston and Jim Abbott pitch more consistently than they did in 1995, and Jim Edmonds, J.T. Snow, DiSarcina and Garret Anderson prove last season’s production was no fluke.