BASEBALL DAILY REPORT

Garret Anderson was the odd man out in the Angel outfield for the third time in seven games, a trend that had Manager Marcel Lachemann wondering Thursday how long the team can carry four starting outfielders.

“You can’t do it like this forever,” Lachemann said before the game against the Brewers. “We can for the rest of this year, but it obviously has to be addressed, because they’re everyday players. It’s not the ideal situation, but you do what you have to do.”

There has been speculation about a trade involving Anderson, but that’s not likely this season because the Angels don’t believe they can acquire a pitcher of equal value.

Philadelphia right-hander Curt Schilling may be the best pitcher available before Wednesday’s trading deadline, but the Phillies are seeking a player such as Anderson and a top prospect, a price the Angels won’t pay. So the Angels will likely wait until the off-season to explore major trade possibilities.

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Lachemann wasn’t the only one wondering how the Angels are going to keep Anderson, Jim Edmonds, Tim Salmon and Darin Erstad happy and productive.

“They’ve got to do something,” said ESPN college basketball announcer Dick Vitale, who attended Thursday night’s game. “They can’t make Garret Anderson a [designated hitter] at his age, can they?”

Just how does Vitale, a Florida resident and America’s foremost college hoops junkie, know so much about the Angels?

“I’m a baseball fanatic,” said Vitale, who slept with a baseball glove under his pillow when he was a kid. “I eat, sleep and drink baseball.”

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Mark Langston, recovering from a strained calf muscle and nerve irritation in his right leg, felt fine after throwing in the bullpen Thursday and expects to start Saturday against the Brewers. . . . Lachemann said Chuck Finley will start Sunday, meaning he will skip Jim Abbott’s spot in the rotation. . . . Second baseman Randy Velarde was scratched for the second consecutive game Thursday because of a cut on his left index finger. . . . Milwaukee left fielder Greg Vaughn sat out Thursday’s game because of an injured knee, suffered when he crashed into a wall Wednesday in Seattle. . . . Lachemann said the Angels might be interested in former Angel right-hander Kirk McCaskill, who was released Wednesday by the Chicago White Sox.