Struggling Angels Take a New Turn

Tony Tavares was having trouble with his spin control. He was trying to emphasize the positive, but he kept spinning in his chair to catch a glimpse of the Angels spinning their wheels again.

The Angel president was sitting in the press lounge during their 6-5 victory over Kansas City, detailing why he had signed General Manager Bill Bavasi to a multiyear contract, but he couldn’t help looking over his shoulder and grimacing as the Angels left the bases loaded in the third inning.

And his stomach must have been twirling in the eighth and ninth innings when closer Troy Percival staggered but managed to cling to the victory that snapped the Angels’ six-game losing streak.

After 54 consecutive innings without a lead, the Angels broke loose in the sixth, scoring four times on a two-run homer by rookie George Arias and solo shots by Randy Velarde and Chili Davis to take a 5-1 lead in front of 18,591, who finally had something other than Bronx cheers for the home team.

Percival, usually asked to throw about a dozen pitches, threw 51 in relief of knuckleballer Dennis Springer, who left in the eighth inning with a 6-1 lead after giving up a leadoff walk and a bloop single.

Percival emerged from the bullpen and promptly fired third strikes past Jose Offerman and Tom Goodwin. But the stadium went quiet when Keith Lockhart’s fly ball found the gap in left-center for a two-run double and the next batter, Mike MacFarlane, got all of a Percival fastball, depositing it 438 feet from home plate in the left-field seats.

Percival was shaky in the ninth as well, walking Michael Tucker and pinch-hitter Craig Paquette before striking out Offerman again to end the game.

“I told you guys what a victory would do for my personality,” Manager John McNamara said, “but my hair is white enough. I don’t need a hell of a lot more of those.”

It was the first victory for McNamara--who watched most of the game on television in his office because of a strained calf muscle--since July 4, 1991, when he was managing Cleveland. It was his first victory as an Angel manager since Mike Witt threw a perfect game in Texas on the final game of the 1984 season.

This one wasn’t as nearly as pretty, but it probably felt just as good, especially to Bavasi, who was almost apologetic about his new contract, believed to be a four-year deal.

“There are only 28--well, there will be 30--of these jobs in the world, so it certainly is a privilege,” said Bavasi, 38, who is in his third season as Angel GM. “But I’m embarrassed with the way we’re playing right now. I wish we could be making this announcement with the team in first place.”

The way things are going these days, third place would be a more pragmatic goal.

Tavares said the timing of the deal probably would be perceived as a move to show stability, which, considering that the team’s current travails have shaken the organization’s very foundation, is not all bad. The only thing that is rock-solid certain about the Angels right now is that they’ll try to find a way to lose, which was almost the case again Sunday.

“This is the most frustrated I’ve ever been in my life,” Tavares said. “Anybody who accepts losing, who learns to lose, is probably destined to lose. So I guess I’m proud of the fact that I feel this rotten.”

He’s not alone. Just ask Davis, who also blasted a towering, 420-foot solo homer to right field in the fifth inning off Royal starter Tim Belcher.

“I guess guys are going to pitch the way guys have to pitch,” he said, “and nobody’s going to give in. Guys are nibbling and throwing all that off-speed [stuff].

“So I went up to the plate thinking that, if I did hit it, I was going to mash it, hit it as far as I can.”

So was that as far as he can hit one?

“Hell no, he didn’t throw it hard enough,” Davis said. “It was a damn changeup.”

And Sunday was a changeup of sorts for the Angels, who had lost 11 of 12.

“It was nice to have a lead for a change, a little breathing room for awhile anyway,” Davis said, “but the way we’re going, we’ll take a win any way we can.”