Angels Lose Way Home

He was theirs for next to nothing, a proven major league infielder who could add depth and experience and not break the bank.

Luis Alicea didn’t have many takers after becoming a free agent this winter. But the Angels, knowing a bargain when they saw one, leaped at the chance to sign him.

Best of all, it wouldn’t cost them more than a minor-league contract. Alicea would come to spring training as a non-roster player, and if he looked good, he would be a dependable jack-of-all-trades.

So how could a player with six years of major league experience be so readily available?

“I don’t know,” Angel Manager Terry Collins said. “[General Manager Bill] Bavasi called me and said we have a chance to get Alicea. I said, ‘It’s very simple: Let’s get him.’ ”

Good thing too.

Bavasi looked smart when he signed Alicea on Jan. 4. He looked brilliant Wednesday.

Alicea inherited the starting second baseman’s job Wednesday afternoon when the Angels learned Randy Velarde will sit out the 1997 season after undergoing season-ending elbow surgery next week.

“Hindsight is 20-20, but it’s huge,” Bavasi said of signing Alicea. “It’s also lucky.”

Indeed.

Bavasi said one day last winter he got a call from Alicea’s agent, looking for offers for the 31-year-old free agent. Bavasi figured it was worth a shot, knowing another versatile infielder would bolster the club.

Initially, the plan was to use Alicea strictly as a utility player. He would back up Velarde at second base, Gary DiSarcina at shortstop and Dave Hollins at third.

The role seemed to suit Alicea fine. He played all those positions and a little outfield too, in his career with Boston and St. Louis.

Plus, it was a job in the majors. After a rocky 1996 season with the Cardinals, it was about all he could ask for.

His batting averaged dipped for the third consecutive season and his 22 errors (in 129 games) were the most by a National League second baseman.

The Cardinals decided Alicea wasn’t worth re-signing, and he didn’t blame them Wednesday.

“I had a bad year defensively,” Alicea acknowledged. “It was a tough year, a tough winter.”

St. Louis also wanted Alicea to be a leadoff hitter, which he now says he wasn’t qualified to be. He didn’t handle the bat well enough, draw enough walks or steal enough bases.

So the Cardinals decided they could do without him.

“They expressed to me that they wanted a leadoff guy to steal 40 to 50 bases. I can’t do that,” said Alicea, who batted .258 with 11 steals last season.

Of his struggles in the field, he said: “Early on, it was mental. I got frustrated. I got down on myself. I had 20 errors in the first half of the season . . . two in the second half.”

At season’s end, it was clear Alicea had reached a crossroads.

Only the Angels, Dodgers and Cleveland Indians showed much interest in him during the off-season. The Indians decided to pass. The Dodger infield was already stocked with talent.

“It’s a good situation for me,” Alicea said of joining the Angels. “I knew I’d get quite a few at-bats with Terry here managing. I need to prove myself again. This is going to be a big year for me.”

It became all the more important that Alicea rebound from last season’s struggles when Velarde went down. Instead of providing a spark off the bench, Alicea will be expected to contribute every day.

“It’s exciting, but it’s unfortunate the way it happened,” he said.

The Angels didn’t seem to miss a beat in Alicea’s debut at Anaheim Stadium. Alicea, the Angels’ seventh opening-day second baseman in the last eight years, was solid in the field, at the plate and on the basepaths.

He robbed Boston Red Sox center fielder Shane Mack of a hit with a diving catch in the second inning.

At the plate, Alicea delivered a two-run single that gave the Angels a 4-1 lead in the sixth inning. He also walked and scored in the third inning.