For Angels, Another Long Night

A Japanese flag flew behind the Angel dugout. There were several homemade signs, written in Japanese, throughout the stands. Some 75-100 Japanese media members crowded the press box and photographer wells.

Shige-mania arrived in Anaheim Stadium Saturday night, marking the long-awaited Angel debut of Japanese pitcher Shigetoshi Hasegawa.

But it didn’t last very long.

After three scoreless innings, Hasegawa gave up a run in the fourth and was bombed for four runs in the fifth, as the Cleveland Indians stormed back for a 7-5 victory going into the bottom of the ninth before a crowd of 23,913.

Hasegawa cruised through the first three innings, giving up just one hit, and he was in good shape despite giving up a run in the fourth, because the Angels scored twice in the bottom of the fourth for a 4-1 lead.

Cleveland closer Paul Shuey, who gave up Tim Salmon’s game-winning grand slam in the bottom of the 11th Friday night, hit a batter and walked two in the bottom of the ninth, but he recovered to retire Garret Anderson on a grounder to second to end the game.

Then came the disastrous fifth, which Kevin Mitchell, who had three hits in the game, opened with a single to right. Sandy Alomar then golfed a low-and- inside fastball over the left-field wall for a home run--his second in two days--to trim the lead to 4-3.

Omar Vizquel and Jim Thome singled, and Matt Williams followed with an RBI double into the left-field corner to tie the game, 4-4. Angel Manager Terry Collins went to the bullpen for left-hander Chuck McElroy, who got David Justice to ground to shortstop--with Thome scoring--and struck out Manny Ramirez to end the inning.

Hasegawa, who became the fourth Japanese player to appear in the major leagues, following San Francisco’s Masanori Murakami, the Dodgers’ Hideo Nomo and Seattle’s Makato Suzuki, threw 86 pitches in 4 1/3 innings, giving up five runs on seven hits, striking out two and walking two.

The Angels jumped on Indian starter Chad Ogea early, scoring twice in the first inning when Darin Erstad singled, Luis Alicea tripled, Salmon walked and Dave Hollins grounded into a fielder’s choice, scoring Alicea.

Cleveland cut the lead in half in the fourth when Thome walked, took second on Williams’ single, went to third on Justice’s fly ball and scored on Ramirez’s fielder’s choice.

But singles by Hollins and Garret Anderson, Jack Howell’s sacrifice bunt and Vizquel’s error on Gary DiSarcina’s chopper allowed the Angels to score twice in the bottom of the fourth.

The Indians followed their four-run fifth with another run in the sixth when Mitchell hit a towering home run to left-center, his third homer in four games, to make it 6-4.