Glaus Has Sore Wrist and Tired Bat

Rookie third baseman Troy Glaus was given Wednesday night off, ostensibly to rest a left wrist he injured slightly against Minnesota on Tuesday night, but even if Glaus was 100%, he would have been on the bench against the Twins.

“This kid may be tired,” Manager Terry Collins said of Glaus, the former UCLA star who was the third overall pick in the 1997 draft and made the jump from double A to triple A to the big leagues this summer.

“We’ve asked an awful lot of him since he signed--he went to instructional league [last fall], played winter ball [in Venezuela], came to spring training, and now he’s in a pennant race. We need to let him rest his wrist . . . and himself a bit.”

No player in first place would admit to being tired this time of year, but there’s no doubt Glaus’ bat, which amassed 35 home runs in four months in the minor leagues this season, is sluggish.

Glaus, recalled July 30, has one hit in his last 19 at-bats since Aug. 29, and his average has plummeted to .219. He has only one homer and 18 RBIs in 35 games and has struck out 40 times in 128 at-bats, a rate that would project to about 185 strikeouts over a full season.

While his defense has been first rate, and a marked improvement over the injured and erratic Dave Hollins, Glaus has looked overmatched offensively at times. And there’s a reason.

“He’s trying to uppercut too many pitches and hit everything up,” said Rod Carew, Angel batting instructor. “He’s cheating inside because he doesn’t want to get beat, but if he stays on top of the ball and gets his hands out in front he’ll be fine. He does well in batting practice, but goes back to his old habits in the games.”

One more reason for Glaus’ struggles: He did not face the likes of Pedro Martinez, Roger Clemens and David Cone in Midland or Vancouver or the Pacific 10 Conference.

“I think he feels like he’s letting us down because he’s not hitting the long ball,” Carew said. “I don’t care if he hits home runs, I just want him to hit the ball hard with runners in scoring position.

“He’s also getting behind in the count, taking too many fastballs down the middle, and then scuffling to recover. I told him to be ready from pitch one, because if you get behind, these guys will play with you. This is the big leagues, they’ll pick you apart and work you over.”

Carew said Glaus’ confidence “has gone back and forth,” but the Hall of Famer is not about to lose faith in his young pupil. “He has to keep his confidence because I won’t lose confidence in him until he clicks,” Carew said.

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Left fielder Gregg Jefferies re-injured the right ankle that has bothered him all season when he swung and missed at a Brad Radke changeup Tuesday night. Jefferies also suffered a right hamstring injury trying to steal second base in the second inning Tuesday. Neither is considered serious, but they did prevent Jefferies from starting Wednesday night. “We hope he’s OK for Friday’s game [in Baltimore],” Collins said. . . . Pitching matchups for next week’s two-game series in Texas: Chuck Finley vs. Todd Stottlemyre on Wednesday night; Steve Sparks vs. Rick Helling on Thursday night. Sparks, the Angel knuckleballer, is 2-0 in two starts against the Rangers this season. . . . Angel players and coaches spent about an hour before batting practice signing autographs in Edison Field on Wednesday afternoon. “I got a lot of help and some new lineups,” Collins said. “One person said, ‘Where do I go to get Mark McGwire’s autograph?’ I told him Cincinnati.”