Angels: Investment Will Yield Return

By MIKE DiGIOVANNA

Sept. 28, 1998 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

Those who crunch numbers in the Walt Disney Co.’s executive offices may be satisfied with an Angel team that attracted 2.5 million fans to a renovated stadium and remained highly competitive in the American League West before finishing second to the Texas Rangers.

But that is no longer cutting it in the Angel clubhouse, where there is enough talent to compete and to keep things interesting but not enough to reach October, and nowhere near enough to reach late October.

“This act has pretty much worn thin--the song is getting a little sour,” veteran pitcher Chuck Finley said. “I sense patience running out around here.”

The core of this team is young, and there is reason for optimism with players such as Darin Erstad, Gary DiSarcina, Tim Salmon, Troy Percival, Jim Edmonds, Garret Anderson and Troy Glaus wearing periwinkle blue.

But the feeling among players is that if the Angels--and Disney--are really serious about winning next season, they must make a bold move this winter and do what seems difficult for them: spend a good chunk of money.

They must trash their spackle-and-patch approach of signing fringe players such as Cecil Fielder and Eddie Murray and rehabilitating pitchers such as Jack McDowell and Steve Ontiveros and hoping they work out.

They need to think big.

“You’re not going to win this thing with luck--that’s tough to do at this level,” Finley said. “And you get nowhere cheap. That’s been proven. There’s a reason guys like [Boston slugger] Mo Vaughn demand $10 million. You look at the end of the year and the big numbers are always there, and those numbers help you get to where you want to be.”

Angel President Tony Tavares said he believes no player is worth $10 million a year, but if the Angels aren’t willing to spend that kind of money this winter, Manager Terry Collins’ run of five consecutive second-place finishes will continue--unless they finish third or last.

But if they are willing to loosen the purse strings. . . .

“If you get two studs here, one pitcher who is a force and one bat that will give you 30-40 home runs and 120-130 RBIs, we’ll be ready to take off then,” Finley said. “I guarantee you, we’d have a come-catch-me team then.”

Front-office types can’t discuss specific players this time of year--players don’t file for free agency until after the World Series--but it’s no secret what kind of new teammates the Angels would like: catcher Mike Piazza, who has expressed an interest in returning to Southern California, and a pitcher such as Randy Johnson or Kevin Brown.

That would be asking a lot of any team, let alone the budget-conscious Angels, but with the loss of almost $9.7 million in contracts to this year’s $44-million payroll (Jim Abbott, Allen Watson, Fielder and McDowell) and raises of $4.4 million to the core group, the Angels will have $5.3 million to use toward the signing of a marquee player.

And with Salmon returning to the outfield next season and Dave Hollins available for first base, the Angels can again consider moving first baseman Erstad back to the outfield and trading Edmonds or Anderson--or even both--for a pitcher.

“Obviously it’s going to take a lot of money to get one or two people who can help take us where we want to go,” Finley said. “Whether that’s going to be spent, I don’t know.

“I would be very surprised if they pay $10 million to bring a guy like Mo Vaughn, Kevin Brown or Randy Johnson. Maybe they can trade for someone. If we had Piazza and an ace pitcher, we’d be good enough to win.”

But if the Angels don’t do something soon, they might be in danger of losing some of their top players. Shortstop Gary DiSarcina, who is signed through 2001, said he would have “serious reservations” about returning if he was a free agent and the Angels didn’t seem committed to winning.

And even Finley, an Angel for life, is getting skeptical. “I’m in a situation where if things aren’t going right next year, they can trade me for a a couple of prospects, and I can go pitch in the playoffs somewhere,” he said.

Finley and Ken Hill are expected to anchor the rotation next season, and Steve Sparks, Jason Dickson, Omar Olivares, Jarrod Washburn and Pep Harris will battle for starting spots. The Angels will not offer arbitration to Watson, a major bust this season at $2.9 million.

Among other internal decisions: Whether to re-sign injury-plagued Randy Velarde or go with youngster Justin Baughman at second base, and what to do about first baseman/outfielder Gregg Jefferies.

The Angels won’t pick up Jefferies’ $5-million option for 1999, but Jefferies has expressed an interest in renegotiating for less and returning to Anaheim.

A change in clubhouse chemistry may also be needed. The Angels have had the same core group for four years and have not won the division, and there was grumbling last week after the Angels succumbed to the pressure of a three-game series against Texas, getting swept by the combined score of 25-3.

The next night, a more relaxed team--and one that had been virtually eliminated from playoff contention--beat Oakland, 10-6. At least two players, DiSarcina and Erstad, were upset that their teammates didn’t seem to take losing as hard as them.

“I’ve always believed you’ve got to take the comfort factor away,” Finley said. “You can’t wait for people to turn around. You’ve got to turn it around or get them out of there. If you don’t produce, you should be out of here. A wait-and-see approach will get you burned.”

The Angels should learn that lesson after this season. They waited for McDowell and Hill to return from elbow injuries, failing to make a significant move by the July 31 trading deadline. Texas traded for Todd Stottlemyre, Royce Clayton and Todd Zeile, and that trio played a key role in the Rangers’ five-game sweep of the Angels in late September.

Eight key players suffered disabling injuries, the most devastating being two hamstring strains that forced Erstad to miss 29 of the team’s last 51 games. The Angels, who had a three-game lead entering September, went 9-15 in the final month.

“There were too many holes in the boat, and we only had so many fingers to hold it up,” Finley said. “And once you get cut and you’re bleeding, the scent of blood goes out and everyone comes in for the kill.”

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Angel Players’ Status

PITCHERS

Rich Delucia: team option for 1999

Jason Dickson: unsigned*

Mike Fetters: free agent

Chuck Finley: signed through 1999

Pep Harris: unsigned*

Shigetoshi Hasegawa: unsigned*

Ken Hill: signed through 1999

Mike Holtz: unsigned*

Mike James: signed through 1999