Pieces Come Together for Angels

It was a rare trifecta Tuesday night for the Angels, who won a baseball game, gained ground on first-place Texas and found a starting pitcher all in one 8-2 victory over the Seattle Mariners before 22,444 in Edison Field.

Mike Fyhrie, a former Ocean View High School and UCLA standout making his first major league start, pitched seven strong innings, giving up two runs on six hits and striking out six, and the Angels bombed Mariner reliever Frankie Rodriguez for six runs in the eighth to snap a 2-2 tie and pull to within 7 1/2 games of the Rangers.

In a surprise move after the game, the Angels optioned struggling designated hitter/outfielder Todd Greene to triple-A Edmonton in hopes that he can regain the stroke that has deserted him during his one-for-19 slump.

There was plenty of Angel offense in the eighth inning, which Randy Velarde started with an infield single. After Mo Vaughn’s third strikeout of the game, Seattle Manager Lou Piniella ordered Garret Anderson intentionally walked. Troy Glaus, who had 10 hits in his previous 74 at-bats, then singled to right to score Velarde with the go-ahead run.

Orlando Palmeiro’s fly to right was too shallow to score Anderson from third, but Jeff Huson grounded an RBI single to right for a 4-2 lead, Matt Walbeck walked to load the bases, and Gary DiSarcina and Darin Erstad each hit two-out, two-run singles, turning the game into a rout.

Mark Petkovsek, who blanked the Mariners in the eighth and ninth, got the win to improve to 8-2, but Fyhrie, the 29-year-old right-hander, was the pitching story, becoming the only Angel starter besides Omar Olivares to last more than five innings since June 20.

Fyhrie’s critical moment came in the fifth when he made the mistake of walking David Bell with two outs to load the bases for Ken Griffey Jr., who ranks second in the American League with 28 homers and 79 RBIs.

Griffey ran the count full, with Fyhrie throwing nothing but breaking balls near the inside corner. Then Fyhrie ran a fastball toward the outer half of the plate that Griffey waved at, striking out to end the inning.

Fyhrie opened the sixth with a strikeout of Alex Rodriguez, who had tormented Fyhrie with an RBI double in the first and a bases-empty home run in the fourth, and ended the seventh by striking out Brian Hunter with the go-ahead run at third. The Angels managed only two runs on four hits in 5 2/3 innings against Seattle rookie Gil Meche, a 20-year-old right-hander whose major league debut was marred by control problems, the first scoring in the third on Erstad’s sacrifice fly and the second in the sixth on Palmeiro’s bases-loaded walk.

Fyhrie’s performance gave a shot in the arm to an Angel rotation that has been in tatters the past two weeks, with Tim Belcher and Ken Hill going on the disabled list and Chuck Finley struggling through a mechanical glitch that has contributed to him getting bombed for 21 earned runs in 11 2/3 innings of his last three starts.

Finley, acting as his own agent, has also been involved in discussions with General Manager Bill Bavasi about a contract extension and the possibility of trading the 14-year veteran to a contender this month if the Angels are out of the division race.

Finley doesn’t believe speculation about his immediate future or the extra burden he has placed on himself by handling his negotiations has been a distraction.

“I just had three bad starts in a row,” he said. “I don’t think if I had an agent’s shoulder to cry on he would have told me what to do. I’m not going to make excuses.”

But Finley admitted he’s sick of being asked about the possibility of an extension or a trade.

“I just want to let it ride,” Finley said. “I’m going to do my thing and not worry about it. This is the last you’ll hear from me about this.”

Is Finley concerned that his teammates might think he’s bailing out on them if he pushes hard for a trade?

“Actually, it’s kind of the opposite,” Finley said. “I’ve had more people say, ‘Go get yourself a ring, you deserve it.’ ”

Indeed, longtime teammate Tim Salmon said he would hold no grudge if Finley and the Angels part ways.

“I can’t fault anyone for wanting to get somewhere after all these years,” Salmon said. “Any player here in the same situation would do the same thing. He’s sacrificed for this team, his loyalties have always been here. He could have gotten more money or gone elsewhere. He’s not bailing.”

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NEXT SERIES FOR ANGELS

WHO: Colorado Rockies

WHERE: at Colorado

WHEN: Friday, 6 p.m.; Saturday, 5 p.m.; Sunday, noon