SOS / SINK OR SWIM

The Angels lost to the New York Yankees on June 19, falling 10 games behind the first-place Texas Rangers and a season-worst nine games under .500 (29-38), and the speculation began to swirl.

Veteran pitcher Chuck Finley, his distinguished career, his four-year contract and his patience all wearing thin, said he’d consider waiving his trade veto rights for a deal to a contender so he’d have a chance to win that elusive World Series ring.

Cleveland General Manager John Hart would surely want Finley, the noted Yankee killer, for the Indians’ anticipated American League championship series showdown against New York.

Yankee boss George Steinbrenner would order his lieutenants to trade for Finley just so the Indians couldn’t get him, and a bidding war between two superpowers would ensue.

Three weeks later, before hostilities have even begun, Armistice Day is at hand. A 12-7 run, keyed by a rejuvenated offense, moved the injury-ravaged Angels to within 6 1/2 games of the Rangers at the All-Star break, and it appears General Manager Bill Bavasi will not be bidding a farewell to arms. At least, not Finley’s.

“There’s no way we can pack it in, we’re too close,” Bavasi said, knowing a trade of Finley would be the equivalent of raising the white flag. “We’re not out of this race by any means.”

In other words, barring a complete Angel collapse or Ranger runaway in the next two weeks, Finley isn’t going anywhere. With injured outfielders Tim Salmon and Jim Edmonds on the mend, pitcher Ken Hill coming off the disabled list Monday and pitcher Tim Belcher expected to return in another week or two, this is no time to be dumping veterans who could help them win.

“We’re going to get Salmon, Edmonds, Hill and Belcher back,” Bavasi said. “I don’t see too many teams adding players like that around the trading deadline.”

Indeed, this could be the best July of Bavasi’s career as GM, because all he may have to do is let nature run its course.

Bavasi was paralyzed at the July 31 trading deadline last season, unwilling to pull the trigger on a deal for a pitcher while the Rangers added pitcher Todd Stottlemyre, shortstop Royce Clayton and third baseman Todd Zeile, impact players who helped Texas win the division.

And two deadline trades Bavasi made in 1995 and ‘96--remember Jim Abbott for McKay Christensen, John Snyder and Bill Simas, and Damion Easley for Greg Gohr?--were disasters.

But if Salmon, Edmonds, Hill and Belcher return to good health--hardly a given with this star-crossed franchise but a probability with at least some of these players--the Angels should improve significantly in the second half, and Bavasi won’t feel as much pressure to make a major trade.

If any move is made, it will be the addition of a pitcher, not the subtraction of one. If the returning players, especially Hill and Belcher, play close to their capabilities, the Angels should be strong enough to contend in a division that isn’t as strong as many expected.

And that could make for a much more interesting--and competitive--second half for the Angels, basement dwellers and underachievers for much of the first half.

BIGGEST FIRST-HALF SURPRISE

Omar Olivares. The right-hander had to win a rotation spot in spring training but has been the team’s best starter, with an 8-6 record and 3.28 earned-run average. Key for Olivares has been the cut fastball he has been able to throw inside against left-handers, preventing them from diving into his sinker. Left-handers hit .293 against Olivares from 1996-98; they are batting .236 against him this season.

Honorable mention goes to reliever Mark Petkovsek, an off-speed specialist who has the third-best ERA (1.81) among American League relievers, second baseman Randy Velarde, who has a .310 average, .385 on-base percentage and is hitting .314 with runners in scoring position, and center fielder Garret Anderson because of his solid defense at a new position.

BIGGEST FIRST-HALF DISAPPOINTMENT

Where do we start? Hill, who is making $5.45 million, went 3-8 with a 5.58 ERA and a league-leading 57 walks before revealing in late June he had arthritis in his elbow. Finley finished the first half in a terrible mechanical funk, giving up 26 earned runs in 17 innings of his last four starts. Belcher, the $10.2-million winter acquisition who is not the power pitcher he was even a few years ago, had a horrendous start (9.13 ERA in April) and has given up 18 home runs.

The Angels are batting .255 with runners in scoring position, with dishonorable mention going to Troy Glaus (.205), Anderson (.217) and Todd Greene (.200), who lost his grasp of the strike zone and was demoted to triple-A Edmonton last week. Darin Erstad hit .210 in May and was batting a very sluggish .228 through June 9 until he found his stroke.

DEFINING MOMENT

Salmon attempting one of his patented sliding catches and spraining his left wrist on May 3. The one player the Angels couldn’t afford to lose--forget about salary, this guy is more valuable than Mo Vaughn because of his superb defense, baserunning instincts and consistently explosive bat--has not played since.

Salmon, a notoriously slow starter, was batting .347 with seven homers and 25 run batted in in 26 games when he got hurt. Since then, Angel cleanup batters have hit .242 with nine home runs and 25 RBIs in 60 games. June was torturous--the cleanup spot had six RBIs the whole month.

Anderson has 14 homers and 43 RBIs, but he is miscast as a cleanup hitter, and Greene was a flop in the fourth spot. Manager Terry Collins was so desperate in late June he hit Velarde cleanup, a move Velarde called “embarrassing.” The loss of Salmon left too little protection for Vaughn and put far too much burden on Glaus and Greene, “and some guys produce differently when other guys are out of the lineup,” Bavasi said. “Losing Tim was a punishing blow.”

AT THIS PACE

Vaughn would finish with 33 homers and 110 RBIs, which would be down slightly from his four-year average of 40 homers and 120 RBIs but a considerable achievement considering he could barely run for most of the first half because of a badly sprained ankle.

Glaus would finish with 27 homers and 80 RBIs. The only question is, will the streaky youngster’s next 12 homers and 40 RBIs all come in August, with none coming in September?

REASONS TO BE EXCITED

Salmon could return by late July and Edmonds by early August. Hill says his arm feels much better, and he seems more motivated than ever to prove that Disney didn’t waste $16 million on him. The bones in Belcher’s broken right pinky finger are healing properly.

Closer Troy Percival has been phenomenal, saving 23 games in 24 opportunities and limiting batters to a .140 average, and he has shown no signs of fatigue. Vaughn’s ankle is much better, and shortstop Gary DiSarcina, sidelined almost three months because of a broken bone in his left forearm, looks better every week.

REASONS FOR CONCERN

Salmon could check his swing, re-injure his wrist and miss the rest of the season. Ditto for Edmonds if he crashes into an outfield wall the wrong way. Hill’s elbow could go at any time, and there aren’t many attractive alternatives for the rotation. Finley has made only modest strides in shaking his slump, and he has been especially ineffective against AL West foes, with an 11.63 ERA against Texas, Seattle and Oakland. The rotation is old and creaky and is probably not strong enough to get the Angels past the first round, should they somehow find a way to reach the playoffs.

MOVES TO PONDER

With Salmon and Edmonds on the verge of returning, Bavasi probably will shift trade focus from a bat to an arm. But, like most summers, “there’s not enough pitching to go around for everyone who wants it,” Bavasi said. Injuries have depleted the Angels’ depth, so there is virtually no excess at the major league level for Bavasi to trade, and triple-A Edmonton has almost nothing that would attract a trading partner. If Hill rebounds quickly, he could garner some interest, and the Angels probably would trade him if they can get a quality young starter in return. If Edmonds makes a quick recovery, the Angels could package him or Anderson in a deal, possibly for the Dodgers’ Eric Karros.

SEE YOU IN SEPTEMBER

After a two-game series in Texas July 21-22, the Angels won’t play an AL West team again until Sept. 24, so it could be a long summer of scoreboard watching if they’re in the race. And they will be in the race if one of their injured hitters, Salmon or Edmonds, and one of their injured pitchers, Hill or Belcher, makes a strong recovery.

But Texas hasn’t played up to its full potential either, and the Rangers have been more aggressive at the trading deadline than the Angels in recent years. Look for them to bolster their rotation this month and to win their third division title in four years, and for the Angels to finish second or third.

FIRST-HALF RECAP

Where the Angels rank among the 14 NL teams in hitting and pitching:

Record: 41-45, .477 (9th)

Batting average: .261 (12th)

ERA: 4.65 (4th)

Runs per game: 4.42 (14th)

Home runs: 91 (9th)

HR allowed: 90 (11th most)

Starters’ ERA: 5.21 (7th)

Bullpen ERA: 3.52 (2nd)