No One Complains to Anderson

Fingers were not pointed at specific players this week when several Angels criticized teammates for being soft, for not putting winning at the top of their priority list, for having a lackadaisical attitude, and for not taking losses hard enough.

But it was only natural to wonder if these comments were directed, at least in part, at center fielder Garret Anderson, a guy who is so even-keeled and seems so detached at times you wouldn’t know whether he had just hit the Super Lotto jackpot or lost $50,000 in a poker game.

Anderson, for his part, said he does not feel ostracized by his teammates.

“I don’t read into any comments unless they come to me personally, and if you can’t do that you’re not being a man, you’re being a coward,” Anderson said. “I play every day. If I had a problem with someone on this team, I would say something to them and not use the newspaper as a tool.”

But if some Angels link Anderson to the group that doesn’t take losing hard enough, Anderson may plead no contest.

He admits he’s not a brooder and has always maintained that’s the reason he has been a consistent .300 hitter--he never gets too excited about a four-hit game or too down about an 0 for 4, just as he never gets too pumped after a win or too demoralized after a loss.

“I don’t pout about things,” Anderson said. “I have better things to do than mope around after a game--that’s just eye wash. . . . I can look myself in the mirror every day knowing I played hard and tried to help the team win.”

It’s just that to some, it doesn’t appear that way, because Anderson isn’t Darin Erstad--he doesn’t dive into bases, he rarely crashes into walls, and he doesn’t look like he’s ready to put his fist through a wall every time he makes an out.

Remember the ugly end of 1998? Jim Edmonds was similarly criticized for a lack of intensity, and all he did last September was hit .340 with five homers and 20 RBIs in September while his teammates wilted.

“Intensity doesn’t have anything to do with production--that’s the bottom line,” Anderson said. “If you produce, you’re going to have a job somewhere. I produce, and I play every day. You can’t do that if you don’t care.”

*

When relievers Scott Schoeneweis and Jarrod Washburn were optioned to triple-A Edmonton so they could become starting pitchers again, it only increased speculation the Angels are open to trading one or more of their veteran pitchers--Chuck Finley, Ken Hill, Omar Olivares and Tim Belcher.

Schoeneweis, considered the top left-handed pitching prospect in the Angel organization, had mixed success as a reliever, with a 5.49 ERA in 31 appearances, and there were times he felt handcuffed coming out of the bullpen. That should change at Edmonton.

“I didn’t use my changeup a lot because I was facing so many left-handed hitters,” Schoeneweis said. “I also have a cut fastball for right-handed hitters, but I didn’t want to screw around with my worst pitch as a reliever. I’ll be able to add those into the mix now.”

TODAY

ANGELS’ KEN HILL (3-8, 5.23 ERA)

vs.

ORIOLES’ JASON JOHNSON (1-4, 5.73 ERA)

Camden Yards, Baltimore, 1 PDT

TV--Channel 11 Radio--KLAC (570), XPRS (1090).

* Update--Hill’s next two starts could go a long way toward determining his short-term future. If Hill, who came off the disabled list and threw six shutout, three-hit innings against San Diego on Monday, is dominant through the end of this month, it’s possible a contender will be interested in trading for the right-hander despite his recurrent elbow problems and $5.6-million guaranteed salary for 2000. That would be fine with the Angels, who are counting on Ramon Ortiz, their top pitching prospect, to step into the rotation next season and could spend Hill’s salary elsewhere.