Pitcher Holtz Demoted to Triple-A

Angel reliever Mike Holtz may have had the most deceiving earned-run average in baseball, his 1.42 mark hiding the fact the left-hander wasn’t getting his curveball over consistently, wasn’t getting many batters out and wasn’t doing much to help the Angels.

Manager Terry Collins wasn’t fooled, though, and that’s why Holtz was demoted to triple-A Edmonton Saturday to make room for infielder Dave Silvestri, who joined the Angels in Boston.

“He’s got to go get some innings in,” Collins said of Holtz. “This guy is too important to us. I look down the road, and we’re going to need Mike Holtz. He needs to go get sharp.”

That’s not easy when you’ve faced only one batter in the last nine days, as Holtz had, and your primary job is to retire the opposing team’s best left-handed hitters. Holtz didn’t allow any of his five inherited runners to score, but he walked six and struck out only three in 6 1/3 innings.

“There weren’t too many times when the situation dictated me being in there,” Holtz said. “I don’t think I pitched that poorly.”

Holtz had a 5.33 ERA in 42 games before being optioned to triple-A Vancouver last Aug. 3. The move seemed to be good for Holtz--he had a 1.74 ERA in 10 minor league games before being recalled Sept. 1 and had a 1.80 ERA in 11 games.

He said he was surprised by Saturday’s move, “but you learn in baseball to expect the unexpected,” Holtz said. “Now I’ve got to go there and bust my butt to get back.”

Collins acknowledged Holtz has one of the toughest bullpen jobs, one that is even more difficult when you don’t get regular work.

“He faces the best left-handers in the other lineup, guys like Ken Griffey, Tino Martinez, Jim Thome, Larry Walker,” Collins said. “Sometimes when he gives up a hit it looks like he didn’t get the job done, but he’s in some tough spots.”

Silvestri, 31, hit .439 with 12 runs, seven doubles, a home run and 12 runs batted in in 16 games for Edmonton. He can play third base, shortstop and second base, giving Collins another player on the bench, which has thinned because of injuries to right fielder Tim Salmon (sprained left wrist) and second baseman Randy Velarde (stiff lower back). Collins said Silvestri will start today, but he wasn’t sure where.

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Right fielder Salmon continues to make progress in his recovery from a sprained left wrist, and he said he will try to swing off a tee today. If he doesn’t suffer a setback, he’ll move to soft toss and batting practice, with the intention of returning during this week’s series in New York.

Second baseman Velarde said his lower back was “a little better” Saturday, but he does not appear close to being ready for at least a few more days.

“It’s very difficult to watch, knowing you’re an everyday player and the team is not playing well,” Velarde said. “I’m not saying that we’re the answer, but it would be nice to see us out there helping the team.”

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There is talk in Boston about building a new Fenway Park, and though there is no plan in place, there is speculation about how the antiquated but tradition-filled park should be incorporated into a new park. “I’d take the Green Monster and the scoreboard and move it 20 feet back,” Red Sox reliever Jim Corsi said. “The rest of it you can blow up.” . . . Here’s one for the scrapbook: A picture in Saturday’s Boston Herald featured two Providence-area strippers named Drew and Gena paying tribute to Mo Vaughn with a sign that read: “Mo, We Miss You. The Foxy Lady.”

TODAY

ANGELS’ KEN HILL (1-1, 3.44 ERA)

vs.

RED SOX’S MARK PORTUGAL (2-1, 4.45 ERA)

Fenway Park, Boston, 10 a.m.

TV--Channel 9.

Radio--KIK-FM (94.3), XPRS (1090).

* Update--Portugal took a 7-0 lead into the third inning of his last start against Oakland Monday but gave up a three-run home run in the third and another three-run homer in the fourth, as the A’s came back for a 12-11 victory. Hill leads the American League with 29 walks, and he hit three batters in his last start, but the right-hander has allowed only seven earned runs in 28 1/3 innings of his last four starts, and he has shown an extremely lively fastball.