DiSarcina on Disabled List

Shortstop Gary DiSarcina was put on the 15-day disabled list after Monday night’s game because of a bruised left thumb, but Manager Mike Scioscia saw no reason to panic.

Injuries to DiSarcina devastated the Angels in the past--they had an 11-game lead on Aug. 3, 1995, when DiSarcina tore ligaments in his left thumb, and Seattle came back to win the American League West, and they missed DiSarcina’s steady defense in the first 2 1/2 months of 1999, when DiSarcina was sidelined because of a broken forearm.

But with Benji Gil, who hit .315 with four homers and 12 runs batted in and played superb defense in spring training, the Angels may be in the best position they’ve ever been to absorb the loss of DiSarcina.

“He’s solid,” Scioscia said. “I think he’s going to be a big part of the club and will fill the role nicely.”

Tests on DiSarcina’s thumb, which he injured diving for a grounder Saturday night, revealed no major problems, “but there were some hot spots, and it looked like this might take some time to heal,” Scioscia said.

“You know DiSar--he’s going to do whatever he can to get better, but that would just retard the healing process. Putting him on the disabled list is like trying to put a bull in a cat cage.”

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Clarification: Walt Disney Co. Chairman Michael Eisner was not upset about Angel President Tony Tavares’ comment that Eisner is “not passionate about having to own this team,” which first appeared in The Times in a March 30 examination of the company’s four-year ownership of the team.

When Eisner said he was told by Tavares that the quote was taken out of context, he was referring to an April 4 column off the season opener that repeated the quote while noting Eisner’s absence on opening night.

Eisner felt the story insinuated a correlation between his absence and his not being passionate about owning the Angels, when in fact Eisner was attending business meetings in New York that day and stayed up until 1:30 a.m. EDT to watch the game against the Yankees on television.

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The Angels recalled infielder Keith Johnson from triple-A Edmonton, and to make room for him on the 40-man roster, they transferred outfielder Mike Colangelo to the 60-day disabled list. The Angels also optioned reliever Mike Fyhrie to Edmonton to make room for Ramon Ortiz, who will start tonight. . . . Tim Belcher, recovering from elbow surgery, showed little command during a 50-pitch simulated game Monday and will need to throw another one before he begins a minor league rehabilitation assignment.

Tonight

ANGELS’

RAMON ORTIZ

(2-3, 6.52 ERA

in 1999)

vs.

BLUE JAYS’

KELVIM ESCOBAR

(0-1, 5.06 ERA)

Edison Field, 7 p.m. Fox Sports Net.

Radio--KLAC (570), XPRS (1090).

* Update--Ortiz suffered a slight tear of his labrum in March, but after several minor league rehabilitation starts, the young right-hander says his arm feels stronger now than it did in 1999. Gary DiSarcina sat out his second consecutive game because of a bruised left thumb Monday, and it’s doubtful the shortstop will return tonight, because he’s still feeling pain when he closes his glove. Escobar, a hard-throwing right-hander, has a 3-1 record and 1.13 ERA in 24 innings against the Angels.

* Tickets: (714) 663-9000