Erstad Opens Up Field

Darin Erstad opened Thursday night’s game with a sharp single to left. He singled to center in the fifth and hit a two-run single to left in the sixth, giving him 13 hits in six games on this trip, eight of them to the opposite field.

If there is one major difference between the 2000 and 1999 model Erstad, other than the fact that Erstad is crushing the ball this year, it’s that the left-handed batter is hitting the ball the other way with authority.

When Erstad hit to the opposite field in 1999, it was usually a weak fly ball to left or a grounder to short or third. That’s one reason he suffered through an awful season, batting .253 with 13 homers, 53 runs batted in, 101 strikeouts and a .303 on-base percentage.

But Erstad leads the major leagues in batting (.492), hits (32) and multi-hit games (12) and has three homers, seven doubles and 16 RBIs this season.

He’s driving the ball to the left side the way he did in the first half of 1998, when he batted .313 with 18 homers and 59 RBIs and made the all-star team.

“Maybe they’re throwing me more fastballs and I just can’t get around,” Erstad said, poking a little fun at scouts’ assessment that Erstad lost some bat speed in 1999. “I’m getting old, I’m 25, my bat must be slowing down.”

Erstad did admit to having a mechanical flaw in his swing last season--his hands were moving backward as his body shifted forward, and that did slow his bat. He corrected the flaw in spring training, and he looks a lot more comfortable at the plate.

But as far as driving the ball the other way, Erstad can come up with only one logical explanation: “I’m just hitting the ball where it’s pitched.”

*

The Angels are 8-8 after 16 games, and there are many ways to perceive their record. Until Wednesday, their starting rotation had the best earned-run average in baseball, yet the Angels were 8-6 at the time, so they probably didn’t take full advantage of that great pitching.

Then again, their cleanup batter, Tim Salmon, is batting .173 with only four RBIs, three of them coming Thursday night, and No. 3 batter Mo Vaughn, who is batting .283 with one homer and eight RBIs, is just beginning to swing well, so they’re probably fortunate to be .500.

Closer Troy Percival appears to have recovered from last October’s shoulder surgery and has been untouchable in his last four appearances after opening the season with a loss to the Yankees April 4. But take away Percival, and the rest of the bullpen has combined for a 6.99 ERA (37 runs in 47 2/3 innings).

“Instead of having extremes, where some hitters and pitchers are doing great and others are struggling, we’d like to find more consistency,” Manager Mike Scioscia said. “But we’ve shown we’re not a one-dimensional club.

“We’re not going to depend on our starting pitching, our middle relievers, the middle of the order, to win every game. So where are we after 16 games? We’ve played some tough clubs, we’re 8-8, we probably could have won some games we lost . . . but there are too many signs here for me and the coaching staff to not be encouraged.”

ON DECK

* Opponent--Tampa Bay Devil Rays, three games.

* Site--Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, Fla.

* Today--4:15 p.m. PDT.

* TV--Channel 9 today and Saturday.

* Radio--KLAC (570), XPRS (1090) today and Saturday; KMPC (1540), KIK-FM (94.3) and XPRS (1090) Sunday.

* Records--Angels 8-8, Devil Rays 5-10.

* Record vs. Devil Rays--8-4 in 1999.

TONIGHT

ANGELS’ SCOTT SCHOENEWEIS (3-0, 2.35 ERA) vs. DEVIL RAYS’ DWIGHT GOODEN (1-0, 3.60 ERA)

* Update--Schoeneweis has given up only three hits in each of his last two starts, a 6-0 shutout of the Blue Jays April 10 and a 3-1 win over the White Sox Sunday. The Devil Rays acquired Gooden from the Astros for cash last week, and the veteran right-hander paid immediate dividends, throwing six shutout innings to gain the victory over the Tigers in his Tampa Bay debut Saturday. Angel leadoff batter Erstad has reached base in the first inning 11 times in 15 games, nine of those with a hit. Free-agent acquisition Greg Vaughn is off to an excellent start with the Devil Rays, batting .322 with four homers and 11 RBIs. First baseman Fred McGriff (.216, one homer, seven RBIs) has gone 13 straight games without an extra-base hit. Starting pitchers Wilson Alvarez and Juan Guzman are on the disabled list for Tampa Bay.

* Saturday 1:15 p.m. PDT--Ramon Ortiz (1-1, 3.48) vs. Esteban Yan (0-1, 6.88).

* Sunday, 10:15 a.m. PDT--Jason Dickson (2-0, 3.93) vs. Dave Eiland (0-0, 10.80).