Robinson Saves Belcher From Writer’s Cramp

Tim Belcher was writing a letter Wednesday to Frank Robinson, baseball’s vice president of on-field operations, about his ejection from Tuesday night’s game for arguing umpire Mike DiMuro’s balk call. Then the phone rang in the Angel pitcher’s hotel room.

Much to Belcher’s surprise, it was Robinson, baseball’s czar of discipline, calling about the incident.

“The timing of it was odd, but I appreciated his call,” said Belcher, who could be fined for his explosive reaction to DiMuro’s initial call and quick ejection. “We had a nice conversation and he listened, though he didn’t indicate what he would or wouldn’t do.”

Belcher said he has written letters to league commissioners or executives after every one of his ejections.

“The umpires file their report, it’s only fair they get both sides of the story,” Belcher said. “As you know, there are three sides to every story--the umpire’s side, my side and the truth.”

*

An odd scene in the fifth inning of Wednesday night’s game had Tim Salmon acting like Travis Bickle, Robert De Niro’s character in “Taxi Driver,” when Bickle looks in the mirror and says, “Are you talkin’ to me?”

Garret Anderson had fouled off four consecutive two-strike off-speed pitches with the bases loaded, and Mariner pitcher Jamie Moyer turned to Salmon, who was on first base, and said, “What should I throw him?”

Salmon looked around, wondering who Moyer was talking to, when Seattle first base coach John Moses told Salmon, “He’s talking to you.” Said Salmon: “I was zoned, it really caught me off guard, and I didn’t even answer.”

Moyer struck out Anderson with another changeup, turned to Salmon and said, “Thank you,” and then struck out Troy Glaus to get out of the jam.

“Initially, I was like, ‘Gosh, he’s kind of loose,’ ” Salmon said. “I wish I would have told him to throw Garret a fastball.”

*

Though Troy Percival showed he’s on the mend with a solid save Wednesday night, it can’t be encouraging for the Angels to see their closer wearing a neck brace in the clubhouse.

“I just find it humorous,” fellow reliever Al Levine said. “He has the longest neck in the league, so it looks worse. He needs two of those [neck braces] just to hold it up.”

Scioscia calls the neck brace Percival’s “turtleneck,” and Percival, who wears the brace because of a vertebra problem that acted up last week, said he’s “waiting for a nice cold night so I can break it out on the field.”

ON DECK

* Opponent--Oakland Athletics, three games.

* Site--Edison Field.

* Tonight--7.

* Records--Angels 40-38, A’s 45-32.

* Record vs. A’s--1-2.

* TV--Fox Sports Net tonight and Saturday night.

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

TONIGHT

ANGELS’ BRIAN COOPER

(2-2, 4.17 ERA)

vs.

ATHLETICS’ MARK MULDER

(5-2, 4.94 ERA)

* Update--The A’s have been one of the hottest teams in baseball with an 18-7 June record, but they’ve lost two in a row. They’re much tougher against right-handers (.287 team average) than left-handers (.227), which should be encouraging for Angel left-hander Jarrod Washburn, who will pitch Saturday. First baseman Jason Giambi is having a great season, with a .345 average, 22 homers and 75 runs batted in.

* Saturday, 7 p.m.--Jarrod Washburn (3-2, 4.39) vs. Ariel Prieto (1-0, 6.00).

* Sunday, 5 p.m.--Tim Belcher (2-1, 4.97) vs. Tim Hudson (9-2, 4.30).

* Tickets--(714) 663-9000.