Angels’ 4-2 Loss to A’s One They Can Throw Away

Troy Glaus lives for taut games like this, when every pitch, every at-bat, every play, means something. “That makes it fun,” the Angel third baseman said.

Except when you don’t make the big pitch, get the key hit or make the critical play when you need it most. That makes games like the Angels’ 4-2 loss to the Oakland Athletics before 21,398 at Network Associates Coliseum Saturday even more excruciating.

It’s no fun when you throw a potential double-play ball into right field in the eighth inning of a tie game, opening the door for the A’s to score two runs, as Glaus did Saturday.

Or when you throw away the relay on a potential inning-ending double play, enabling the A’s to score the winning runs, as Angel second baseman David Eckstein did.

Or when your pickoff attempt to third is too low, the ball hits the runner and caroms into left field, allowing a run to score, as Angel catcher Jorge Fabregas did.

Or when you smash a ball down the line with two on and two out, a shot that has two-run double written all over it, in bold face and upper-case letters, only to have the opposing first baseman make a tremendous diving stop to preserve a tie game, as Angel center fielder Darin Erstad did.

On a day when Oakland ace Tim Hudson left no room for error, striking out 11 during a masterful eight-inning, two-run, three-hit performance, the Angels committed three errors, wasting an impressive major league debut by right- hander Steve Green, who gave up two runs on four hits in six innings despite walking six.

The first miscue was by Fabregas, whose ill-fated throw in the sixth enabled Eric Chavez to score for a 2-2 tie, wiping out a lead the Angels built on Glaus’ two-run homer in the fourth, the Angels’ only hit off Hudson in the first seven innings.

“I’m fine with that,” Manager Mike Scioscia said of Fabregas’ decision to throw to third. “We’re not a passive team. If you’re going to play aggressive defense that saves you a few runs, some balls will get away.”

The next two mistakes came in the fateful eighth, an inning that began with some defensive wizardry. With the score tied, 2-2, Eckstein singled off Hudson with two out and pinch-hitter Scott Spiezio punched an 0-and-2 pitch into center for a single, moving Eckstein to third.

Erstad followed with a bullet down the first base line, but Jason Giambi, who gains far more attention with his bat than his glove, sprawled to his left and made the stop about two feet in front of the bag to snuff out the rally.

“That ball was an eyelash away from getting under him and sneaking down the line,” Scioscia said. “Giambi made a great play.”

Olmedo Saenz led off the bottom of the eighth with a single off reliever Al Levine, and Chavez hit a grounder to third. Glaus “didn’t keep his feet moving and was a little flat-footed on the throw” to second, Scioscia said, and the ball went over Eckstein’s head, putting runners on second and third.

Levine got Miguel Tejada to tap back to the mound for the first out and walked Terrence Long intentionally to load the bases. Jeremy Giambi topped a grounder to Glaus’ left, and the third baseman gave Eckstein a perfect feed at second.

But with Long bearing down on him, Eckstein, who could do no wrong in the Angels’ first four games, threw wide of first baseman Wally Joyner, allowing two runs to score and Oakland to take a 4-2 lead.

“I just threw it away, plain and simple,” Eckstein said. “I didn’t rush it [because of Long’s hard slide]. It was inexcusable. After the team played so hard and battled all day, that was hard.”

Hudson didn’t make it any easier. The right-hander mixed an extremely lively fastball with a nasty split-finger fastball to dominate the Angels.

Tim Salmon entered with a .444 (four for nine) average against Hudson but struck out three times against him Saturday, four in the game. Erstad was hitless in four at-bats against Hudson.

“I got abused up there today,” said Erstad, who usually does the abusing. “He had great deception and incredible movement on his pitches. What makes him so tough is his fastball and splitter look the same coming out of his hand. If he’s hitting his spots, it’s going to be a rough night.”