Angels Get More for Their Dollar

David Eckstein is listed at 5 feet 8 in the media guide, and he admits he’s closer to 5-7.

But Friday night, the Angel shortstop seemed to stretch his diminutive frame to Manute Bol-like lengths, making two superb diving stops to highlight the Angels’ 6-5 victory over the Colorado Rockies before 48,576 in Coors Field.

Their four-run lead trimmed to one after Colorado rallied for three runs in the seventh, Angel closer Troy Percival gave up a single to pinch-hitter Terry Shumpert to open the ninth. Brooks Kieschnick followed with a low liner toward the shortstop hole.

But Eckstein, who robbed Todd Walker of a hit with a back-hand dive of a one-hop smash in the fourth inning, made another diving catch to his right, using every inch of his outstretched body to snag Kieschnick’s liner a few inches above the infield dirt and keep Shumpert at first.

Juan Pierre followed with a blooper to shallow left, but Garret Anderson raced in for a shoe-string catch and threw to first for a game-ending double play, giving Percival his 21st save and the Angels their second straight win.

Anderson’s play was outstanding, but “fantastic” was the word the left fielder used to describe Eckstein’s effort.

“That was the play of the inning,” Anderson said. “If he doesn’t make that, it’s probably runners on first and third with no outs. He also made a great play on Walker’s grounder. He picked us up big time.”

Eckstein’s defense did wonders for his psyche--the leadoff batter has one hit in his last 29 at-bats and lined into a bases-loaded double play to end the seventh inning Friday.

“I’ve definitely been killing the team the last few games by not getting on base,” Eckstein said. “With the way I’ve been swinging the bat, it was nice to help the team out.”

Eckstein, who is making $200,000 this season, was one of several minimum-wage-type guys who did in Colorado ace Mike Hampton, the left-hander who signed an eight-year, $121-million deal last winter but is still looking for his first win since June 10 after giving up six runs on 11 hits in six innings Friday night.

Shawn Wooten ($200,500) and Jeff DaVanon ($200,000) each homered in the second and combined to knock in five runs, and pitcher Ramon Ortiz ($250,000) threw 6 2/3 solid innings, giving up four runs--three earned--on seven hits and striking out eight.

Ortiz cruised into the seventh with a 6-2 lead and retired the first two batters before Pierre doubled and Neifi Perez singled, making it 6-3. With left-handed hitting Larry Walker, who hit a two-run double in the third inning, coming up, Manager Mike Scioscia summoned left-hander Mike Holtz, who hadn’t allowed a run in his last 15 appearances, a span of 7 2/3 innings.

But Walker blasted Holtz’s first pitch off the facing of the third deck in right field for a two-run homer, a bomb that traveled an estimated 449 feet and pulled the Rockies to within 6-5.

That also snapped the Angel bullpen’s string of 24 1/3 innings without allowing an earned run dating back to June 28. Holtz recovered to retire Todd Helton, Al Levine retired the side in order in the eighth, and Percival--with assists from Eckstein and Anderson--closed out the Rockies.

Anderson also sparked the Angels’ second-inning rally with a single to center. Wooten then hammered Hampton’s first pitch an estimated 441 feet to left-center for his seventh home run of the season.

DaVanon, who entered with a .188 average, one homer and two RBIs, deposited a 1-2 pitch in almost the exact same spot as Wooten, a home run that traveled an estimated 434 feet to left-center for a 3-0 Angel lead.

“Even good pitchers make mistakes occasionally,” Scioscia said of Hampton. “They got good balls in the zone they liked and didn’t miss them.”

Benji Gil’s two-out RBI single in the fourth gave the Angels a 4-2 lead.