Erstad’s Knee Injury Is Finally Revealed

Darin Erstad’s lower back hasn’t been the center fielder’s only source of pain this season. While a series of tests Monday revealed no structural damage to his back, Erstad was diagnosed with a mild strain of the medial collateral ligament in his right knee.

Erstad, who sat out both weekend games at Toronto, was listed as day to day but hopes to play tonight against the Chicago White Sox at Edison Field.

“I got the best news I could get--nothing is torn,” Erstad said Monday. “That was a huge relief.”

Erstad first tweaked the knee while performing an agility drill over the winter but did not make the injury public. He aggravated the injury April 19 at Seattle while diving for Ichiro Suzuki’s single to left-center in the first inning of the first game of the Angels’ recently completed trip.

“I didn’t see the replay, but somebody told me my foot got stuck in the ground before the dive,” Erstad said. “That’s when my back started to bother me. But I’m not a doctor, and I don’t know if [the knee injury] is what caused my back to flare up.”

Erstad refuses to use an injury as an excuse, but Manager Mike Scioscia said it was obvious Erstad’s swing was “out of sync” last week, when his average fell to .242.

Erstad, who hit .355 with 25 home runs, 100 runs batted in, 121 runs and a major league-leading 240 hits last season, has not homered in 2001 and has an inordinate number of strikeouts (18) in 23 games.

His lower back has bothered him periodically since the middle of the 1999 season, and the spasms were so intense over the weekend that Erstad had trouble bending down to tie his shoes. But an MRI test and several X-rays Monday did not reveal any major problems.

“The doctors said it’s nothing more than normal wear and tear,” Erstad said. “It is what it is.”

The Angels knew about Erstad’s knee injury, but neither they nor Erstad revealed it until Monday. “What was I going to do, sit around and [complain] about it?” Erstad said.

*

The offense hasn’t clicked, there have been lapses on defense and the basepaths, and the rotation has had some minor injuries, but if there has been one sure thing for the Angels this season, it has been closer Troy Percival.

The right-hander appears to have fully recovered from the shoulder and elbow problems that hampered him throughout last season, when he had a career-worst 4.50 earned-run average and blew 10 save opportunities.

Percival’s fastball has been consistently clocked from 95-100 mph, and he’s throwing his curve for strikes. He has given up only one hit in 6 1/3 innings and has converted all four of his save opportunities.

“He’s got it all together now--he’s throwing hard, he’s throwing strikes and the hitters are having some uncomfortable swings up there,” General Manager Bill Stoneman said. “It’s nice to be able to shorten a game.

“We all know what it’s like when you get down to the end of the game, you’re down by a run or two, and Oakland has Jason Isringhausen and Seattle has Kazuhiro Sasaki. You feel like you better score a run in the seventh or eighth, or it’s going to be tough. It’s nice to have that element yourself.”

ON DECK

* Opponent--Chicago White Sox, three games.

* Site--Edison Field.

* Tonight--7.

* TV--Fox Sports Net tonight, ESPN Wednesday night.

* Radio--KLAC (570), KMXN (94.3 FM), KMPC (1540), XPRS (1090).

* Records--Angels 10-15, White Sox 8-15.

* 2000 record vs. White Sox--4-6.

TONIGHT

ANGELS’

PAT RAPP

(0-3, 6.60 ERA)

vs.

WHITE SOX’S

DAVID WELLS

(2-2, 3.23 ERA)

* Update--The defending Central Division champion White Sox are off to an awful start, with the second-worst team ERA in the American League (5.65) and an offense that has had trouble scoring runs. First baseman Frank Thomas could sit out the series because of an injured right triceps and left-hander Jim Parque, who was scheduled to start Wednesday, has been demoted to the bullpen because of a sore throwing shoulder. The Angels hit .222 and scored only 28 runs on their 10-game trip to Seattle, Cleveland and Toronto.

* Wednesday, 7 p.m.--Jarrod Washburn (0-3, 7.56) vs. Kip Wells (0-1, 9.00).

* Thursday, 7 p.m.--Ramon Ortiz (3-2, 3.86) vs. James Baldwin (0-1, 7.36).

* Tickets--(714) 663-9000.