Hit Parade a No-Show for Angels

Bengie Molina, the Angels’ last batter, summed up Wednesday’s game with his last swing. His bat sailed toward left field. The ball hit catcher Bill Haselman’s mitt.

It’s too early to press the panic button. Angel batters will come around. They won’t hit .220 as a team all season ... right?

Still, a gentle push on the mildly concerned button seems to be in order after the Angels’ 4-1 loss to the Texas Rangers in front of 15,632 at Edison Field.

“We had stretches last season where we didn’t do a lot,” Manager Mike Scioscia said. “We’d have 14 games where we struggle some. But everything is magnified when it’s the start of the season.”

Highlighted Wednesday was that the Angels had few base runners and only one clutch hit, that being Orlando Palmeiro’s excuse-me blooper that landed just out of the reach of Ranger shortstop Alex Rodriguez.

Ranger starter Ismael Valdes dominated, giving up only three hits and retired 13 consecutive batters before hitting David Eckstein with one out in the eighth. The Angels couldn’t get a run off two relievers from a Ranger bullpen that had given up 17 runs in its last 112/3 innings.

“I’m not too worried about it this many games into the season,” Garret Anderson said. “You see guys get off to these fast starts and then wonder what happened to them at the end of the year. The cream rises.”

The Angels did rise a bit as Anderson doubled off the top of the center-field fence to lead off the second. Scott Spiezio lined out to right and Tim Salmon flied to center, which sent Anderson to third. But just when it looked like Valdes was going to wiggle out of trouble, Palmeiro sent a flair to the left side that wouldn’t stay up long enough for Rodriguez to snag it and Anderson scored.

“Everyone seems concerned about this slow start,” Darin Erstad said. “I’m very confident about the type of offense we have here.”

The Angels began Wednesday next to last in the American League in batting average, runs and home runs.

Six players in baseball have hit more home runs than the five the Angels have as a team. On the bright side, they have saved a bundle on those post-home run firework celebrations so far.

True, the Angels were without their home run and RBI leader, as Troy Glaus sat out because of vision problems with his contact lenses. But other Angels might want to consult the nearest eye chart as well.

Salmon stranded three runners in scoring position, one with a tapper in front of the plate in the ninth. Anderson had two hits, but also rolled a grounder back to the pitcher with runners on first and third and two out in the eighth. And the last time Brad Fullmer drove in a run, he was north of the border, playing for Toronto.

The biggest threat the Angels mustered didn’t cost the Rangers anything but their pitching coach.

Anderson singled and Spiezio walked to start the fourth inning. Pitching coach Oscar Acosta went out to talk with Valdes, but their conversation was brought to a rapid conclusion. Home plate umpire Alfonso Marquez went to the mound and had words with Acosta, then ejected him.

Valdes still got out of the inning, getting Salmon and Palmeiro to pop up and Molina to fly to right.

“There are some guys who might have been pressing,” Scioscia said. “You get up there with a runner on base and you start thinking, ‘OK, this is my chance, I have to do it.’ But sometimes it’s not because of pressure. Sometimes the pitcher makes a great pitch.”

Sometimes your pitcher does a good enough job to get a victory, but doesn’t. Scott Schoeneweis deserved better. He went seven innings, allowing three earned runs.

Carl Everett tied the score, 1-1, with a homer in the fourth. Rodriguez gave the Rangers the lead with a double in a three-run fifth. Rafael Palmeiro followed with a run-scoring single and a throwing error by Spiezio allowed another to score.