Washburn Makes It Easy for Angels

Jarrod Washburn was a bit unnerved. This was Thursday afternoon, and he was about to sit down for a live ESPN interview regarding steroid use in the major leagues. The subject was controversial, Washburn was uncomfortable coming off as some sort of spokesman on the issue, and you don’t get a second chance on live television.

If it’s showtime, Washburn might be rattled. If it’s game time, he never is.

With their unflappable ace showing the way, the Angels rebounded from one of their most disastrous defeats of the season with one of their most impressive victories. As Washburn rebuffed the Minnesota Twins time and again, the Angels pounded and then dismissed their longtime nemesis, Eric Milton, en route to an 11-3 victory Friday.

The final four batters in the Angel lineup had 11 of the 16 hits, including four from Bengie Molina and three from Scott Spiezio. The Angels ended April 6 1/2 games out of first place and ended May three games out, and they closed out the month by setting a club record for victories in May, with 19.

The last one meant the most. The Angels led 5-0 in the third inning and 6-4 in the eighth inning Thursday before losing the game. That bitter aftertaste can only be removed with victory and, as second baseman Adam Kennedy said before Friday’s game, “We’ve got the right guy for it.”

That would be Washburn, who won his fifth consecutive decision and has not lost since April 13.

This is what he survived Friday: Second inning, bases loaded, one out and an unearned run already in--no more runs scored. Fifth inning, runners on second and third, none out--no runs scored. Sixth inning, second and third, none out--one run scored, on a sacrifice fly.

Did any of the situations rattle him?

“Does anything ever?” he shot back.

Well, no, at least not on a baseball field.

“Even though he’s not throwing 95 or 96, he’s kind of an intimidating pitcher out there,” Spiezio said. “He doesn’t back down and say, oh, I better make the perfect pitch. He just keeps throwing hard.

“It seems like every situation he’s in, whether it’s a tough situation early or late, he always seems to bear down and get out of it. As a defensive player behind him, you get a lot of confidence.”

The confidence-building did not stop when the Angels put down their gloves and picked up their bats.

To the Angels, Milton as the opposing pitcher is never a welcome sight. He threw a no-hitter against them three years ago, and he never had lost to them. In seven starts against the Angels, he had given up eight earned runs.

He gave up seven Friday, in 3 1/3 innings. By the fourth inning, every Angel starter had a hit. The Angels led 7-1 after four innings and 9-1 after five, and Washburn ensured there would be no reprise of Thursday’s collapse.

The happiest of the hitting heroes was Molina. He even scored from third on a wild pitch, a strictly occasional event for the slowest guy on the team. He smiled about that play but turned serious in discussing his four hits, since he batted .317 in April but .225 from May 1-30.

“I got lucky four times,” he said. “But you know what? It made me feel good, after a whole month with no hits.”

All in all, Washburn and his mates put on a pretty good show for the busloads who flocked from his Wisconsin home two hours away. He grew up rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and the New York Yankees, but he attended his share of ballgames in Minneapolis.

Now all the kids in his hometown come here to watch him, and they were not disappointed.

Washburn was, but only mildly. In 76 major league starts, he has yet to throw a shutout. Maybe here, next time.

“My goal is to go out and throw a shutout every time,” he said. “Obviously, I’ve never achieved my goal. Some day, I might.”