Beltran Expresses His Interest

The Angels have long coveted Carlos Beltran, and the Kansas City center fielder says he would be pleased if the Royals traded him to the defending World Series champions this winter.

“I like Anaheim,” he said. “I like the field. I like the city. They’re a good team. If they were capable of doing it last year, they’re capable of doing it again.”

The Angels hope to acquire a starting outfielder and could hardly do better than Beltran, 26, a terrific defensive player and a switch-hitter with speed and power, on pace to score and drive in 100 runs for the fourth time in five years.

“If I were running this team, I wouldn’t let a guy like Carlos Beltran go,” Kansas City first baseman Mike Sweeney said. “He’s the most talented player I’ve ever played with.”

The Royals are convinced they cannot sign Beltran to a long-term contract and are expected to trade him this winter rather than let him leave as a free agent next winter. The Kansas City Star has reported that his agent, Scott Boras, has suggested an eight-year contract worth $15 million to $18 million per year would be necessary for the Royals to keep Beltran from testing free agency.

The Angels might well trade for him anyway, with most executives predicting no player -- even Montreal superstar Vladimir Guerrero, 27, this year’s prize free agent -- will command so long or so rich a deal.

Gold Glove center fielder Darin Erstad, who would lose his position if the Angels acquired Beltran, smiled when asked how he would react.

“I wouldn’t be mad,” Erstad said.

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Alumni update: After the Angels released pitcher Kevin Appier last month -- and cut him a $15.6 million severance check, the largest in major league history -- he rejoined the Royals, his first major league team. But the sore elbow that troubled Appier much of the year finally gave way in his fourth start for the Royals, and the team said Friday that he would undergo season-ending surgery. Appier still lives in the area, and the Royals have indicated a non-roster invitation to spring training is his if he desires.

Mickey Callaway returns to the majors tonight, as the starting pitcher for the Texas Rangers. After the Angels released him last month, he signed a minor league contract with the Rangers and went 2-0 with a 1.59 earned-run average in four starts at triple-A Oklahoma.

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General Manager Bill Stoneman, who fired scouting director Donny Rowland last weekend, said he hopes to select a replacement by the end of the season. Stoneman said he expects to interview “five or six” candidates, both within and outside the organization.

Two more potential candidates surfaced Friday. Gary Hughes, the most intriguing name rumored to date, worked with Stoneman in the Montreal Expo organization, at a time the team’s player development system was the envy of baseball. Baseball America selected Hughes as the top development executive of the 1990s. The other potential candidate, Chris Buckley, is the former scouting director of the Toronto Blue Jays.