Colon’s in Town, More to Come?

The Angels say their $67-million investment in free-agent pitchers Bartolo Colon and Kelvim Escobar may preclude them from acquiring a top-flight position player, compelling the team to trade for offensive help.

General Manager Bill Stoneman said coveted free agents such as Vladimir Guerrero and Miguel Tejada were “probably not” options after the Angels introduced Colon on Tuesday in a news conference at Edison Field.

“We’ll see, but we’ve made substantial commitments to Escobar and Colon now,” Stoneman said. “That consumes a lot of our resources.”

Colon, 30, agreed to a four-year, $48-million deal that ranks second in franchise history behind the six-year, $80-million contract awarded to first baseman Mo Vaughn in 1998. Escobar, 27, agreed last month to a three-year contract for $18.75 million.

The acquisitions give the Angels a surplus of starting pitchers and provide Stoneman with what he described as more flexibility than he has ever possessed heading into the winter meetings Friday in New Orleans.

“Going forward from here,” Stoneman said, “there’s a lot more flexibility with what we can do with the roster.”

Colon, who tied for the major league lead with nine complete games last season, bolsters what could become one of the top rotations in the American League. But that still leaves vacancies in the outfield and at first base. Stoneman said he hoped to add “another player or two,” a sentiment shared by owner Arte Moreno.

“Conservatively, we’re not finished yet,” Moreno said. “We still have some things to take care of.”

The only question remaining is by what means. With the Angels’ player payroll already expected to surpass $90 million, the team appears to have taken itself out of the running for another high-priced free agent.

“I’m not really suggesting that we’re going to go and spend the money -- or that we even have it available -- that we spent on Bartolo to spend on someone else,” Stoneman said. “That’s not going to happen. But I wouldn’t rule out the free-agent market at this point.”

Club officials confirmed their interest in free-agent first baseman Rafael Palmeiro, but said a deal was not imminent and none would be until the asking price dropped.

Palmeiro made $9 million for Texas last season, and after Ranger owner Tom Hicks called to offer him a contract for less than $2 million, Palmeiro told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram he considered that a “courtesy phone call” rather than a reasonable proposal.

The Angels have been in discussions about a trade that would send pitcher Jarrod Washburn to Boston for shortstop Nomar Garciaparra, though the Red Sox and Texas would first have to agree on a proposal in which Texas swapped shortstop Alex Rodriguez for outfielder Manny Ramirez.

“Where Bill goes the remainder of this off-season remains to be seen,” Manager Mike Scioscia said. “But this certainly opens up some options and gives us a chance, if nothing comes up [in a trade], to be strong in starting pitching with the depth you’re going to need to get through our division.”

Stoneman said he particularly liked Colon’s ability to pitch past the seventh inning, a weakness on an Angel staff that had only five complete games last season.

“This changes things a little bit,” Stoneman said. “Hopefully, it gives our bullpen a little more opportunity for breathers.”

The Angels beat out the White Sox, New York Yankees, St. Louis and Philadelphia for Colon, in part because they were willing to offer him a fourth year on his contract.

“A lot of the other teams were only offering three years, so when they offered four years, it made it that much more interesting to come here,” Colon said through an interpreter.

Colon said he was also swayed by the commitment to winning exhibited by Moreno and the opportunity to pitch in warm weather. Moreno and several Spanish-speaking Angel players helped coax the Dominican Republic native by making him feel comfortable about the transition to Southern California.

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Times staff writers Ross Newhan and Bill Shaikin contributed to this report.

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Well-Armed

Though probably not finished dealing, the Angels have one of the deepest and most durable starting rotations in the majors. A look at the starters, with their 2003 records:

*--* IP GS W-L BB SO ERA Bartolo Colon Throws: R. Age: 30 242 34 15-13 67 173 3.87 Note: Averaged 32 starts, 216 innings pitched over last six seasons. Jarrod Washburn Throws: L. Age: 29 207 1/3 32 10-15 54 118 4.43 John Lackey Throws: R. Age: 25 204 33 10-16 66 151 4.63 Kelvim Escobar Throws: R. Age: 27 180 1/3 26 13-9 78 159 4.29 Ramon Ortiz Throws: R. Age: 30 180 32 16-13 63 94 5.20 Aaron Sele Throws: R. Age: 33 121 2/3 25 7-11 58 53 5.77

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Note: Before running into injury problems the last two seasons, pitched more than 200 innings in four consecutive seasons.