Angel Anthem: Jose, Can You See the Scoreboard?

I dropped by the Angels on Thursday because they obviously need some help.

“I always do good when you come here because you make me mad,” said a smiling Jose Guillen, and for the record I can’t say that I’m quoting him accurately because I had to eliminate all his swear words.

Now I had read in the newspaper that the Angels had failed to score the night before against the crummy team from Toronto, losing, 1-0, but what had really upset Guillen was the decision by the Angel Stadium scoreboard operator to post the Boston-Oakland score on the big screen in right field.

It has to be tough keeping one eye on the scoreboard operator and seeing what kind of job he’s doing while trying to hit the pitches thrown by a major league pitcher, so I can understand why Guillen’s upset and why he went 0 for 3.

I asked Manager Mike Scioscia about Guillen’s sudden interest in stadium management, and he said his players strive to remain focused on only baseball and what it takes to win, and “our guys are really good at that.”

If they are so good at it, then how does he explain Guillen’s latest tantrum?

“Jose is an emotional guy and he speaks his mind,” Scioscia said. “I don’t disagree with what he’s saying.”

Does that mean the scoreboard operator, who apparently is sabotaging the Angels’ stretch drive, is in trouble?

“Is he still employed?” Scioscia said. And I think he was serious.

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I’D NEVER ask a player or manager to blame himself for losing 1-0 to a crummy team, so I went looking for the scoreboard operator who cost the Angels a game just in case he hadn’t gotten the word yet that he might be fired.

“I would imagine in the future we might consider doing it again,” said brazen scoreboard operator Peter Bull, and I wonder whose future is more shaky right now? The Angels’ or the scoreboard operator’s?

“The reason we do it is to further engage the fans,” Bull said. “Hopefully they see it, it gets them pumped up and it provides more energy in the ballpark.”

You know how tough it is to get some of these millionaires fired up and score a run against a crummy team, but at least Bull was doing his part.

“It’s something we’ve done in the past,” Bull said, and obviously it didn’t keep the Angels from winning a World Series, but then Guillen had no part in that. “It’s for the fans and making them a part of the pennant race.”

I said the same thing to Guillen, reminding him it’s September, and scoreboard watching is as much a part of the game as Garret Anderson loafing after a fly ball, so why not let the fans have their fun?

“They have the scores on the wall; there’s no reason to put it up there when we’re losing,” Guillen said, and next he’ll be demanding they stop selling concessions when the team is losing.

I told him he was ridiculous, and Guillen continued smiling and cussing at me as we worked together to get him mad and perform better -- for a change.

“You can tell the [scoreboard operator] that Guillen is [mad] and I don’t [really] care about the [darn] guy,” Guillen said. “And you can write whatever you [really] want. I don’t [really] care.”

I thanked the Lunkhead for giving me permission to write what I want, which pretty much takes away any power sports editor Bill Dwyre thought he had over Page 2, and moved on to the Loafer.

Because Anderson isn’t one to hustle, he couldn’t get away from me. The night before Vlad Guerrero had lost a ball in the twilight, a play that cost the Angels the game, and Anderson appeared rooted in center field, fearful he might work up a sweat.

“If I saw it, I would have caught it,” he said. “If [Guerrero] didn’t see it, how could I see it?”

I’ve always thought Anderson preferred to look cool rather than make the extra effort to run down a ball, and because I’ve always thought that, I figured I might as well tell him.

“If that’s your opinion, fine,” he said, which was the cool way to handle it.

I sought out Rex Hudler, Mr. Hustle when he played, and working now as Mr. Positive No Matter What as the Angels’ color man on TV, and asked if he thought Anderson should have hustled more.

“You have to be aware of the twilight, and if you’re not, you’re thinking that’s a routine fly ball,” Hudler said. “The center fielder not going over to help, well, obviously he was not aware of the twilight.”

That might be the first time in baseball history that Rex Hudler has come close to criticizing a player.

“In defense of Garret ...” he said, and I knew that was coming.

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I GOT Guillen mad enough to double off the wall in his first appearance, and then run over the catcher on a single to right. Unfortunately, the catcher held on to the ball, Guillen was out and the Angels were unable to post a run on the scoreboard. I think I know who Guillen will blame for that.

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THE DODGERS are charging fans a $2 handling fee for each playoff ticket; the Angels are charging $4 a ticket. I knew Arte Moreno would find a way to get back that money he lost lowering beer prices.

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TODAY’S LAST word comes in e-mail from Jorge Jaramillo:

“Every newspaper needs a journalist that just talks a lot of trash despite not having an athletic bone in his body -- like Jim Rome. He uses a lot of slang, but he’s right on. You, on the other hand, just make me want to break your face. Thank you for your time.”

You’re welcome.

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T.J. Simers can be reached at t.j.simers@latimes.com. To read previous columns by Simers, go to latimes.com/simers.