Outburst by Guillen Is Not Well-Received

The Angels’ emotional 5-3 victory over the A’s on Saturday was somewhat marred by left fielder Jose Guillen’s petulant reaction to being lifted for a pinch-runner in the eighth inning.

With the score tied, 3-3, Guillen, who has played with an assortment of injuries this season, was hit by a pitch to open the eighth, and Manager Mike Scioscia sent Alfredo Amezaga in to pinch-run.

Guillen walked slowly off the field as the A’s made a pitching change, tossed his helmet toward the side of the dugout Scioscia was standing in and walked all the way to the opposite side of the dugout before entering. He then fired his glove against the dugout wall.

Guillen is prone to emotional outbursts, most of them reactions to not being in the lineup, but this one raised the ire of his teammates and coaches because he appeared to be putting himself in front of the team and showing up his manager.

Scioscia downplayed the incident, but the manager is believed to have addressed the situation in a brief closed-door team meeting after the game. Several players refused to comment.

“Jose is an emotional guy and he wants to win; it’s no big deal,” Scioscia said. “I just said, ‘Hey, Alfredo’s faster than you.’ ”

It turned out to be a good move: Amezaga scored the winning run on Garret Anderson’s double and made a diving catch of Erubiel Durazo’s liner to second base in the top of the ninth.

Guillen’s words after the game did not speak as loudly as his actions during the eighth.

“I’m all right,” he said. “Mike just took me out. That’s it. He was trying to put a faster runner in. I think I can run. My legs feel fine. It’s just one of those situations.... I’m fine. We won.”

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The Angels have made no progress in signing top pick Jered Weaver, the standout pitcher from Long Beach State, and the right-hander is not expected to participate in the Angels’ fall instructional league in Arizona.

Weaver, the 12th pick in the June draft, is said to be seeking a signing package similar to the $10-million deal Chicago Cub pitcher Mark Prior received out of USC.

The Angels are trying to determine his value in the face of pressure from Major League Baseball to hold down signing bonuses.

“Obviously when you draft him, you’d like to sign him, get him into the system, let him work with the coaches, see what his talent is and try to prepare him for spring training,” Angel owner Arte Moreno said. “It hasn’t worked out that way.

“The agent is trying to get the best deal, and MLB is looking at the macro thing. For us, the question is, what kind of budget do we have?

“Looking at your money, are you going to pay someone this amount who has never played, or sign a free agent? We’re trying to line up the numbers.

“We knew what kind of neighborhood he would be in when we drafted him, but it has to be a good deal for the player and the organization.”