Molina Should Be Able to Cash In

Bengie Molina has been considered one of baseball’s better defensive catchers, but his stock has gone up considerably with his offensive outburst in the division series against the Yankees.

Molina’s three-year contract expires after this season, and he will become a free agent. Molina and San Diego’s Ramon Hernandez are considered the top two free-agent catchers on the market, and each could command three-year deals in the $15-million to $20-million range.

The New York Mets are among the teams looking for a catcher and are expected to make a strong run at Molina, who is batting .455 with three home runs and five runs batted in during the division series after batting a career-best .295 with 15 homers and 69 RBIs in the regular season.

“I was hoping the Angels would offer me some kind of deal,” Molina said Saturday. “They haven’t done it, so I guess that means they have to fight it out with other teams. But this is the only organization I know, and I’ll give them the first shot.”

The Angels have one of baseball’s top prospects in triple-A catcher Jeff Mathis, but it would seem risky to leave a veteran pitching staff on a team expected to contend for a World Series championship in the hands of an untested rookie.

“Bengie is a priority,” Manager Mike Scioscia said. “I know that we know what he brings to the club and what he means to the club; whether that translates to a deal getting done, you never know in baseball.

“There are a lot of guys that are very, very important to clubs who, for whatever reasons, move on to a better deal, a different situation. We hope that’s not the case with Bengie, but at times the business side of this and that lure of free agency will make guys change teams.”

Molina was hit in the left elbow by a Tom Gordon fastball and knocked out of Game 3.

“I’m seeing the ball pretty well right now,” Molina said. “The only one I didn’t see is the one that hit me.”

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The Angels thought they had rid themselves of Randy Johnson on Friday, but the Big Unit might rise again in this series.

Because Johnson made only 62 pitches in his three-inning stint in Game 3, and because Saturday’s game was rained out, he could be available in relief in Game 4 tonight or in a possible Game 5 on Monday.

“I could pitch today if I had to,” Johnson said Saturday. “Anything is possible. I’ve done it before.

“That’s part of my job -- to help the team win -- isn’t it?”

Johnson has pitched in relief in two postseason games, both against the Yankees. In 1995, for Seattle, he pitched three innings of relief on one day’s rest. In 2001, for Arizona, he started Game 6 of the World Series, pitching seven innings for the victory, then relieved in Game 7 the next day, pitching 1 1/3 innings for the victory.

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With Saturday’s rainout pushing a possible Game 5 to Monday, major league officials could delay the start of the American League championship series until Wednesday.

The winner of the Angel-Yankee series is scheduled to open the ALCS Tuesday in Chicago. If the series extends to Game 5, major league officials are concerned the winner could be at a competitive disadvantage by playing Sunday night in New York, Monday night in Anaheim and Tuesday in Chicago.

If the ALCS were to start Wednesday, the Thursday travel day would be eliminated, and the three games in Anaheim or New York would remain scheduled for Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

No decision has been made, and the issue would become moot if the Angels win tonight.

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When the Yankees flew home from Anaheim, they left behind Mike Mussina, the starting and winning pitcher in Game 1. They wanted him to work out in California for a possible Game 5, without two cross-country flights in four days.

Saturday’s rainout means Mussina could have started the must-win Game 4 today on regular rest, but the Yankees did not summon him to New York. Pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre said the Yankees had given no thought to using Mussina.

For more on the Angels-Yankees series, go to www.latimes.com/sports