Angel Options Dwindle

The Angels are running out of answers. Their established players aren’t hitting all that well, the youngsters they thought were ready for the big leagues have been overwhelmed, and they’re relying on so many triple-A players right now they could be called the Los Angeles Angels of Salt Lake.

With so few options in the minor leagues, Manager Mike Scioscia acknowledged after Monday night’s 5-1 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays that General Manager Bill Stoneman has begun searching outside the organization for a bat or two to boost an offense that has hit .199 (88 for 442) and scored 39 runs in the last 14 games.

Bengie Molina, the Blue Jay catcher and former Angel whose two-run home run off Jeff Weaver highlighted Toronto’s five-run fifth-inning Monday, has had four days in the Rogers Centre to size up the Angels, and he can’t say he’s surprised.

In the last two years, the Angels cut ties with the clutch-hitting Molina, pesky leadoff batter David Eckstein and sluggers Troy Glaus and Jose Guillen, decisions that helped lead to the erosion of an offense that won the 2002 World Series with an efficient, balanced, relatively patient and often-relentless attack.

And about all Stoneman did to improve the team was to add reserve outfielder Juan Rivera and shortstop Orlando Cabrera. Raul Mondesi, Andres Galarraga and Steve Finley didn’t fill many voids.

Dallas McPherson, the player Stoneman thought would replace Glaus last season, is at Salt Lake, struggling to revamp a long swing that has produced 48 strikeouts in 99 at-bats this season.

Jeff Mathis, the catcher Stoneman thought would replace Molina, was demoted to Salt Lake last week, his average at .103. First baseman Casey Kotchman is batting .152 with six hits in his last 50 at-bats and appears to be on the verge of a demotion.

“You’ve got to be careful when you make decisions about bringing young guys in,” Molina said. “There’s a 50-50 chance they’re going to have a great career or go down. That can hurt you.... Their young guys are going to be good, but at the same time, they’re young. It’s hard. That’s a lot of pressure for young guys coming in.”

The established players aren’t doing much to ease that pressure. Monday night, Blue Jay ace Roy Halladay needed only 98 pitches and 1 hour 59 minutes to throw a four-hitter, striking out six and walking one, sending the Angels (14-19) to their ninth loss in 11 games.

While there is no shame in losing to Halladay, the 2003 Cy Young Award winner, Scioscia wasn’t pleased with the Angel effort, which included 14 first-pitch swings in 31 plate-appearances. For the second day in a row, the Toronto starter took a no-hitter into the sixth inning.

“You have to beat good pitching if you’re a good team, but we’re just not playing anywhere near our capabilities right now,” Scioscia said. “Halladay pitched a terrific game, but you know what? You have to go out there and beat him, and we didn’t give ourselves a chance tonight.”

Asked to elaborate, Scioscia said, “Too many times we swung at his pitch. We gave too many outs away by swinging at his pitch. There’s a line you cross with being aggressive.”

Weaver, the Angel right-hander, had a no-hitter of his own through four innings before hanging too many two-strike breaking balls in the fifth, two of which were slammed for two-run home runs by Molina and Alex Rios.

Tommy Murphy broke up Halladay’s no-hitter with a leadoff double in the sixth and scored on Cabrera’s single, but the Angels advanced only one other runner to third.

“Some guys are trying too hard and are being taken out of their game, some are too passive, and some are working their way into the major leagues and experiencing growing pains,” Scioscia said. “If we get some continuity through the middle of our lineup we can improve quickly. If that continuity doesn’t form, then this is going to be a tremendous struggle.”