Morales Gets the First Call

The Angels, running out of in-house options to bolster their offense, turned Monday to triple-A first baseman Kendry Morales, who was recalled from Salt Lake after a 3-2 loss to Texas and will start tonight. Call him Plan G.

It’s not even June, and the Angels have recalled 10 players, including seven position players, from Salt Lake. Morales, the 22-year-old Cuban defector who is batting .318 with five homers and 29 runs batted in, will be the seventh Angels first baseman, following Casey Kotchman, Robb Quinlan, Howie Kendrick, Dallas McPherson, Edgardo Alfonzo and Jose Molina.

“We want to get him up here and see if he can give us a little boost,” Manager Mike Scioscia said. “His last 50 at-bats have been great. He has a history of getting to a league, making adjustments and being productive.”

Scioscia said Morales, who signed a six-year, $6-million deal in 2004, will be the everyday first baseman for a significant stretch. Morales has not committed an error in 40 games but is not considered an above-average defender.

“No one has an endless rope,” Scioscia said, “but he’s going to get an opportunity.”

If Morales struggles, the Angels will turn to the trade market, with Arizona first baseman Tony Clark considered a possible target.

Clark is an attractive short-term option because he is signed only through this season and, because he’s stuck behind young first baseman Conor Jackson, wouldn’t cost as much as some of the front-line players the Angels are pursuing, such as Alfonso Soriano and Shea Hillenbrand. Clark is batting .172 with three homers and 12 RBIs in 58 at-bats but hit .304 with 30 homers and 87 RBIs in 349 at-bats in 2005.

To make room for Morales, pitcher Jason Bulger was demoted to Salt Lake, two days after he was called up.

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Tim Salmon’s recovery from knee and shoulder surgery has gone so well that Scioscia intimated the 37-year-old designated hitter, who is batting .258 with five home runs and 13 RBIs, could play beyond this season if he wants to.

“You have to work hard at his age, but if he’s willing to do it, he can do it,” Scioscia said. “He’s turned every question into an exclamation point.”

Salmon, though, plans to end this season with a period.

“This is it,” said Salmon, who sat out the entire 2005 season because of injuries. “Just playing DH, running the bases ... my knee is never going to be 100% again. I’m doing everything I can to make it work now. Some days I wonder, am I going to injure it more? There were a lot of reasons to come back this year, but if I can make it through, this most likely is going to be it.”

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Darin Erstad ran wind sprints before Monday’s game, the first time the center fielder has run since going on the disabled list because of a bone bruise and bone spurs in his right ankle on May 1.

Erstad also worked on getting jumps in the outfield and took batting practice but will need to run the bases aggressively before being activated or going on a minor league rehabilitation assignment.

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Bartolo Colon, out since April 16 because of shoulder inflammation, is scheduled to throw a simulated game today and could begin a rehab assignment this week. Colon would probably need at least two minor league starts before returning to the rotation, possibly in early June. ... After starting in left field Sunday after sitting out five games because of a sore left hamstring, Garret Anderson was relegated to DH Monday. “It’s smart to slowly fold him back into the outfield,” Scioscia said.