Erstad Making Little Progress

Darin Erstad received another cortisone shot in his injured right ankle Friday and was fitted with a new orthotics device, but the Angels center fielder, who went on the disabled list three weeks ago, seems no closer to returning.

Erstad, out since May 1, suffered a setback when running the bases Wednesday in Texas and will be held out of baseball activities for much of this week. He has two bone spurs and a bone bruise in the ankle, but the more pressing issue is an inflamed lower-ankle joint, which is unrelated to the bone spurs.

Erstad, who turns 32 on June 4, met Friday with foot specialist Phil Kwong. The diagnosis? “I’m old,” Erstad said. “I just have a bad joint. It’s beat up and angry, and when I run on it, it heats up.”

Surgery is not being considered at this point, Erstad said, but there is no timetable for his return. He’ll undergo treatment and attempt to strengthen the ankle with exercises before running again.

“We’ll see what happens when I move around again,” Erstad said. “If this works, I could be ready to go soon. If it doesn’t ... I’m not ready to look at that side yet.”

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Though the Angels engaged in serious talks last week with the Toronto Blue Jays, who were interested in second baseman Adam Kennedy and seemed willing to part with corner infielder Shea Hillenbrand, who is batting .340 with seven home runs and 23 runs batted in, a deal appears highly unlikely.

“There is one player who is available who I consider really good,” General Manager Bill Stoneman said, declining to name the player. “But the cost would have taken away too much from our major league club.”

Much like last winter, Stoneman is pursuing an impact hitter, not a second-tier player who might be a marginal upgrade over what the Angels have now.

“There are a few hitters available -- not a whole bunch -- but not a difference-maker, someone who would step in and really make a difference in the lineup,” Stoneman said.

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Manager Mike Scioscia would not divulge details of his meeting with Casey Kotchman before Saturday’s game, but it was clear the Angels were not pleased with the young first baseman’s criticism of the team’s medical staff, which he said did not refer him to specialists when he was diagnosed with mononucleosis in spring training.

Kotchman hit .421 in spring training despite feeling the effects of the illness but struggled with a .152 average in 29 regular-season games before being placed on the disabled list May 9 because of a viral syndrome.

“I just wanted a clarification about what he said,” Scioscia said, “but I’m not going to talk about it.”

Said Stoneman: “All I can say is we have an extremely good medical staff.”

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Bartolo Colon threw a three-inning, 46-pitch simulated game Saturday that went a lot better than his two-inning simulated game Tuesday in Texas. The 2005 Cy Young Award winner, out since April 16 because of an inflamed shoulder, could begin a minor league rehabilitation assignment this week.

“His velocity was up, his breaking pitches were sharper, and he looked more comfortable on the mound,” pitching coach Bud Black said. “He’s really close to being ready to go out and pitch somewhere.”