Napoli is put on the disabled list

Maybe Manager Mike Scioscia should have knocked on wood before Sunday’s game against the Baltimore Orioles when he said the Angels have “used every ounce” of the organization’s major league depth.

They had to dip deeper into the well Monday when catcher Mike Napoli, injured in a plate collision to end the Angels’ 4-3 victory over Baltimore on Sunday, was put on the 15-day disabled list because of a high ankle sprain and the team recalled catcher Jeff Mathis from triple-A Salt Lake.

The Angels also put utility player Erick Aybar on the DL because of a hand injury suffered Sunday, but they restored some depth with the return of left fielder Garret Anderson (right hip flexor tendon tear) and utility infielder Maicer Izturis (rib-cage injury), who will be activated for tonight’s game at Texas. Outfielder Nick Gorneault was optioned back to Salt Lake.

X-rays of Napoli’s left shin Monday were negative, but a high ankle sprain is no consolation prize. It’s a severe injury that could sideline Napoli, who is hitting .243 with eight home runs and 29 runs batted in and has guided pitchers to a 3.86 earned-run average in the 478 1/3 innings he has caught, for up to six weeks.

Napoli is the 10th Angels regular to spend time on the DL, joining outfielders Anderson and Juan Rivera, infielders Chone Figgins, Howie Kendrick and Izturis, and pitchers Bartolo Colon, Kelvim Escobar, Jered Weaver and Justin Speier.

“We don’t count up the DL time -- we just look at how to put the club in the best position to win,” General Manager Bill Stoneman said. “If we started viewing it the other way, you might start feeling sorry for yourself. That’s not going to help.”

The Angels are proud of their farm system and haven’t been afraid to use players such as Reggie Willits, Aybar, Joe Saunders and Dustin Moseley, who have provided significant contributions this season.

Others, such as Nathan Haynes, Terry Evans and Gorneault, have filled temporary voids for a team that is 51-31 and in first place in the American League West entering tonight’s game at Texas.

“You’ve got to win when you’re banged up,” Scioscia said. “Other teams will play well, so you’re never in a position to say, ‘Let’s hold our own until the starters come back.’ If you do that, you’re going to lose ground. You do it for a month, it can affect your season.”

Jose Molina, a solid defender with an outstanding arm, is expected to handle the bulk of the catching in Napoli’s absence, with Mathis, who was batting .244 with five homers and 26 RBIs in 66 games at Salt Lake, serving as the backup. Neither is the offensive threat Napoli is.

“Any time you lose a guy who’s playing as much as Nap is, it leaves you with a bit of a question mark,” Stoneman said. “But we’ve got the depth, and it creates an opportunity for Jeff. Hopefully, he’ll pick it up and run with it.”

Mathis was handed the starting job in 2006 but fumbled it, batting .103 in his first 12 games before being demoted to triple A in early May. Angels pitchers had a 5.82 ERA in the 133 innings he caught last season.

But Mathis, according to Stoneman, “has been very good defensively from day one this season.... We’ve won with Jose behind the plate, just like we did with Nap, and just like we will do with Mathis.”

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It’s not that Mickey Hatcher is waiting for the other shoe to drop, but the batting instructor has been around the game long enough to know teams can’t continue to hit .319 and average 6.1 runs a game, as the Angels did in June.

“I’m praying to God it lasts a long time ... but I’ve played the game, and it doesn’t last for anybody,” Hatcher said.

“There will be times they go bad again, and they’ll have to battle through those periods. But it’s always good to know we can hit like we are now. These guys are feeding off each other. It’s a different hero every day.”

A mere nine hits and seven runs in the final two games of a weekend series in Baltimore could indicate a possible downturn, but the Angels are still batting .288, which is tied with Detroit for the league lead.

The Angels also rank fourth in runs (416), fifth in on-base percentage (.347) and 11th in home runs (64), so they’re getting the most out of an offense with limited power.

Five regulars -- Orlando Cabrera (.337), Willits (.337), Vladimir Guerrero (.328), Figgins (.324) and Casey Kotchman (.307) -- are batting above .300, and Kendrick (.293) and Gary Matthews Jr. (.281) aren’t far off.

“When guys are going good, they feel good about their at-bats,” Hatcher said. “I’m impressed, especially with the young guys like Kotchman, Kendrick and Willits, who have pressure to prove themselves every day. Some of these guys look like they’ve been here for 10 years.”

Also impressive is the fact that the Angels, never known for their patience, have three regulars with more walks than strikeouts, Guerrero (46 to 30), Kotchman (24 to 19) and Willits (38 to 33). Cabrera has 23 walks and 27 strikeouts.

“A lot of guys have developed a good two-strike approach,” Hatcher said. “Willits brought that to the team, Figgins is doing it now, Cabrera has always done it. When you’re feeling good about your swing, you see the ball better, and your confidence increases. That’s what it is right now.”

mike.digiovanna@latimes.com