It’s a good start with a triple play but a bad end

It was a good day for three. Again.

Transforming the rare into the routine, the Angels turned their second triple play of the spring in Tuesday night’s 8-7, 10-inning loss to the San Diego Padres. In the 46-year history of the franchise, the Angels have turned six triple plays.

With runners at the corners and no outs in the first inning, right-hander Ervin Santana, with Todd Walker running from first, struck out Josh Bard. Catcher Mike Napoli threw to second base, but Walker stopped before reaching the bag.

Shortstop Orlando Cabrera ran Walker toward first and threw to first baseman Casey Kotchman, who applied the tag on Walker. Brian Giles drifted off third, and Kotchman, who was involved in the team’s triple play against Arizona on March 8, threw to third baseman Chone Figgins, who tagged out Giles.

“How about that?” Manager Mike Scioscia said. “It took Ervin 16 pitches to get to that point in the inning and one more pitch to get out of it.”

Reviews for the rest of the defense Tuesday were mixed. Right fielder Vladimir Guerrero dropped Mike Cameron’s second-inning liner for an error, but Gary Matthews Jr. threw out Marcus Giles trying to tag from first on Brian Giles’ fly to deep center field in the fifth inning.

Matthews, the subject of human growth hormone allegations, also hit his third homer of the spring, a two-run drive to right field against Chris Young that came on the next pitch after a fan in the Peoria Sports Complex yelled, “Hey, Juicer!” Figgins also homered in the fifth.

Santana, who had a 2.08 earned-run average, was roughed up for seven runs and nine hits, including Geoff Blum’s two-run homer and two-run double and Terrmel Sledge’s two-run homer.

Down time

It’s official. Jered Weaver, slowed by shoulder tightness, will open the season on the disabled list. But if the right-hander continues to progress as he has recently, there’s a good chance he’ll sit out only one regular-season start.

Weaver will throw another 45-pitch simulated game today or Thursday, mixing in breaking pitches for the first time, and he could pitch in a minor league game this weekend.

Right-hander Dustin Moseley is expected to start April 6 against Oakland. Weaver will probably make a rehabilitation start for Class-A Rancho Cucamonga that night and return to the Angels on April 12 at Cleveland.

Bartolo Colon, rehabilitating his rotator-cuff tear, will mix in breaking balls for the first time during a 45-pitch batting-practice session today.

Going vertical

Shea Hillenbrand was glad to be among the walking Tuesday after being floored for four days by flu-like symptoms that included deep chest congestion, restricted breathing, a high fever and an erratic heart beat.

“I felt good last Thursday, and then Friday, I woke up, and I was done. I was in bed the whole weekend,” said Hillenbrand, who expects to play today.

So Hillenbrand got to watch all that NCAA basketball tournament action, right? Not quite.

“I don’t watch sports on television or anything, and I can’t sit still,” Hillenbrand said, “so it was torture for me.”

On the mend

Joe Saunders, scratched from his last start because of elbow tightness, threw in the bullpen Sunday and will start today against Arizona.

mike.digiovanna@latimes.com