Athletics Have Enough Muscle to Beat Angels

That’s a nice new scoreboard the Angels have in left field. Bright color, better-than-VCR quality. And the bench-clearing shoving match in the top of the fourth inning was an interesting touch.

But on the field, those were the same old Angels Friday night. More pitchers serving up more home runs, more baserunners running the offense out of big innings, more fielders botching routine plays--and, one more defeat, this by a score of 8-2 to the Oakland Athletics.

Before an Anaheim Stadium crowd of 45,586 for their home opener, the Angels lost for the third time in four games under Manager Cookie Rojas as Kirk McCaskill couldn’t last six innings in his 1988 debut before getting into all sorts of trouble.

There was the two-run home run to Mark McGwire in the second inning, a line drive that found the seats just inside the right-field foul pole. There was the stunning fourth-inning home run by light-hitting Stan Javier, a man who entered this game with a .191 career batting average.

And in between those shots was the shot McCaskill delivered to McGwire’s left temple--an 0-and-2 fastball that plunked McGwire in the side of the head.

Retaliation for the home run of two innings earlier? McGwire apparently thought so at first. He began to approach the mound before McCaskill shook his head, a peace-making gesture, and McGwire seemed ready for retreat.

Just then, the A’s bench emptied onto the field and, as these things go, so did the Angels’. For a while everybody just stood around, as they do in a hockey fight, which must have struck former National Hockey League draft pick McCaskill as familiar. Finally, there was a little pushing, with the Angels’ Mike Witt and Oakland’s Carney Lansford right in the middle of it, before the umpires could part the masses.

McGwire was removed from the game by Manager Tony LaRussa for precautionary reasons, but the A’s attack suffered little. Before the inning was over, Javier would strike his third big league home run and by the seventh inning, Jose Canseco had indoctrinated Angel rookie reliever Frank DiMichele with a towering two-run home run to center field.

Lansford added another two-run home run, off Stewart Cliburn, in the ninth inning.

McCaskill lasted 5 innings. In his first start since last Sept. 4, when a sore elbow forced him out of the rotation, McCaskill threw 93 pitches and allowed 4 earned runs on 6 hits and 3 walks. He struck out 2.

McCaskill’s cause wasn’t helped much by his teammates.

In the top of the sixth, right fielder Chili Davis overran a sinking line drive by Dave Parker, watching the ball bound behind him to the wall for a triple. Parker didn’t score, but McCaskill only faced three batters after the play.

More Angel running, this on the basepaths, proved faulty in the second inning when the Angels put together two singles and a double against Storm Davis (1-0)--and came away with just one run.

This can happen when Jack Howell is on second base, Bob Boone on first and Dick Schofield hits a deep fly ball that caroms right off the top of the center field fence. Holding up to see just what the ball might do--be caught or fall over the fence--Howell had to hustle to score on the plate and prevent Boone from running up his back.

Boone had to retreat to third base, where he was stationed when Mark McLemore lofted a one-out fly ball to middle-depth right field. Potential sacrifice fly. But Boone hesitated after tagging up and he who hesitates is often hung out to dry.

Right fielder Canseco’s throw home beat Boone by a good 10 feet and all Boone could do was stop in his track, back-pedal and await catcher Ron Hassey’s tag.

Double play and Davis was out of the inning.

Davis lasted 5 innings, yielding two runs on eight hits. The Angels scored their other run in the sixth, after Davis left the bases loaded following singles by Wally Joyner and Devon White and a walk to Brian Downing. Reliever Greg Cadaret forced home the run by then walking pinch-hitter Bill Buckner.

Rojas, maneuvering often early, also sent up another pinch-hitter, Butch Wynegar, after Buckner to bat for Schofield. But Wynegar flied to center to end the threat.

The Angels also squandered singles by Johnny Ray and Davis in the first inning.

By the end of the sixth inning, Oakland led, 4-2, turning the remainder of the game into a parade of Angel relief pitchers.