Angels Begin Season With a Bang : Opener: Finley pitches seven strong innings en route to a 3-2 victory over Seattle Mariners.

SEATTLE —  Chuck Finley’s forkball returned from an extended spring break, and so did Finley’s winning form.

After flailing through a dismal spring, the Angels’ left-hander on Tuesday night pitched with the command and control that enabled him to win a career-high 18 games last season. Making his first opening-day start a successful one, Finley pitched 7 1/3 strong innings as the Angels held off the Seattle Mariners, 3-2, in front of a crowd of 53,671 at the Kingdome.

Finley, the 16th pitcher and fifth left-hander to pitch on opening day for the Angels, struck out four--including Jay Buhner three times--and gave up five hits before yielding to Bryan Harvey. Finley was 1-3 with a 9.00 earned-run average in exhibition games, but with his forkball working he was a different and effective pitcher Tuesday.

Angel designated hitter Dave Parker hit a home run to deep right in the second inning, becoming the eighth player to homer in his first at-bat as an Angel. It was most recently done by Claudell Washington on April 4, 1989.

Parker entered the game with only one hit in 12 career at-bats against Erik Hanson, but the new Angel player reversed that trend with a homer and a triple in his first two encounters with the Mariner starter.

The Angels were victimized by an apparent misinterpretation of the ground rules in the eighth inning. The Mariners had a run in and a runner on first when Edgar Martinez lofted a high, foul pop-up toward the Kingdome roof. The ball hit a wire that supports the screen behind home plate and dropped down; catcher Lance Parrish dashed toward the backstop and caught it for what should have been the second out.

However, home plate umpire Jim McKean changed his initial out call after conferring with Vic Voltaggio and Martinez was allowed to come back to bat. That was despite a ground rule stating, “A batted ball hitting any suspended object in foul territory is a foul ball, regardless of where it lands or is touched by a fielder. If the ball is caught by a fielder, the batter is out and the baserunners advance at their own risk.”

Given a second chance, Martinez walked, and Finley was relieved by Harvey. Ken Griffey Jr. struck out, but Alvin Davis singled to right, scoring Reynolds with the second run. Buhner flied to center for the official final out.

Gary Gaetti, Junior Felix and Luis Sojo didn’t fare as well as Parker in their Angel debuts. Gaetti had a double after he struck out and grounded into two double plays, Felix was 0 for 4 and Sojo was 0 for 3 with a sacrifice.

Parker and Parrish, who each hit over .300 in spring training, continued their hot hitting Tuesday. Each had two hits in their first two at-bats, all of the Angels’ hits off Hanson through five innings. The two also produced the Angels’ first two runs.

Parker slammed an 0-and-2 pitch over the right-field scoreboard in the second inning for his 329th home run and a 1-0 Angel lead.

In his next at-bat, in the fifth inning, Parker was credited with a triple when left fielder Tracy Jones tried to make a diving catch on Parker’s sinking line drive only to have the ball hop past him. Parker, who lumbered slowly around the bases, barely had time to catch his breath before Parrish singled to left, sending him home.

The RBI was Parrish’s first against the Mariners since July 31, 1989. He drove in at least one run against every club except Seattle last season.