Angels Lose, Again; Finley Sidelined

It would have been sour poetry to fall from first place to last in precisely a month. The Angels, leaders of the American League West for a single day after a victory on July 3, avoided that fate at least for a day Saturday, keeping their tenuous grip on next-to-last place only with the cooperation of the last-place team, Kansas City. Both lost.

But as the Angels lost their fourth game in a row, 9-3 to Seattle before 28,942 in Anaheim Stadium, they awaited word on a far more serious threat to their dimming dream of contention.

Chuck Finley, who would have been seeking his 15th victory, was scratched from Saturday’s game because of an inflamed left big toe. As they played, the Angels were left in uncomfortable suspense, awaiting results of a bone scan conducted Saturday evening at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Orange.

The Angels, who fell nine games behind the division-leading Minnesota Twins and remain a half-game ahead of the last-place Royals, have spent the season in a futile search for a fifth starter, at times resorting to a four-man rotation. Suddenly, they were faced with the prospect of losing one of their two 14-game winners as they begin a nine-game home stand against three of the teams they trail in the American League West. On the heels of the home stand awaits an 11-game trip against the same teams.

Manager Doug Rader said Finley had first experienced the problem during spring training, but that it had become very painful Friday, when Finley sought treatment Friday for the toe, which is on the push-off foot for the left-hander.

“It was too uncomfortable to deal with at present,” Rader said. “To protect him, we skipped over him.”

The fear is that Finley might risk more damage to the toe or his delivery by continuing to pitch despite the pain. The bone scan was conducted to determine if there is a fracture of any sort.

The pitcher had a similar problem in April, trainer Ned Bergert said, adding that it “resolved itself in about 48 hours.”

With Finley a late scratch, Kirk McCaskill, who had already left Friday night when the decision was made that Finley would not start, learned that he would pitch a day early on Saturday morning.

McCaskill was pitching on three-days’ rest, after ending his own five-game losing streak last Tuesday by going seven innings and giving up two runs in a 4-2 victory over Cleveland.

McCaskill gave up a two-run homer to Alvin Davis in the second inning and another two-run homer in the sixth, to Jay Buhner. He left after 6 1/3 innings trailing, 5-1. He was charged with six runs, five earned, on eight hits and walked three.

The Angels scored three runs or fewer for the 29th time at home this season, and for the 24th time, they lost.

The Angels were held in check by Randy Johnson (10-7), a former USC pitcher who had 11 strikeouts in seven innings. He held the Angels to two hits through six innings, and left after seven, giving up two runs on six hits and walking only two. At one point, he struck out seven of eight.

McCaskill (8-14) gave up a single to Pete O’Brien in the second inning, and the Angels quickly trailed, 2-0, after Davis hit a high drive to right for his 10th homer of the season.

Greg Briley then reached on a one-out single, stole second, and went to third on a fly ball to center.

With two out and Briley on third, Omar Vizquel dropped a soft bunt to the third base side. McCaskill got to it, but couldn’t pick it up. Briley scored, and Vizquel was safe at first with a hit.

The Angels countered with some aggressiveness of their own in the third inning, when Shawn Abner, making his Angel debut, hit a one-out bloop to shallow right, and then headed for second. He looked like he would be caught easily, but with the throw slightly off-line, he slipped in safe. Minutes later, he scored when shortstop Vizquel threw wildly to first on Dick Schofield’s grounder.

The Angels loaded the bases on Luis Sojo’s infield hit and Bobby Rose’s walk, but they came up empty when Dave Winfield grounded into a double play.

The Mariners opened a 5-1 lead in the sixth on Buhner’s two-run homer, his 19th of the season and his second in two nights against the Angels.