Matthews has MRI on left knee

The Angels are concerned enough about the left knee of Gary Matthews Jr. that the outfielder underwent an MRI test on Thursday and will be examined by Dr. Lewis Yocum today, Manager Mike Scioscia said.

Matthews irritated his patellar tendon last September, an injury that knocked him out of the American League division series against the Boston Red Sox.

The knee has bothered Matthews for most of a disappointing 2008 season, in which he is batting .235 with seven home runs, 34 runs batted in and a .310 on-base percentage.

“No doubt, it’s affected some of the things he needs to do,” Scioscia said. “From the left side, it’s hampered some of the things he wants to do in the box.”

Matthews, who has started once in the last six games, has struggled so much since June 27, batting .139 (five for 36) with one RBI, that he has been benched most nights in favor of Juan Rivera.

“There’s a line between being able to do the things you need to do and where it affects you to where you’re not productive,” Scioscia said. “I’m sure at times he’s crossed that line. Right now, he’s going to get evaluated to see what he can do to get back in.”

Scioscia said Matthews’ MRI results weren’t available Friday. Matthews, in the second year of a five-year, $50-million contract, declined to elaborate on in his injury.

“Right now,” Matthews said, “I just stink.”

It takes a thief

Opponents have stolen 28 straight bases against the Angels since June 18, a statistic that is gnawing at catcher Jeff Mathis.

“Yeah, it bothers me; it’s something you take pride in,” Mathis said. “All you can do is make your delivery and make a good throw.”

That delivery was a problem in June, when mechanical flaws caused a number of Mathis’ throws to sail into center field -- he had six errors in 13 games from June 9-28. But Mathis believes he has ironed out the problem with extra side work.

“A lot of it was me rushing,” Mathis said. “That caused my throwing mechanics to get out of whack.”

Mathis probably will need to be in top form against the Red Sox, the erstwhile station-to-station outfit that now, with speedsters such as Jacoby Ellsbury and Coco Crisp, ranks second in the league in stolen bases with 78.

“This is the first time in a while they’ve had this kind of team speed, and they’re taking advantage of it,” Scioscia said. “If the opportunity is there, they’ll take it.”

Flip-flop

Jon Garland was scratched from today’s scheduled start because of stiffness in his neck, and the right-hander was pushed back to Sunday. Left-hander Joe Saunders, originally scheduled to pitch Sunday, will start today.

“I woke up [Thursday] and was stuck,” Garland said. “It was hard to turn my head. I can’t remember the last time something like that has happened. But I feel a lot better.”

On the mend

Mike Napoli, on the disabled list because of an irritated right shoulder, took early batting practice, soft toss and hit off a tee Friday. The catcher hopes to begin throwing in the next few days.

“It was a little sore [Thursday] from all the exercises,” Napoli said. “But I was re-evaluated [Friday] and there was no pain doing any of the motions. So that’s a good sign.”

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mike.digiovanna@latimes.com