Angels Missing Key Bat : Baseball: Without Davis, California’s offense lacks some punch, which is clear in 6-3 loss to Kansas City.

The Angels hit the long ball Wednesday night. They played their usual errorless game. They got more than adequate starting pitching.

But there was something missing in their 6-3 loss to the Kansas City Royals before an announced crowd of 15,553 in Anaheim Stadium, something along the lines of a clutch hit late in the game, a guy who makes opposing managers cringe when he steps into the on-deck circle, someone like . . . Chili Davis.

The Angel designated hitter was placed on the 15-day disabled list Wednesday because of a strained left hamstring and the Angels miss him already.

Just don’t remind Manager Marcel Lachemann.

“We could bring that up every night, but to dwell on it is ridiculous,” Lachemann said. “Chili’s not here and he’s not going to be here for a while. We have to get it done with the people we’ve got. And if we sit around and wait for Chili to get back, we’re going to be in trouble.”

By no means has Davis carried the Angels to first place in the AL West, a position they still hold because of Texas’ loss to Detroit Wednesday.

Three other players--Jim Edmonds, Tim Salmon and J.T. Snow--each have more than 30 runs batted in, leadoff batter Tony Phillips has a .412 on-base percentage, the pitching has been very good, the defense outstanding.

But when the heart of the new Angel order wilted in the eighth inning of a close game after Spike Owen led off by reaching second on a double error by Royal first baseman Wally Joyner, Davis’ absence seemed all the more apparent.

Edmonds (strikeout), Salmon (groundout) and Snow (strikeout) failed to move Owen in the eighth, and Royal reliever Jeff Montgomery retired the side in order in the ninth for his 200th career save.

“I hope everybody takes [the loss of Davis] as a challenge and steps up and gets the job done,” Phillips said. “All year, up and down the lineup, guys have been coming through, and we have to keep it up.”

They almost did Wednesday. Starter Mike Bielecki allowed four runs on four hits in six innings and Snow homered in the sixth to pull the Angels to within 4-3.

But the Angels couldn’t match the Royals’ no-name offense, which featured bases-empty homers in the fourth and ninth innings by outfielder Jon Nunnally, a former Royal replacement player who played Class-A ball in the Cleveland organization last season.

Then there was that hated name, Gary Gaetti, the former Angel third baseman who was released in 1993--with two years left on a contract that paid him $3 million a year--and signed with the Royals.

Gaetti, who beat the Angels with a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth on May 13, keyed a four-run fourth with a three-run homer off the left-field foul poll, with the familiar Big A boos ringing in his ears.

“I know how disliked I am here as a player,” Gaetti said. “I’m very happy [with the Royals] because the manager has confidence in me. I didn’t have that in Anaheim.”

The Angels nearly made up that 4-0 deficit. Edmonds singled to lead off the fourth, extending his hitting streak to 17 games, and Snow singled him to third.

With two outs, Rex Hudler’s blooper off the handle of his bat landed behind the pitcher’s mound for a single that scored Edmonds.

Salmon walked with one out in the sixth, and Snow followed with a long two-run homer off Tom Gordon, cutting the deficit to 4-3.

The Royals increased the cushion to 5-3 on back-to-back doubles by Vince Coleman and Tom Goodwin in the eighth and made it 6-3 on Nunnally’s homer in the ninth.

Bielecki retired the first nine Royal batters, but Coleman started the fourth with a single to center.

After a fielder’s choice by Goodwin and a walk to Joyner, Gaetti hit his 14th homer of the season and, one out later, Nunnally followed with a long drive to center.

Edmonds went back to the wall but timed his jump a split-second too late as he leaped with his glove above the fence, slammed into the wall and fell to the warning track.

Phillips celebrated as if Edmonds had made the catch, but when the center fielder slammed his glove to the ground, it was obvious there was no ball in it. Nunnally had a home run and K.C. had a 4-0 lead.