New Climate Helps Revive the Angels

OAKLAND —  After winning just one of five games in absolutely dismal weather in Milwaukee and Chicago, the Angels were greeted Tuesday in Oakland Tuesday an old familiar friend . . . the sun.

The reunion--and the accompanying 78-degree temperatures--helped thaw a cryogenic offense, and the Angels rode the heat wave to a 7-3 victory over the Oakland Athletics before 7,154 in the Oakland Coliseum.

“We were just happy to be back in California,” said Jim Edmonds, who singled, doubled and homered to help the Angels stop a four-game losing streak. “It was just miserable in Chicago, and the whole team was excited to be back in warm weather. It really helped a lot.”

The Angels didn’t arrive from Chicago until about 2:30 a.m. Tuesday, and pitcher Mark Langston, who gave up two runs on eight hits and struck out seven to gain the victory over the Athletics, admitted being a bit groggy.

But the summer-like conditions sent a surge through the Angel clubhouse before the game and enabled the Angels to take batting practice for only the second time in six days.

“It was nice not having to bundle up out there,” shortstop Gary DiSarcina said. “It gets old waking up in your hotel room every day, . . . and thinking, ‘There’s no way we’re going to play today.’

“You go to the park, there’s no batting practice, the tarp is on the field . . . there’s always a chance the game can be canceled, and that makes it hard to prepare for.”

The Angels seemed more than ready for Oakland starter Ariel Prieto, scoring seven runs on 10 hits in four innings. All 11 of the Angels’ hits came in the first five innings.

The Angels hit two home runs in the previous five games; they hit three Tuesday night. They scored five runs in three losses to the Chicago White Sox in Comiskey Park; they had five runs by the fourth inning Tuesday night.

Edmonds, who broke out of an 0-for-10 skid, hit a two-run home run to center in the fifth. He also doubled and scored in the first and singled and scored in the third.

Right fielder Tim Salmon doubled in a run in the third for his first RBI in five games and only his sixth extra-base hit of the season. Left fielder Garret Anderson, who had been three for 18 on the trip, hit his first home run since April 10. It was his fifth RBI of the season.

Designated hitter Chili Davis, one of the few Angels to avoid a virtual team-wide slump for much of April, set the tone for the evening with a towering two-run homer to right in the first.

“It’s nice to get back in the warm weather, you’re body just feels loose,” Langston said. “But the run support was the real difference in the game. It took a lot of pressure off us and put a lot on them. It was a huge lift for me.”

Mark Eichhorn relieved Langston in the eighth but gave up a run on three hits, including Jason Giambi’s single that extended his hitting streak to 19 games. He was relieved by Mike James, who struck out pinch-hitter Brent Gates and retired Phil Plantier on a fly ball to end the inning.

Lee Smith pitched the ninth with a four-run lead and gave the Angels a slight scare, walking Allen Battle on four pitches and sending a wild pitch to the backstop.

Troy Percival, who had eight saves while Smith recovered from his knee injury, immediately began warming up, but Smith struck out Geronimo Berroa and retired Torey Lovullo (fly ball) and Terry Steinbach (ground ball) to end the game.

“Sooner or later you’re going to see these guys score some runs and get the offense going,” Angel Manager Marcel Lachemann said. “They just need to start doing it on a regular basis.”

Sluggish bats apparently haven’t been the Angels’ only problem, though. Edmonds had a long chat with Lachemann after Monday’s loss in Chicago, in which several player concerns were aired.

“There are some things wrong with this team, and we need an open relationship with everyone in this room to win,” Edmonds said. “They’re not major problems, just some small areas that need to be worked on.”