ANGELS REPORT

Tim Harkrider can proceed with his lawsuit against the Angels after a Texas judge denied the team’s request to dismiss the case.

Harkrider charges the Angels with failing to fulfill their contractual obligation to provide quality medical care, preventing him from recovering from an ankle injury and advancing to the major leagues. The Angels deny the charges.

The Angels asked for a summary judgment, arguing that Harkrider could not sue because he was covered--and paid--under workers’ compensation law. However, the court ruled, Harkrider produced enough evidence to cloud issues of contract rights and warrant a jury trial.

Harkrider, a minor league shortstop and top prospect before his injury, is seeking as much as $17 million in damages under the apparently unprecedented claim that he would have played in the majors for 10 years and should be compensated accordingly.

The trial is set for January. The Angels now have lost two motions to dismiss the case and another to force Harkrider into binding arbitration.