Mondesi Signing Pleases Washburn

The Angels are fully aware of Raul Mondesi’s stormy past, his run-ins with managers and his combustible clubhouse behavior, but that was hardly a deterrent to signing the outfielder Saturday to a $1.75-million contract for the rest of this season.

“I don’t know what situations he’s been in before, but I think he’ll come to this clubhouse, see how much everybody loves each other and will do what it takes to win,” Angel pitcher Jarrod Washburn said. “We police ourselves pretty well. When problems arise, we take care of them quickly. So I don’t see a problem at all.”

Washburn believes the Angel coaching staff’s familiarity with Mondesi -- Manager Mike Scioscia knows him well from their days in the Dodger organization, and first-base coach Alfredo Griffin has been to Mondesi’s house in the Dominican Republic several times -- helped owner Arte Moreno and General Manager Bill Stoneman feel more at ease with the decision to sign Mondesi.

“Arte and Bill probably look at it as our coaching staff has a background with him,” Washburn said. “They don’t want to invite problems in, but I’m sure Mike and his staff assured them that he won’t be a problem.

“To me, this is another great example of ownership filling a hole when one arises. They’re not going to sit back and let things happen like they have in the past. They’re going to be proactive and do things when they need to be done.”

Mondesi was en route from the Dominican Republic to Chicago on Saturday. Scioscia said he would evaluate Mondesi’s physical condition before determining whether he will start him in center field against the White Sox today.

Mondesi, whose contract was terminated by the Pittsburgh Pirates on May 19, hasn’t played since May 6. He will probably bat sixth or seventh at first but probably will move to the fifth spot behind Jose Guillen eventually.

“You don’t want a guy swinging and popping a rib-cage muscle or running out a ground ball and popping a hamstring,” Scioscia said. “We’ve got to see ... whether he’s in shape.”

A brief minor league stint for Mondesi wasn’t an option because the Angels would have had to put him on the disabled list -- making him unavailable for 15 days -- or option him to the minor leagues, which would require that he pass through waivers.

To make room for Mondesi on the 25-man and 40-man rosters, the Angels designated utility player Adam Riggs for assignment.

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Scott Schoeneweis, who will start today for Chicago, holds no grudge against the Angels for trading him to the White Sox in July. But Angel fans seem to hold a grudge against him.

Schoeneweis is still stinging a bit from the hostile reception he received in Angel Stadium in August when he made a relief appearance for the White Sox two weeks after the deal.

“I was there for a long time and I’ve heard people booed, but I hadn’t heard the fury of the boos until I came back,” Schoeneweis said. “I didn’t understand it, because I didn’t ask to be traded. It felt like they had something personal against me. This is baseball, and trades are part of the game. Maybe they just generally didn’t like me.”

Angel fans remembered Schoeneweis’ public complaints about being demoted from the rotation to the bullpen in June 2002, but their response was probably driven more by Schoeneweis’ criticism of the fans Aug. 29, 2002.

On the last night before players were set to go on strike, Angel fans littered the field with debris in protest. As the team’s player representative that season, Schoeneweis was the voice of the Angels on labor matters, and he was asked to respond.

“When 4-year-olds get frustrated, they throw stuff,” Schoeneweis said. “Grown adults shouldn’t do that. We’re not trying to ruin anyone’s fun.”