Anderson Is Low-Key About RBI Milestone

Garret Anderson shrugged and tilted his head.

One thousand runs driven in? Just another day at the ballpark for the Angels’ unemotional leader.

“It kind of slipped my mind,” he said. “I knew I was close when we got back from the road trip, but you can’t get caught up. I just focus on the present.

“I still have a lot of games to be played. They’re steps on a timeline of a ballplayer.”

Anderson wasn’t downplaying his milestone. It was just that he took more pride in his 999th and 1,000th RBIs proving the difference in the Angels’ 5-3 win over the Dodgers on Sunday.

The runs batted in came in the eighth inning. Anderson drove a Duaner Sanchez pitch off the wall in right-center, scoring Darin Erstad and Vladimir Guerrero.

“I saw them when I rounded first,” Anderson said. “I knew [Guerrero] had the intention of scoring; he read the ball off the bat. That was cool.”

Anderson was presented the ball as a memento.

“I’ll put it in a sanitary [sock] and in a box, along with all the other balls,” he said.

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Right-hander Kelvim Escobar said he was unsure of the day he would undergo surgery this week to shave a bone spur in his right elbow but reiterated that he had no regrets in waiting so long.

“No, because I did what they told me,” Escobar said, referring to the Angels. “I was just hoping with the therapy and anti-inflammatories I could pitch through it ... and avoid the surgery. I guess it’s time because I knew at some point in my career I’d have to do it.”

Escobar, 29, underwent a similar surgery in 1997 and said he was expecting to be back in the rotation “in two months.”

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With Casey Kotchman and Robb Quinlan at triple-A Salt Lake, Manager Mike Scioscia said Sunday that backup catcher Jose Molina was the backup first baseman, surprising Molina.

“Who said that? Then that’s an emergency only; that’s got to be a 911 emergency,” Molina said.

Molina has played two games at first, both last year, for a total of six innings.

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Third baseman Dallas McPherson sat out with a sore left groin and expects to sit out again today.... Fights broke out in the stands for the second game in a row at Angel Stadium. Saturday night, several rowdy incidents were observed in the upper deck, and Sunday a brawl occurred on the field level.... The announced weekend attendance of 132,192 set a three-game series record at Angel Stadium.

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The battle over the Angels’ name change is scheduled to be waged on judicial and legislative fronts today.

The state 4th District Court of Appeal is slated to rule today on Anaheim’s request to overturn the name change until a trial can decide whether, as the city alleges, the change violated the Angels’ stadium lease. The city wants the court to order the Angels to remove “Los Angeles” from their name at once.

The loser can appeal to the California Supreme Court. If the Angels lose, they can ask that today’s ruling be put on hold until an appeal is heard. But legal observers said there was little chance that the Supreme Court would agree to hear an appeal from either side, in part because the Nov. 7 trial date is approaching.

Also today, in Sacramento, the Senate Business and Professions Committee was scheduled to vote on the bill that would require the Angels to include ticket and advertising disclaimers that warn fans that the team plays in Anaheim, not Los Angeles.

The bill, which was written by Assemblyman Tom Umberg (D-Anaheim), passed the Assembly last month. If approved at today’s hearing, it would move to the Senate.

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Times staff writer Bill Shaikin contributed to this report.

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ON DECK

Opponent -- Texas Rangers, four games.

Site -- Ameriquest Field.

TV -- FSN West all four games.

Radio -- 710, 1020.

Records -- Angels 45-29, Rangers 38-35.

Record vs. Rangers -- 7-2.

Tonight, 5 PDT -- Bartolo Colon (9-4, 2.99) vs. C.J. Wilson (0-1, 5.40).

Tuesday, 5 p.m. -- Jarrod Washburn (4-3, 3.35) vs. Kenny Rogers (9-3, 2.46).

Wednesday, 5 p.m. -- John Lackey (6-2, 3.50) vs. Ricardo Rodriguez (2-1, 4.76).

Thursday, 11 a.m. -- Ervin Santana (2-2, 4.71) vs. Chris Young (7-4, 3.21).