Angels act fast to fill a need

The Angels had shown only a passing interest in free-agent infielder Shea Hillenbrand this winter, but when outfielder Juan Rivera broke a leg in a winter league game Friday, leaving an unexpected hole in their lineup, Hillenbrand went from the back burner to the front burner.

Moving swiftly to replace Rivera’s punch, the Angels on Tuesday signed Hillenbrand to a one-year, $6.5-million contract with a team option for 2008.

Hillenbrand will make $6 million next season, pushing the Angels’ projected payroll to about $106 million, and if he reaches 600 plate appearances, his $6.5-million option for 2008 will be guaranteed. Otherwise, the Angels can buy out the option for $500,000.

The deal came together quickly over the weekend, after Rivera fractured a bone in his left leg while playing in Venezuela. Rivera is scheduled to have surgery today in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and could sit out several months of the 2007 season.

“We always liked Hillenbrand’s bat,” said General Manager Bill Stoneman, who almost traded for Hillenbrand in May, “but when we got the news that Rivera was injured and it would cost him some time this season, that was the impetus to go after another bat.”

The Angels hope Hillenbrand, who hit a combined .277 with 21 home runs and 68 runs batted in while playing 141 games for the Toronto Blue Jays and San Francisco Giants last season, will provide power while leaving his troubled 2006 season behind.

Hillenbrand, 31, was critical of Blue Jays management, and his much-publicized feud with Manager John Gibbons came to a head July 19, when the two nearly came to blows in the clubhouse after a game.

“Those things are in the past,” Stoneman said. “It was an incident that happened, and it was gone. This is a new season for everybody, starting 2007.”

Hillenbrand said last summer that no one from the Toronto front office sent congratulations after he adopted a baby girl. He was further angered when he was held out of the lineup for consecutive games after his public criticism of the team.

Tensions escalated when Hillenbrand refused to sit in the dugout with the team for a game July 19. Gibbons reportedly accused Hillenbrand of writing defamatory comments on a clubhouse board and challenged him to a fight. Hillenbrand was designated for assignment and traded to San Francisco.

The Angels are not big on clubhouse distractions -- they suspended Jose Guillen for the last eight games of the 2004 season and the playoffs because of insubordination -- but Manager Mike Scioscia believes Hillenbrand’s new deal will provide a fresh start.

“It’s tough to comment on anything that happened,” Scioscia said. “I don’t know the dynamics of what was going on. I just understand it wasn’t pleasant.”

Nor was losing Rivera for the Angels. Rivera, who was expected to be the Angels’ primary designated hitter and also spell Garret Anderson in left field and Vladimir Guerrero in right field, set career highs last season for average (.310), runs (65), hits (139), home runs (23) and RBIs (85).

Details surrounding Rivera’s injury remain hazy.

“I understand Juan hit a ground ball and then got tangled up with the pitcher, who was covering first base,” Stoneman said.

The Angels won’t know how long Rivera will be sidelined “until the mending process gets started,” Stoneman said.

When Rivera went down because of a rib-cage injury last season, the Angels were 8-13 in his absence from April 17 to May 8.

Hillenbrand should fill some of the power void. He will spend the bulk of his time at designated hitter and first base and can also play third base, but his defense is considered average at both positions.

“How much playing time he gets will depend on how his offense is going,” Scioscia said. “There are a number of areas where he can help us, whether at DH, first or third. We’ll see where the fit is on any given day.”

The New York Yankees were interested in Hillenbrand as a first baseman, and the Texas Rangers expressed interest in Hillenbrand as a designated hitter, but Hillenbrand grew up in Mesa, Ariz., “and his first choice was to stay on the West Coast,” said Dan Lozano, Hillenbrand’s agent.

“Obviously, the dollars had to be right, but Bill handled it unbelievably. He knew he wanted Shea, he moved quickly, and the Angels were Shea’s first choice, so the deal was done quickly,” Lozano said. “Shea is extremely happy.”

mike.digiovanna@latimes.com

chris.foster@latimes.com