BASEBALL A.L.

Anaheim Angels www.sportingnews.com/baseball/teams/angles

56-54

3rd West

The little things add up to a big season for rookie Eckstein

Rookie SS David Eckstein has stayed in the lineup because he does so much for the team that isn't recognized outside the clubhouse. Eckstein is tied for the league lead in sacrifice bunts (11), is second in the league in being hit by pitches (14) and works counts better than anybody on the team, says manager Mike Scioscia. Defensively, Eckstein has held his own despite his inexperience. He has made 12 errors. Those small successes have helped him through the normal rookie slumps and kept him playing despite fellow SS Benji Gil's .332 batting average.... Though RHP Al Levine yielded a game-deciding, two-run homer to the Yankees' Tino Martinez last Saturday, he has been the club's best reliever outside of closer Troy Percival. Even with Martinez's homer, Levine has allowed only three earned runs in his last 25 2/3 innings. He leads the bullpen in first-batter efficiency, retiring 34 of 43 (79 percent), and his ERA is 2.24. The reason for Levine's success is his ability to hit his spots. He has walked only 16 batters in 56 1/3 innings and makes hitters put the ball in play. He has become Percival's primary setup man and is the first reliever Scioscia goes to in a save situation when Percival needs a day off.

SCOUTING REPORT: RHP Shigetoshi Hasegawa has become a steady and reliable setup mall. He led the team with 10 wins last year and had nine saves. This season has been difficult for Hasegawa, who endured his first stint on the D.L. since coming from Japan in 1997. He had a partially torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder and missed five weeks in May and June. But he has come back strong, going 1-1 with a 2.08 ERA in 12 games since. Hasegawa has to be cautious because of the injury and isn't throwing as hard. And Scioscia is reluctant to use Hasegawa in back-to-back games. What has not been affected is what has made Hasegawa so effective: his ability to hit his spots and throw strikes. He says the slower arm action creates a better break on his slider.

SEE A DIFFERENT GAME: LHP Scott Schoeneweis was inconsistent in late June and July, and pitching coach Bud Black determined that Schoeneweis' arm angle during his delivery had dropped, causing his slider to flatten out and not allowing his sinker to sink enough. So Black came up with a drill to get Schoeneweis' arm slot to three-quarters or higher. Black had Schoeneweis field ground balls at second base and throw to third base, using the same arm angle a righthander would use throwing to first from the shortstop position. The drill apparently worked. In his two starts since, Schoeneweis gave up five runs in 15 2/3 innings. --Joe Haakenson